Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake: As Seen on Food Network Holiday Baking Championship
For those who one cookie isn’t enough, the solution may be the giant cookie glory that is the COOKIE CAKE. This Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake is composed of giant snickerdoodle cookie layers, salted chocolate buttercream, espresso mascarpone cream filling, and winter woodland decor to top it off. If you’re looking for a dessert that will not only be a gorgeous holiday centerpiece, but will bring the cozy holiday flavor through the cinnamon, chocolate, and espresso, this recipe is for you.
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About This Dessert: Holiday Baking Championship Season 11 Episode 5 Cookie Cake Challenge
First, a little background on this dessert! This holiday season, I’ve had the immense privilege of competing on Food Network’s Holiday Baking Championship! Our challenge for Episode 5’s main heat was to make a giant cookie cake using two different cookie flavors, and of course decorated in a festive way. I’ve never made a cookie cake before but I knew I wanted to bust out my snickerdoodle recipe because the soft fluffy texture would be the perfect for a cookie cake!
Since we needed to use two different cookie types, I decided to pair it with an espresso sugar cookie inspired by my go to morning coffee, a cinnamon americano. Of course, a dessert that coffee lends itself well to would be tiramisu, so to fill my cookie cake I used an espresso mascarpone filling paired with a salted chocolate buttercream! So wrapping all those components together, this dessert became a Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake.
To bring the cake some height, I chose to do some shimmering white chocolate trees paired with a fun pinecone technique using sliced almonds.
For the sake of this recipe I’m sharing, I did simplify it down to just using the snickerdoodle cookie, and amplified the espresso flavor in the mascarpone filling a bit. So, let’s get into it!
1. Making the Giant Snickerdoodle Cookies
These cookies are MASSIVE. I was giggling as I made them because they felt so ridiculously huge. These are made just like regular snickerdoodles, rolling them in cinnamon sugar and pressing them into a tall disk shape to bake.
To make the cookie layers, you’ll need a double batch of my Soft Snickerdoodles recipe! A double batch split into four even dough balls will give you a roughly 8-9″ cookie once baked. The trick to this is to weigh your mixing bowl before you make the dough, so you can subtract it from the final weight of the dough in the bowl and know exactly how much weight each cookie needs to be! Here’s the formula…
Total Weight (bowl+dough) – Empty Bowl Weight = Dough Weight
Dough Weight divided by 4 = Single Cookie Weight
Check out the Soft Snickerdoodles post for more details on the process of making snickerdoodles!
How to Bake the Giant Snickerdoodles
Bake the giant cookies at the normal 350 degrees Fahrenheit temperature! I pressed the dough (after rolling in the cinnamon sugar) into a 2″ inch tall disk to help them bake evenly.
An alternative option is to bake them in 9″ cake pans! This will guarantee the cookies will bake to the same width. Using 8″ Cake pans will result in slightly thicker layers than seen in the photos, so I recommend using 9″ if you have them. Grease the pans and line them with parchment paper to help the cookies release once baked. (Make sure to run a knife around the edges of the pan before removing cookies from the pans once cooled)
Giant Cookie Bake Time
With the cookies being so large, they did need substantially more time to bake. I found 25-27 minutes to be the sweet spot. To check if the cookies were done, I tested them similar to how you’d check a cake by inserting a toothpick into the center until it came out with just a little bit of cookie dough on it. Do not bake them until the toothpick comes out clean or the cookies will be over baked.
To ensure my cookie layers baked as uniform as possible, I did choose to bake them one at a time on the center rack. However, if your oven isn’t psycho like mine and holds a steady even temperature and doesn’t have too bad of hot spots, you might be able to get away with baking two cookies at a time on trays. Using the cake pans you’ll obviously be able to bake more layers at a time.
2. Preparing the Salted Chocolate Buttercream
This salted chocolate buttercream is super simple! It’s an American buttercream so it’s very easy to whip up quickly.
