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Huggable, lovable, and fun…Sweet and Salty Teddy Bear Snickerdoodles. Homemade oatmeal cookies, rolled in cinnamon sugar, then generously decorated with both white chocolate and milk chocolate. These cookies are shaped into the cutest, fattest little Teddy Bears, made effortlessly by shaping the dough into round balls. Stuff with salty pretzel pieces before baking them to perfection. There’s nothing not to love about these sweet little teddy bear cookies. Each bite is slightly crisp on the edges but soft in the center…with just a little pretzel crunch.
I have the sweetest most lovable cookies today…because we all need something sweet and smiley in our lives. We just do!
You guys, these cookies!!! I am so excited to share these cookies with you all. Just looking at them alone makes me smile. They’re truly the most lovable little cookies and I really, really hope they bring some much-needed joy to you all today. I made these cookies this week after seeing the cutest little teddy bear photo on my Pinterest feed. The photo made me immediately smile. I was instantly inspired to create the cookie version, because you know, what’s even better than a cute bear photo? An even cuter, even sweeter, real-life cookie that’s not only fun and easy to create, but delicious too.
Here’s the truth. I know things have been hard this week. Everyone is struggling and everyone is feeling a little bit on edge. These are certainly strange times, and I’m sure the days are starting to feel long. So my goal? To bring you all the fun, happiness, and deliciousness I can.
Yes, I’m hoping these cookies can bring you some much needed Friday cheer…or just a fun cookie to bake up on a Friday night spent at home.
(dough balls before assembling, full body teddy bears at the top, faces at the bottom)
The inspiration.
As mentioned, I saw a photo of a teddy bear and immediately thought to make cookies.
With things being the way they are, recipe development has been hard. Food is a little hit or miss around here and I know it’s the same for many of you. I also know that a lot of you have been finding comfort in baking, so I figured this could be the perfect recipe to share today.
I also know that many of you are looking for activities to do with your kids. So I kept that in mind while creating this recipe and I tried to keep the steps simple and EASY. But let’s be real, I did that more for my own sanity. I’m no professional baker, and certainly not a professional dessert “decorator”. I’m right there with you all when it comes to decorating…perfectly imperfect!
So… the inspiration was first a photo, then all of you, and then it was your kids…but most importantly? I really just wanted to create an easy and delicious cookie recipe for all of us to enjoy today. Because Friday’s need cookies…especially this week!
Here is how to make these sweet and salty Teddy Bear Snickerdoodles.
One, gather your ingredients. You’ll need the basics…butter, sugar, flour, oats, etc. Plus some cinnamon sugar. Simple, nothing fancy, but all good.
Two, the additions are the most important part. You’ll need old fashioned oats, salted pretzel twists, white chocolate, and semi-sweet or milk chocolate.
Three…beat, mix, stir, roll…a lot of dough balls out. Then roll through cinnamon sugar, add pretzel pieces, bake, wack that pan on the counter, bake again, decorate, have fun…and enjoy way too many cookies.
Yes, there’s not one complicated thing about this recipe. These are easy cookies that are hard to mess up…because they’ll always turn out cute.
Attaching the pieces to form the bears…
As you all know, I am no professional when it comes to decorating sweets. BUT I still love to make my desserts look as cute as possible. Enter these cute Teddy Bear cookies.
The idea is to take the oatmeal cookie dough, roll it into tiny balls, attach them together into a “Teddy Bear” body, and bake. If you use the photos as guides, it’s the easiest cookie. Not to mention, so much fun! No stress, no pulling out your hair, just fun. Exactly what baking should be.
Now, attaching the pieces? This is the step that you might think could be tricky, but it’s actually so easy. To make each Teddy Bear, just gently push the dough balls together. Once again, use the photos as guides. Nothing needs to be shaped perfectly or lined up just right. As long as you have a rough body formed, the cookies bake up like adorable fat little Teddy Bears.
The process of rolling the balls will take a little time, but to me, this is easier than cutting out shapes…and I think these are way cuter, not to mention a little more unique. Everyone bakes cookies, but let’s bake something a little different!
Decorating is easy.
Since the cookies themselves are already so cute, decorating is EASY. I used melted white chocolate and melted milk chocolate to simply draw on the bear’s faces, hands and fat little stomachs.
