Description
These Cake Mix Crinkle Cookies are easy and fun to make, perfect for holiday celebrations or anytime you want a simple, colorful treat. With a soft, cakey texture and a delightful crinkled powdered sugar coating, these cookies are customizable with food coloring to add a festive touch. Ready in under an hour, they are a fantastic recipe for both novice and experienced bakers.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 1 box white cake mix (approximately 15.25 oz)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- Red food coloring gel, optional
- Green food coloring gel, optional
Coating
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper to prevent sticking and ensure even baking.
- Mix Dough: In a large bowl, combine the eggs, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and the white cake mix. Stir thoroughly until the mixture is smooth and fully incorporated, forming a dough.
- Add Color (Optional): Divide the dough equally into two bowls if you want colored cookies. Add red food coloring gel to one portion and green to the other. Mix each bowl well until the color is fully blended throughout the dough.
- Chill Dough: Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes. Chilling helps make the dough easier to handle and results in fluffier, better-textured cookies.
- Form Cookies: Scoop tablespoon-sized portions of the chilled dough and roll them into balls with your hands. If the dough is too sticky, sprinkle in about 1 tablespoon of flour to improve handling.
- Coat in Powdered Sugar: Roll each dough ball generously in the powdered sugar until fully coated. This will create the characteristic crinkle look after baking.
- Bake: Place the coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 8-10 minutes or until the cookies have puffed and the surface shows visible cracks.
- Cool: Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. This helps them set properly and finish baking through residual heat.
Notes
- Use gel food coloring rather than liquid to avoid altering the dough consistency.
- If the dough is too sticky after chilling, add a little flour very gradually to avoid making cookies dense.
- For softer cookies, slightly underbake by removing them when edges are set but centers still look slightly soft.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- You can customize the colors to match any holiday or theme by using different food coloring gels.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