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Ingredients
- Salted Butter
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Powdered Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Fleur De Sel
- Heavy Cream
Directions
- Whip up the butter until it’s light, silky, and lightened in color.
- Slowly add in the cocoa powder, flaky fleur de sel, and powered sugar and beat for another few minutes until it’s fully combined, light, and fluffy.
- Add in the heavy cream and mix slowly to combine.
3. Make the White Chocolate Trees and Almond Slice Pinecones
Next let’s talk about the cake toppers! These sparkling trees and cocoa dusted almond slice pinecones set the tone for a woodland winter setting on this Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake.
White Chocolate (or Candy Melt) Trees
First, decide if you want to do white chocolate or candy melts for the trees! If you plan on eating the trees, I recommend White Chocolate, but if it’s mostly just for an edible decor item, Candy Melts are just fine. I prefer the bright white shade of the candy melts to be honest, and also like how the candy melts pipe and hold the shape of the branches a little easier.
Supplies:
- White Chocolate or Candy Melts
- 3 Bamboo Skewers
- Sanding Sugar
- Parchment Paper
Directions
- Lay out of parchment paper with 3 bamboo skewers evenly spaced.
- In a heat safe small bowl, melt down the white chocolate/candy melts in 30 second bursts in the microwave, stirring after each burst. Once it’s starting to melt, shorten the bursts to 10-15 seconds so you don’t burn or overheat the chocolate.
- Fill a piping bag (or plastic bag) and cut a small piece of the tip (or corner) off.
- Pipe three to four tiers of branches starting with the bottom, layering over the skewer, and then immediately sprinkle on the sanding sugar.
- Once the trees have set, carefully lift them off the parchment and flip them over. Repeat the process of piping the branches and sprinkling the sanding sugar. This will make the trees look good from the front and the back!
Cocoa Dusted Almond Slice Pinecones
These pinecones are such a fun and semi realistic looking option to garnish your desserts! Here’s a quick video that shows the process.
Supplies
- Almond Slices
- Buttercream
- Cocoa Powder for Dusting
- Parchment Paper
Directions
- Pipe one 1.5″ tall dollop of buttercream and one 2″ tall dollop on a piece of parchment paper, and chill in the fridge for a few minutes until slightly less soft.
- Arrange sliced almonds sticking them onto the buttercream, and then chill in the fridge until firm.
- Dust with cocoa powder if desired.
Espresso Mascarpone Filling
This filling is SO tasty. The creaminess and slight tang from the mascarpone paired with the bitter and roasted notes of the espresso is just too good. I love using King Arthur’s Espresso powder!
Important Note, it’s best to make this filling once you’re ready to assemble the Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake. I noticed the longer this filling sat, the more grainy it looked, so make sure everything is ready to roll when you make this component!
Ingredients
- Mascarpone cheese
- Espresso Powder
- Powdered Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Heavy Cream
Directions
- Whip the mascarpone until smooth
- Whip in the espresso powder, vanilla, and powdered sugar until combined
- With the mixture on low, slowly pour in half of the heavy cream. Scrape down the bowl, and add the remaining cream and continue whipping until the mixture reaches stiff peaks. Be careful not to overmix! (If you do accidentally overmix, add a drizzle of heavy cream and whip for a few seconds to bring it back together)
Assembly
Assembling the Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake
Once all of your components are ready to roll, begin the assembly.
Start by placing down one of the cookie layers on your serving plate.
Next, fit a piping bag with a large piping tip, preferably an 8B, and fill it with the espresso mascarpone cream.
Pipe a ring of dollops around the edge of the first cookie.
Next, fit a piping bag with a large piping tip like a 1M, and fill with the salted chocolate buttercream.
Then, pipe a ring of the chocolate buttercream inside the ring of espresso mascarpone cream.
Next, alternate piping rings back and forth between the espresso mascarpone cream and salted chocolate buttercream until the layer has been filled.
Dust on a layer of cocoa powder.
