Cardamom Vanilla Snickerdoodles

There are two cookies I remember most from baking in the kitchen with my mom.  The first are "tea cakes" that we make every year at Christmas, and the second are snickerdoodles.  I remember rolling the dough into balls, generously dredging them in the ubiquitous sugar & cinnamon mixture, then waiting patiently in the kitchen while they baked.  What came out of the oven was a rather unassuming cookie, but it perfumed the whole house with spices.  And, they were mighty tasty to boot once I waited long enough to snatch a warm one from the kitchen table when my mom wasn't looking.  Who knew that a simple combination of cinnamon and sugar could be so delicious.

Since I'm never one to follow recipes exactly, I decided to update the classic snickerdoodle a bit.  I switched out the cinnamon for cardamom, added in a good bit of vanilla in both the cookies and the rolling sugar, and made them gluten free and vegan with a little help from babycakes.  Surprisingly, they are buttery with a crispy/chewy texture.  The wonders of coconut oil never cease to amaze me.

These are quite sturdy once they cool so they are perfect for packaging up and mailing away as well as having them out for a dessert spread or bringing them to a holiday party.  Also, they work wonders as an air freshener for your home while they are baking.  Don't be surprised if curious neighbors wander into your kitchen, lured by that heavenly smell.        

Cardamom Vanilla Snickerdoodles
adapted from here

notes - Personally, I found these to be a bit too sweet.  Next time I will probably reduce the amount of sugar in the cookie dough to just a heaping cup.  DO NOT make these larger than the size in the directions or they will spread way too much.  I tested these cookies by flattening the balls and by leaving the balls intact.  Both methods work, but leaving the balls intact produced a less flattened and more rounded cookie.   

1 1/3 cups natural cane sugar
2 tsp ground cardamom plus an additional 2 tsp for rolling the cookies
2 cups brown rice flour
heaping 1/4 cup ground golden flaxmeal
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp melted coconut oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 tbsp pure vanilla exracte

1/2 cup vanilla sugar** (or more natural cane sugar) for rolling the cookies

Combine the 1 1/3 cups sugar, 2 tsp of the cardamom, the brown rice flour, the flaxmeal, the baking soda, and the sea salt in a large bowl.  Whisk the ingredients to combine.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, applesauce, and vanilla extract until combined.  Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until a thick dough comes together.  It should look like wet sand.  Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge to chill for an hour.

While the dough is chilling, preheat your oven to 325 degrees.  When the dough is ready, cover a couple of large baking sheets with parchment paper.  In a small bowl, combine the vanilla sugar with the remaining 2 tsp of cardamom.  Scoop out small balls of dough (I used my smallest cookie scoop, but a tbsp measure would work too) and work them in your hands so that the coconut oil melts slightly and the dough starts sticking together.  If you don't do this, the dough will seem really sandy and fall apart.  Once you have worked the dough, roll it into a ball, then roll it in the cardamom and vanilla sugar mixture to completely coat it.  Put the balls on your lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart because they will spread.  If you want, you can flatten out the dough balls a bit at this point with the palm of your hand, but I found I liked the results better when I left the balls intact on the sheet.  Bake the cookies for 7 minutes, then rotate the cookie sheet and bake for an additional 7 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are crispy.  Allow the cookies to cool on the sheet for at least 15 minutes before moving them.

makes about 4 dozen medium sized cookies

**to make vanilla sugar, combine 2 cups of natural cane sugar with 2 chopped up vanilla beans in a food processor and pulse until the vanilla beans are well distributed.  Sift the sugar to remove any large pieces of the vanilla bean before using.