Snickerdoodle Blondies

Snickerdoodles. For some reason, I like saying that word. Despite my love of sweet treats, until I was 29 years old, I had never eaten a single snickerdoodle. Not even a store bought snickerdoodle. Then one autumn evening, I was looking for a quick and easy cookie recipe, one for which I easily had all ingredients on hand, to make for an office potluck party the next day. Snickerdoodles fit the bill and I found myself making a batch at 10 pm that evening. I remember the next day when I tried one of the snickerdoodles, I was somewhat disappointed in how crispy hard mine were. Were they supposed to be like that? Having never before eaten a snickerdoodle, I had no idea, but every last one got eaten that day so I guess they weren't too bad. Then again, as SP and I like to joke, anytime food shows up at a workplace, it disappears in record time.Since that work potluck day, I have not eaten a snickerdoodle. But I like the word. It's fun.

I just googled 'snickerdoodles' and here's what Wikipedia has to say about them:

"The Joy of Cooking claims that snickerdoodles are probably German in origin, and that the name is a corruption of the German word Schneckennudeln, which means "snail noodles." A different author suggests that the word "snicker" comes from the Dutch word snekrad, or the German word Schnecke, which both describe a snail-like shape. Yet another theory suggests that the name has no particular meaning or purpose and is simply a whimsically named cookie that originated from a New England tradition of fanciful cookie names. There is also a series of tall tales about a hero named "Snickerdoodle" from the early 1900s which may be related to the name of the cookie."Hmmm. Curious - my grandmother's family was German (one branch of the family came from Germany and set up a butcher shop in Carnegie; it's long since gone) and she made many German dishes (stollen every Christmas), but never snickerdoodles. Sometimes she called me 'Noodle Strudel." I never understood that one...One of the blogs I enjoy reading is Brown Eyed Baker. Recently she posted about S'mores Whoopie Pies - my love of whoopie pies/gobs/yum yums has been blogged about here so you know as soon as I saw that post I got all excited, started drooling on the keyboard, and texted SP that we were making S'mores Whoopies ASAP.

The same day as Brown Eyed Baker's post, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ran an article about a new Whoopie Pie cookbook and printed a Tiramisu Whoopie Pie recipe. My love of tiramisu is also well known. I hesitate to say it's my favorite dessert because as soon as I say that I think of many, many other desserts that I immediately drool over. But tiramisu would have to be near the top of the list.

Suddenly, I couldn't decide which to make first - S'mores Whoopie Pies or Tiramisu Whoopie Pies?So I had Whoopie Pies on my mind. I also recently have had s'mores on my mind a lot, probably because I sort of wish we could have had a huge bonfire on July 4 and toasted marshmallows and made s'mores. A gas grill just isn't the right marshmallow toasting device. Nor are citronella candles. And I'm jealous because my brother and his family are able to build a small bonfire and toast marshmallows, which they did over July 4.My Whoopie Pie lust came to a crashing halt when SP couldn't find graham flour at Giant Eagle Market District, plus we ran out of time because of the paint/reorganization project (whoopie pies are time consuming). So S'mores Whoopie Pies would not be possible. We also lacked the ingredients for the Tiramisu Whoopie Pies (no mascarpone, and no cream cheese which could be substituted in a pinch, I suppose).

Suddenly, it looked like not only would I not be enjoying Whoopie Pies but I would not be enjoying any type of homemade baked goodie this week. Yes, I've been eating a bit much, and yes, I could stand to take a week off from desserts, but... but... I love dessert. I was actually feeling pretty sad about no dessert and was on the verge of being kind of... mopey. What am I, five years old?!! It's dessert! Get a grip!

But then, we remembered. We remembered Brown Eyed Baker's 'Snickerdoodle Blondies' post, which appeared shortly after the Whoopie Pie post. Snickerdoodles. Cinnamon. That had been in the back of our minds. We had all the snickerdoodle ingredients on hand. These are blondies, which means plop the batter/dough in one pan and you're done. Quick & easy.

So Sunday evening, after returning home from Bahama Breeze, I measured out the ingredients while SP vacuumed, then I washed dishes while he mixed the batter, and soon enough, the smell of cinnamony snickerdoodle blondies filled the house.Ours did not finish baking until 10:30 pm. What is it with me and my not being able to make snickerdoodle treats before 9-10 pm?

We gave them an hour to cool and then covered the pan with foil. Neither of us can believe we didn't try one right away. We waited until Monday evening. SP sliced them, I took some photos, and then we each tried one.

Yum. To me, better than snickerdoodle cookies. Deliciously moist, flavorful, cinnamony. Perfect with a cup of Cinnamon Stick tea. So glad we took the time to make these late last Sunday night.And so glad Brown Eyed Baker posted 'Snickerdoodle Blondies.' Many, many thanks to her for a fabulous recipe.