These festive eggnog-spiced snickerdoodle sandwich cookies are soft and not too sweet, and filled with a silky smooth ermine eggnog frosting that’s so easy to make. They’re a delicious treat for your Christmas cookie tray!
Some links in this post may be affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- So soft and chewy: The snickerdoodle texture you love, with big eggnog flavour!
- Warmly spiced with an eggnog spice blend in the cookie dough as well as an eggnog swirl for a beautiful marbled effect. Finally, the cookies are rolled in some eggnog spice sugar before baking.
- Silky smooth ermine frosting made with eggnog takes these cookies to the next level.
- A unique festive cookie to include on your Christimas cookie tray this year!
- Perfect for gift-giving Without the ermine frosting filling, the snickerdoodles last at room temp for several days. They also hold up great to shipping!
Prefer to Watch Instead of Read?
What is Ermine Frosting?
Ermine frosting is a silky-smooth frosting made by cooking flour, sugar, and milk to create a pudding which is cooled and then beaten into room temp butter until light and fluffy. It’s very stable and just sweet enough. For this version I swap out the usual milk for eggnog for extra festive flavour.
Key Ingredients for Eggnog Snickerdoodle Sandwich Cookies
- All-purpose flour adds structure to the cookies and prevents them from spreading out too much.
- Cream of tartar is an acid that reacts with the baking soda to make the cookies puff up and get nice and chewy. It also adds a subtle tangy flavour. This is an essential ingredient for making these cookies. They just wouldn’t be snickerdoodles without it!
- Warming spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice) make these cookies taste just like eggnog. Use fresh-ground nutmeg if you can, it makes all the difference!
- Eggnog is used to make the ermine frosting instead of the usual milk.
- Coconut oil helps make the cookies soft and chewy in the middle and crispy on the outside. Use a neutral-flavoured coconut oil that stays solid at room temperature.
Making Ahead and Storing
- Freeze the dough by scooping the dough onto a lined baking sheet, covering it, and freezing until solid (about 2 hours). Store in an airtight bag or container for up to 3 months. Bake straight from frozen, adding a minute or two to the bake time.
- Make the ermine frosting up to a few days in advance and refrigerate tightly covered. Bring back to room temperature and re-whip to fluff it up before piping onto the cookies.
- Freeze the fully-assembled sandwich cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once solid, you can transfer them to an airtight bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge before serving.
Eggnog Snickerdoodle Sandwich Cookies
These are delightfully soft and warmly spiced snickerdoodles, with an eggnog ermine frosting that really takes them over the top. They can be made in advance and frozen, so you can get ahead on your holiday baking.
Ingredients
Method
Eggnog Spice Blend
- Add 2 tbsp ground nutmeg, 1 tbsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground cloves, and ½ tsp ground allspice to a small bowl and whisk to combine.
Eggnog Spice Swirl
- Add 70 g light brown sugar, 2 tsp eggnog spice blend, and 40 g unsalted butter to a small bowl and mix to combine to a smooth paste. Set aside.
Eggnog Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F (175˚C) with the rack in the middle. Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Combine the dry ingredients: in a medium bowl, whisk together 355 g all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cream of tartar, ¾ teaspoon baking soda, and ¾ teaspoon salt.
- Cream together 170 g unsalted butter 60 g shortening or coconut oil and 350 g granulated sugar until light and fluffy (3–5 minutes). Scrape the bowl.
- Add 1 large egg, 1 large yolk and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract. Mix to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix on low just until combined. Do not overmix.
- Dollop about half of the eggnog swirl paste over the dough and gently fold it in. Add the remaining paste and fold again. Just mix it in slightly, you want to see visible streaks throughout the dough.
- Portion the dough into small balls using a small cookie scoop or a couple tablespoons. Combine 1 tablespoon eggnog spice blend and 150 g granulated sugar in a small bowl for coating the cookies. Roll each dough ball in the spiced sugar. Arrange the dough balls on a lined baking sheet, leaving several inches between them.
- Bake at 350°F (175°C) until the cookies are puffed, cracked on top, and just beginning to turn golden. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet.
Eggnog Ermine Frosting
- Whisk together 65 g granulated sugar36 g all-purpose flour, and ¼ tsp salt in a saucepan. Slowly stream in 240 g eggnog while whisking to prevent lumps.
- Cook over medium-low heat while stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly (3–5 minutes).
- Transfer the custard to a shallow heatproof bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface and let cool completely to room temperature. Once cooled, remove the plastic wrap and scrape any custard clinging to it back into the bowl.
- Beat 227 g butter until light and fluffy. Add the cooled custard a spoonful at a time, beating well between additions.
- Continue beating until the frosting is light and silky smooth, about 2 minutes more. Mix in 2 tsp vanilla and, if desired, 1 tsp rum extract. Add ½ tsp eggnog spice blend
Assembly
- Pair the cooled cookies by size. Transfer the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large piping tip.
- Pipe a swirl of frosting onto the bottom of one cookie. Top with its matching cookie and gently press together.
- Unfilled cookies can be stored at room temp in an airtight container for up to a week or so. Filled cookies can stay out at room temp for a couple of hours, but should otherwise be refrigerated.
Video
Notes
The snickerdoodle cookies & ermine frosting are adapted from recipes from 100 Cookies by Sarah Kieffer. This is one of my all-time favourite recipe books, literally every single one of the recipes I have ever tried from it have been bangers. All reliable, delicious, and 100% worth the calories. Do yourself a favour and pick up a copy!
Leave a Reply