Continue layering the cookies, the alternating rings of buttercream, and the cocoa powder for the next two cookies.
Next, place the final cookie layer on the top, and pipe a ring of the 8B espresso mascarpone dollops around the edges.
For the center on the top, fit another piping bag with a medium round tip (12 or 1A, and fill it with the espresso mascarpone cream.
Finally, place dollops all over the top using the chocolate buttercream, and the two piping tips with the espresso mascarpone.
Placing the Decorations
First, carefully lift the chocolate trees and hold them up next to the side of the cake, and measure out how short the stick needs to be to push the tree all the way into the cake so the bottom of the tree will touch the frostings. Trim or break the skewers to the proper length.
Next, carefully place the largest tree towards the back center of the cake, holding on to the skewer as long as possible and avoiding pressing on the delicate chocolate tree.
Tip: Use a pair of scissors or pliers to pinch the skewer and press them in once the trees are too close to fit your hand in. If you MUST touch the chocolate part of the trees to push them in all the way at the end, make sure to be as gentle as possible and pinch the trees close to the base, in the center where the skewer is .
Finally, arrange the second and third tree layered in front of the largest tree, and place the pinecones in front of the trees.
Sprinkle on a few non pareil sprinkles and sanding sugar if desired.
And that’s it!!
Serving the Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake
This cake will produce quite a few servings! I found that it worked well to cut a slice vertically like normal, and then separate the bottom half from the top to create a doable size serving. Since it’s a four layer dessert, splitting it in half will give equal portions of cookie and fillings.
Cookie Cakes are gaining popularity so this dessert would be a fun one to bring to your next holiday get together!
I hope you enjoy this Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake recipe, it’s been so fun to share a bit of my experience on the show with you! If you give it a try I’d love to hear what you think. Leave a comment and a rating below, or tag me on instagram @the.white.whisk
Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake FAQ’s
Frequently Asked Questions
Can this cookie cake be left out at room temperature?
This cake contains a mascarpone cream filling, so it should be stored in the fridge and left at room temperature for no more than 2 hours.
Can this cookie cake be frozen?
Yes! I would recommend assembling the cake and freezing it without the toppers on. If you’d like to make the toppers in advance and freeze those separately and laying flat you could do that.
How long is this cookie cake good for?
I recommend eating this cookie cake within 4-5 days of making it! (To be honest I ate some beyond that as well and it was still delicious, but the cookie started tasting a bit less fresh)
How should you cut a cookie cake?
Depending how tall the cake is and how many layers you’re working with, I recommend slicing vertically, and then cutting that slice horizontally into your desired portion size. If you’re working with a shorter cake, one to two layers for example, you can slice it like a regular cake.
How should you bake the cookies for a cookie cake?
There are a few ways you can go about this! You can bake them just like a regular giant cookie on a half sheet pan, or you can grease and line a cake pan with parchment and press the cookie dough into that to bake. With how large the cookies can be, I found it helpful to test the center with a toothpick and bake it until the toothpick came out with just a bit of dough on it. Baking it until the toothpick comes out clean will result in overbaking.
Can I make any parts of this cookie cake in advance?
Absolutely!
The cookies can be made in advance and stored in the freezer until you’re ready to assemble.
The chocolate buttercream can be made a few days in advance if stored in the fridge, or 1-2 months in advance if stored in the freezer.
The espresso mascarpone filling should not be made until you’re ready to assemble the cake, but the stacked cookie and filling layers can be assembled and frozen 1-2 months in advance.
What can I substitute for espresso powder?
Some people use Instant Coffee as a substitute for espresso powder, but the flavor will most likely be not quite as strong. You may need to add more than what the recipe calls for, and it’s possible the instant coffee will add more bitterness.
On the opposite end of the flavor strength, would be coffee grounds. Coffee grounds should be ground as finely as possible. They likely won’t be quite as fine as espresso powder, and will have stronger flavor and gritty texture, so less should be used.
Looking for more festive recipes? Check these out!