So simple. So delicious.
What I love about these cookies is that they’re so easy to make. They require no chilling and I almost always have these ingredients on hand. And when it’s Friday night and the urge for a delicious yet simple oatmeal snickerdoodle cookie comes on? These cookies will be my new go-to.
They’re just perfectly crisp on the edges, but soft in the center, heavy on the cinnamon, with a nice crunch and a little saltiness from the pretzels on top. The best kind of cookie.
Bake these tonight, or sometime in the next few days. Promise you, these are sure to keep your kids busy…and certain to put a smile on everyone’s face.
Looking for some other kid-friendly baking ideas? Try these…
Cinnamon Sugar Brown Butter Popovers
Chocolate Covered Brown Butter Krispie Treats
If you make these sweet and salty Teddy Bear snickerdoodles, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Sweet and Salty Teddy Bear Snickerdoodles
Servings: 12 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 511 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1/3 cup cinnamon sugar (optional)
- 3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate or milk chocolate melted
- 6 ounces white chocolate, melted
- 1 cup mini pretzel twists
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until combined. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add the vanilla, beating until creamy. Add the flour, cinnamon (if using), baking soda, and salt. Fold in the oats, mixing until combined. 3. To make full-size teddy bears, roll about half the dough into 24 (1 tablespoon size) balls. These are the head and stomach. Roll the remaining dough into 72 (1/2 inch size) balls. These are the feet, arms, and ears (see above photos). I find it easiest to make all the parts first, then assemble.4. If desired, coat all of the balls in cinnamon sugar. 5. On the prepared baking sheet, place the 2 of the 1 tablespoon size balls side by side, gently flatten until 1/2 inch thick. Attach 6 of the 1/2-inch balls for arms, legs, and ears. Repeat with the remaining dough, arranging the bears 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Add pretzel pieces to the top of the ears (see above photos for visuals, this will help!).6. Transfer to the oven and bake the teddy bears for 8 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and tap the baking sheet on the counter 2 times to flatten them down. Return to the oven and bake another 3-4 minutes or until the cookies are just beginning to set on the edges. Let cool.7. To decorate. Transfer the melted white chocolate to a ziplock bag and snip a very small portion of the corner off the bag. Use the bag to draw on the stomach, mouth, eyes, ears, and hands. Do the same with the melted semi-sweet chocolate, decorating as desired, have fun with this!! Let the chocolate on the bears harden at room temp for 1 hour or 15 minutes in the fridge.8. If you prefer to make just the teddy bear faces, roll about half the dough into 20 (1 tablespoon size...or a little larger) balls. Roll the remaining dough into 40 (1/2 inch size) balls. These are the ears (see above photos). Decorate as directed above.
Notes
Freezing: cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw, then decorate as directed.
Cinnamon Sugar: mix 1/3 cup sugar with 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon. Store in an airtight container.
These cookies were great! I added some more flour because otherwise they were hard to roll, but they came out really nice. The cookies spreaded a lot in the oven, so I had to cut some of them but after decorating them, they looked very cute. The taste was also really nice.
Hi Mona! I am so happy these turned out so amazing for you! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
These were amazing! I added some extra flour because I couldn’t roll them easily, but they came out great! They spreaded a lot in the oven, so they sticked a bit together, but after cutting and decorating them, they looked really cute. The heads of the bears easily came loose, but the taste was great!
Amazing!! I am really happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Karla! Thank you for trying this! xTieghan
Stupid rookie mistake! ?
I used the website portion generator to half the recipe and turned on the metric system. But I kept looking at the 1 cup butter, but it didn’t change. It wasn’t halved. And I thought this is a lot of butter for this batter, and it came out sticky of course. And the bears spread like crazy. And then I realized that it said here 1 cup for the full recipe and 1 cup for the half recipe.
I’m gonna have to try it another day and try to save the rest of the cookie batter somehow ?
Hi Mariam! I am really sorry about that! I will fix this! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Sooo cute! I have everything except dark brown sugar in my pantry. Would they still turn out if I used light brown sugar instead do you think?? Feel bad going to the store right now with this covid 19 stuff for just one thing 🙁
So stinking cute though!
