Ingredients
Method
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place parchment paper on two baking sheets and keep them nearby. You will bake two batches of 12 cookies, so each pan will be used twice.
- In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter with 1 1/4 cups of the sugar until it forms a thick paste. Save the remaining 1/2 cup sugar for the coating. Add the egg, eggnog, and rum extract, and beat until smooth.
- Sprinkle the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt over the butter mixture. Mix just until a cohesive cookie dough forms.
- Stir the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl. Scoop or roll equal portions of dough into 24 balls, about 1 1/2 inches in size. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture and arrange 6 cookies on each baking sheet, spacing them apart so they can spread.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes, until the bottoms are golden and the tops look crackled. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Nutrition
Notes
If using salted butter, reduce the kosher salt to a pinch or leave it out.
Chill the dough for 15 to 20 minutes before rolling if it feels sticky or too soft.
Use a spring-loaded cookie scoop to portion the dough evenly and keep the cookies the same size.
Roll each ball just before baking so the cinnamon sugar coating stays thick and creates the signature crackly top.
For an eggnog glaze, whisk 1/2 cup powdered sugar with 2 teaspoons eggnog, thinning with more eggnog or thickening with more sugar as needed, and drizzle over the cooled cookies.
Store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days; they are best enjoyed within the first 2 days.
To freeze raw cookie balls, roll them in the sugar coating first, freeze on a baking sheet until solid, transfer to a freezer bag, and keep for up to 3 months. Bake frozen dough directly, adding a few extra minutes.