Snickerdoodle Tiramisu Cookie Cake
Ingredients
Giant Snickerdoodle Cookie Layers
- 1 lb 11.6 oz all purpose flour (6.5 cups)
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp plus 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 lb unsalted butter softened enough to press a dent in (2 cups) *If using salted butter, do not add the 1 tsp salt
- 14 oz granulated sugar (2 cups)
- 7 oz brown sugar (1 cup)
- 4 egg plus 2 yolks
- 1 tbsp plus 1 tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar for Rolling the Cookies
- 3 tbsp cinnamon
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
Salted Chocolate Buttercream
- 12 oz salted butter (1 ½ cups)
- 1.3 oz unsweetened cocoa powder (½ cup)
- 8 oz powdered sugar (Scant 2 cups)
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp fleur de sel or large flakey sea salt
- 1 tbsp heavy cream
Espresso Mascarpone Frosting
- 6 oz mascarpone cheese cold (3/4 cup)
- 3.2 oz powdered sugar (3/4 cup)
- 1 tbsp espresso powder (preferably King Arthur)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4.4 oz heavy whipping cream cold (1/2 cup)
White Chocolate Trees
- 10 oz bright white candy melts or white chocolate
- 3 bamboo skewers
- 2 oz sanding sugar
Sliced Almond Pinecones
- 1/2 cup almond slices
- 1/4 cup buttercream
- 1 tbsp cocoa powder for dusting
Assembly
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder for dusting
- 1/2 tsp white nonpareil sprinkles
Instructions
Giant Snickerdoodle Cookie Layers
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit, and line 4 baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper. (If you have less than 4 pans, you’ll just have to bake in a few rounds rotating the pans once cool which is fine)
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set aside.
- Weigh a large sized mixing bowl and jot down the number. Then, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together in the large sized bowl using an electric mixer until well combined, about 2 minutes. (I was able to use my 5 quart sized Kitchen Aid)
- Mix in the eggs, the yolks, and the vanilla, and beat until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
- With the mixer on a low speed, slowly add in the flour mixture, and allow dough to come together just until no dry ingredient streaks are remaining. Weigh the bowl with the dough, and subtract the weight of the empty bowl to find the weight of just the dough.
- Mix together the cinnamon and granulated sugar for rolling in a medium sized bowl.
- Divide the weight of the dough by 4 to find the weight of each giant cookie. (It’s important to measure by weight here because if you eyeball it, your cookie layers may be different sizes.)
- Measure out a 1/4 of the dough and place into the bowl of cinnamon sugar. Gently roll the dough ball around until thoroughly coated.
- Place one cookie per tray and press the dough ball down it into a thick 2” inch disk.
- Bake each tray for 20-27 minutes rotating halfway through, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a small amount of cookie dough/crumbs on it. Do not bake until the toothpick comes out clean because it will be over-baked.
- When cookies are fresh out of the oven, use a big bowl that’s just slightly larger than the cookie, and move it around in a circular motion to scoot the cookie into a more perfect circle. Set cookies aside to cool.
Salted Chocolate Buttercream
- Beat room temperature butter in the bowl of an electric mixer on medium high for 4 minutes, or until the color is lighter and the butter is light and silky.
- With the mixer on a low speed, slowly pour in the vanilla, the cocoa powder and the powdered sugar along with the salt. Once the ingredients have been incorporated, turn the mixer up to medium high and beat for a few more minutes.
- Turn the mixer on low, and pour in the heavy cream. Mix until combined.
Espresso Mascarpone Filling
- Make sure to make this only once you are ready to assemble the cookie cake, because the longer this filling sits, the more grainy it may become.
- Place the mascarpone in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk on medium low until smooth.
- Add in the vanilla extract, espresso powder, and powdered sugar, and mix until everything is fully incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, slowly pour in 1/2 of the heavy cream and whip until combined, and then scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in the rest of the heavy cream and turn the mixer up to medium high and whip until stiff peaks form. (See photo in post for reference) Tip: Be careful not to over mix because the filling may become grainy or separated. If this happens, see troubleshooting option in the notes section.