Hi Katie! Yes, I think they should still turn out well for you! I hope you love these! xTieghan
I made these & while the flavor balance was great, they were really dry. I even tried baking them again 1/2 the time, but that didn’t really help. The only modification I made was using coconut sugar instead of the granulated, but I’ve never had that swap dry things out before. I still have some of the dough – any suggestions for what I can add to it to make them more moist? Thank you!
Hi Meg,
I am so sorry you had an issue with the cookies. I would recommend making sure the dough is at room temp before baking to avoid dryness of the cookies. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
My first reaction when I saw this recipe was to smile. Food that makes me happy? I’m in! So I knew I had to try this recipe. I had some experience since I had made -and adored!- the Santa cookies from last Christmas which also consist of balls of dough. Therefore, I was completely sure this recipe was going to be a success. The bears are adorable and delicious, fun to make and perfect for weekend night baking. I’m sure I’ll be making these cookies again. Thanks for making us smile with your wonderful work, Tieghan. Take care xx
Hi Cristina! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you! Thank you so much for trying it! xTieghan
Well, these were super fun to make! Let’s face it, I’ve got a lot of time at home right now, so a time consuming baking project was perfect! I followed the recipe exactly, and they came out just right. My sister made your Santa cookies and they were amazing, so I had to show these off to her. We both love your blog!
I am so glad these turned out so well for you, Noelle! Also, so amazing you both have been enjoying my blog, thank you! xTieghan
My son and I made these today and if I could give more stars I would! They are sooooo cute and taste so so so yummy too! The recipe is simple and easy to follow. We had a blast making them! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Thank you Jade! I am so glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Well, I have to agree with the reviewer who said the decorating was hard—and I’ve done piped frosting before. I used Lindt white chocolate because I’ve had issues with white chips not melting. Wondering if you used candy melts, Tieghan? My white chocolate would not flow smoothly to give me a good base over the nubbly cookies. Maybe I didn’t melt long enough, but I’ve had problems with it seizing up, and it seemed liquidy enough. I decided less is more and used mini chips for the face and buttons, didn’t ‘bother with teh paws. No pretzels but that didn’t matter. Mine looked very amateurish, not up to my usual standards. I”m sure the grandkids will enjoy them, though….
Hi Marlene! I usually use tollhouse white chocolate chips! I am sorry you had trouble with the frosting, but I hope they still taste amazing! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
I LOVE this idea, Tieghan! So creative! I want to make them to send to my grandkids, a boy age 3 ½ and twin girls 1 ½. If I wrap each individually In plastic wrap and send priority mail, do you think they will hold up? This is a great project while we have to stay home.Thanks so much.
HI! Hmm, these are a little delicate so I worry they could break. If you wrap them well I think it should be fine though. What a cute idea!! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
I made a double batch of these and when decorating said I’d never make them again because I became quite frustrated. However, the next morning I made up 7 plates of both the full body bear and just the heads and covered them with plastic wrap and then attached a picture of what they should have looked like and then a message about how much love was packed in the adorable little bears, and how I wish I could give them a great big bear hug right now but that was not possible given our situation we are in, and that these adorable little Teddy Bears would have to suffice for now. I then delivered to seven friends doorsteps and sent them a quick text telling them that there was a surprise at their door. I could not believe how it made them feel. They actually turned out quite cute!. I just made my 2nd double batch and am rolling balls now. I plan on delivering plates of bears to people to brighten their day until this passes.It is my mission to cheer as many people up as I can! Thanks for the inspiration to brighten someone’s day!!
Oh wow! That is so sweet of you to share these cookies with your friends! I am sure it made their day! Thank you so much for trying these, Carmela! xTieghan
Oh my goodness! These are so cute!!!!!
Thank you so much Tori! xTieghan
M having a hard time molding consistent cookie dough sizes, any suggestions?{
Hi Kerry! I would recommend using a spoon to help measure out each ball evenly! Please let me know if you have any more questions! xTieghan
These were as cute as they were delicious! A great activity when are stuck at home.
Yes! I am so glad these turned out so well for you Sarah! xTieghan
Thank you for the much needed smile first of all! These are too cute for words! And I’m sure that they are tasty too, I can’t wait to try this recipe with my family. I was just laid off from my job this week & looking for some much needed inspiration. This was perfect, Thank you!
Hi Mari! I hope these recipe turns out super well for you! I also hope you find this time to be relaxing! xTieghan