I really miss our childhood days and old-school ways. I remember talking to my best friend in elementary school for truly hours on our landline, until 1) I would hear clicking sounds and suspect my brother un-sneakily listening in, or 2) my mom would pick up the phone downstairs and say, "Tingo (so embarrassing), dinner!" Life moved at a slower pace before texts, emails, and facebook.

Something that stuck is my love for snail mail. So I've discovered this wonderful combination of a few of my favorite things: baking for people, cardmaking, and mailing packages! Today's packages are going to two of the funniest, most open-hearted, and biggest snickerdoodle-loving people I know--they're both December babies, so I'm a month late!


Snickerdoodles
adapted from allrecipes.com (After much comparison of recipes, I always end up using this one.)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened (I use all butter because shortening is gross.)
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 t vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 t cream of tartar*
• 1 t baking soda
• 1/4 t salt
• 2 T white sugar
• 1 T cinnamon

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Cream together butter, 1 1/2 cups sugar, then eggs and vanilla. 
3. Fold in mixture of flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. 
4. Shape dough into 1-1/2 inch balls.
5. Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon in a ziploc bag. Roll balls of dough in mixture. 
6. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
7. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until set but not too hard. Remove immediately from baking sheets.

*Cream of tartar can usually be found in a spice jar. It is a white powder that looks like baking soda. I just did some research (google) and found that cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate) is a by-product of winemaking! It can be used for various functions:
1. Keeps egg whites stable/adds volume: Add 1/8 t per egg when beating to make meringue.
2. Prevents sugar crystallization: Add a pinch for smooth syrups and caramel.
3. Activates baking soda/leavens: To make your own baking powder, combine 2 parts cream of tartar with 1 part baking soda and 1 part corn starch.