White Chocolate Trees
- Lay out of parchment paper with 3 bamboo skewers evenly spaced.
- Melt down the white chocolate/candy melts in 30 second bursts in the microwave, stirring after each burst. Once it’s starting to melt, shorten the bursts to 10-15 seconds so you don’t burn or overheat the chocolate.
- Fill a piping bag (or plastic bag) and cut a small piece of the tip (or corner) off.
- Pipe three to four tiers of branches starting with the bottom, layering over the skewer, and then immediately sprinkle on the sanding sugar. Create one large tree (~8"), one medium (~7"), and one small (~6").
- Once the trees have set, carefully lift them off the parchment and flip them over. Repeat the process of piping the branches and sprinkling the sanding sugar. This will make the trees look good from the front and the back.
Cocoa Dusted Almond Slice Pinecones
- Using a piping bag or a plastic bag with a large round piping tip or a good size corner of the bag cut off, pipe one 2" tall dollop of the salted chocolate buttercream on a piece of parchment paper and on 1½" tall dollop, and chill in the fridge for a few minutes.
- Arrange sliced almonds (use the full slices, not broken/tiny ones)sticking them onto/in the buttercream, and then chill in the fridge until firm. I recommend starting at the top of the pinecone and working your way down.
- Dust with cocoa powder if desired.
Assembly
- Place down one of the cookie layers on a serving plate.
- Fit a piping bag with a large piping tip, preferably an 8B, and fill it with the espresso mascarpone cream.
- Pipe a ring of dollops around the edge of the first cookie.
- Fit a piping bag with a large piping tip like a 1M, and fill with the salted chocolate buttercream.
- Alternate piping rings back and forth between the espresso mascarpone cream and salted chocolate buttercream until the layer has been filled.
- Dust on a layer of cocoa powder.
- Continue layering the cookies, the alternating rings of buttercream, and the cocoa powder for the next two cookies.
- Place the final cookie layer on the top, and pipe a ring of the 8B espresso mascarpone dollops around the edges.
- For the center on the top, fit another piping bag with a medium round tip (12 or 1A, and fill it with more espresso mascarpone cream.
- Place dollops all over the top using the chocolate buttercream, and the two piping tips with the espresso mascarpone.
- Carefully lift the chocolate trees and hold them up next to the side of the cake, and measure out how short the stick needs to be to push the tree all the way into the cake so the bottom of the tree will touch the frostings. Trim or break the skewers to the proper length.
- Carefully place the largest tree towards the back center of the cake, holding on to the skewer as long as possible and avoiding pressing on the delicate chocolate tree.
- Tip: Use a pair of scissors or pliers to pinch the skewer and press them in once the trees are too close to fit your hand in.
- Arrange the second and third tree layered in front of the largest tree, and place the pinecones in front of the trees.
- Sprinkle on a few non pareil sprinkles and sanding sugar if desired.
Cutting the Cake
- This cake will produce quite a few servings! I found that it worked well to cut a slice vertically like normal, and then separate the bottom half from the top to create a doable size serving. Since it's a four layer dessert, splitting it in half will give equal portions of cookie and fillings.
Notes
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I hope you share the espresso sugar cookie recipe yet!
Hi Cynthia! I’m going to keep this recipe just with the snickerdoodle cookies to make it a little less complicated 😊
We loved watching you on HBC! Snickerdoodles are my boyfriend’s FAVORITE, so he was cheering you on hard. Thank you so much for sharing! Can’t wait to try this recipe at home.
Thank you so much for the support Randi!! I had such an amazing time on the show. All the connections I’ve made with fellow bakers and people who watch has been so fun.
I’ve never been a huge fan of Tiramisu but apparently what was missing is giant snickerdoodle cookies because THIS IS AMAZING!!! Such a unique flavor combo. I am obsessed.