I’m at a loss for words.
I’ve tried writing this post several ways and nothing felt right.
I drafted a short rhyme and tried different anecdotes — from my husband mistaking almond M&Ms for peanuts to a weekend of indulgences that included a milkshake, a chocolate chipwich, Godiva cheesecake and lobster mac and cheese. All of it has left me feeling like I should survive on lettuce and live on a treadmill for a while.
Right now, my head feels empty — a blank slate. Some days the words don’t come. Other times I’m dangerously close to falling asleep from too many margaritas before I sit down to write. And then there are evenings when I can’t look away from Dancing with the Stars. Someone unsuperglue my eyes — although not when Nancy’s on.
The one thing I do want to say is: happy birthday to my dad. He celebrated another year this week, and yes, he got me — the best present he ever received. For nearly three decades his birthday has often become more about my celebrations than his, complete with pink cakes and kids’ party-style gifts while he sometimes received a giant cylinder of cashews.
So maybe I should bake these cupcakes for him. We tried them last week and he seemed to enjoy them, even if some details from the week are a fog for me.
About the cupcakes: they are essentially giant snickerdoodles in cupcake form. The cookie component is adapted from a soft, fluffy snickerdoodle recipe that leans almost cake-like in texture without losing the cookie experience. That base pairs perfectly with a simple vanilla cupcake batter lightly spiked with cinnamon, and the whole thing gets topped with a generous cinnamon cream cheese frosting. It’s a combination that feels classic and comforting.
After making chocolate chip cookie-bottomed cupcakes earlier, readers suggested trying the same idea with snickerdoodles. I loved the idea, and these are my take on that concept.
Snickerdoodle Cookie Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cookie Layer
- 1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon milk, if needed
Cake Layer
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 1 block, 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
Cookie Layer
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
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Beat butter and brown sugar in a mixer until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined, about 2 minutes. Stir in flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon until the dough comes together. If the dough is crumbly, add milk a teaspoon at a time until it holds together. Refrigerate the dough while you prepare the cake batter.
Cake Layer
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Cream butter and granulated sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
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Whisk the dry ingredients together. Add half of the dry mix to the butter mixture, stir until just combined, then add the milk. Finish by adding the remaining dry ingredients and mixing until combined.
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Line a muffin tin with liners. Place about 1 1/2 tablespoons (or more for thicker cookie bottoms) of the chilled cookie dough into the bottom of each liner and flatten slightly. Using an ice cream scoop, drop about 2 heaping tablespoons of cake batter on top of each cookie dough portion. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15–18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake portion comes out clean.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
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Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla, mixing on medium speed and scraping the bowl for 4–5 minutes. Stir in cinnamon. Frost cooled cupcakes and finish with a light dusting of cinnamon sugar. Store cupcakes in the refrigerator after they have sat out for an hour or two.
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
Here’s to returning to normal tomorrow — hopefully with fewer dessert-fueled regrets and more clarity.