Need a batch of cookies without all of the hassle? Grab a box of cake mix and make these Birthday Cake Mix Cookies! They couldn't be easier to put together, and bake up nice and soft after some chill time in the fridge.
It's really easy to make chewy, perfectly sweet cookies using a box of cake mix. This recipe makes birthday cake (otherwise known as funfetti) cookies, but you can add any type of mix-ins you want. These bake up so nicely!
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per cookie: $0.25
- Total Cost (about 13 large cookies): $3.24
- Those Other Guys: $3.99 per cookie
Ingredients
- Cake Mix - Grab your favorite brand - but make sure you check the total weight! The amount of mix has been slowly decreasing over the years...
- Melted Butter - For moisture and texture, we're going to use melted butter in our cookie dough. I usually use salted, but unsalted will be fine.
- Eggs - To bind everything together. I recommend using room temperature eggs if you can remember to take them out a little early.
- Vanilla Extract - This doesn't really affect the final texture, but I love the flavor boost that vanilla extract gives these cookies. If you have some, definitely include it in!
- Sprinkles - For some reason, I feel like it's always better to add sprinkles to your dough! Even if you use funfetti mix, keep a few extra sprinkles on board to add before baking.
Variations and Substitutions
This recipe will work for any flavor of boxed cake mix, as long as you make sure you have the right amount of mix!
Red Velvet Cake Mix Cookies: Super soft and with a beautiful red velvet taste! Add chopped white chocolate into the dough, or drizzle with cream cheese icing once they've cooled down.
Double Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies: Use a box of chocolate cake and add extra chopped chocolate into the dough.
Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies: Bake up some delicious strawberry cake mix cookies, and dip the bottoms in milk + dark chocolate. Yum!
Other Mix-In Ideas: You can use regular white or yellow cake mix, and stir in your favorite mix-ins like M&Ms, chopped Oreos, toffee pieces, or chopped peanut butter cups.
How to Make Funfetti Cake Mix Cookies
These cookies are so easy to make! The longest step is waiting for the dough to chill. If you have kids around, this is a great recipe to bring them in on.
Step 1: Start out by adding melted butter, two eggs, vanilla extract, and a box of cake mix to a mixing bowl.
Stir well until the flour is almost completely incorporated.
Step 2: Pour in your favorite sprinkles mix - I normally do rainbow for funfetti or birthday cake cookies.
Stir to combine, then chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
Bake at 350°F for 10 - 11 minutes, and let the cookies cool completely.
Recipe Pro Tips
- Chill the dough. Your cookie dough will be super soft, especially because of the melted butter. Be sure to chill the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes for a fluffy, perfectly baked cookie.
- Don't overbake. My oven bakes these up in 10 - 11 minutes. You want the cookies to be puffy, with the edges just starting to brown. They'll finish baking with residual heat after you remove the pan from the oven.
- Bang the pan on the counter. A baker's trick! This helps slightly deflate the puffy cookies and creates those pretty ripples on the top of the cookies.
Recipe FAQs
Be sure to check the front of your box for the weight - this recipe is for a 13.25 ounce box of cake mix.
If you used a larger box of mix, you can add a couple tablespoons of milk to add more moisture to the dough.
It could be the size of your scoop! This recipe uses 50g scoops (or about 1.8 ounces per cookie) and they bake up in about 11 minutes.
If you're using smaller scoops of cookie dough, reduce the cooking time by 2 - 3 minutes.
Yep! You can freeze both the dough and the actual baked cookies. They will be great in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To freeze the cookie dough: Scoop pieces of dough onto a parchment paper-lined pan, then pop the pan in the freezer until the dough balls are solid. Then, transfer the frozen cookie dough to a freezer-safe bag.
To freeze the baked cookies: Let the cookies cool completely, then add to a freezer-safe bag or container.
You can bake the frozen dough straight from the freezer, maybe adding another minute or so of baking time.
For frozen, fully baked cookies, let them come to room temperature on the counter before consuming.
Other Sweet Treats You'll Love!
If you tried this Birthday Cake Mix Cookies Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
Birthday Cake Mix Cookies
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Wooden Spoon
- Cookie Scoop
- Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper
- Spatula
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow cake mix 13.25 ounces
- ½ cup salted butter melted
- 2 count eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 - 3 tablespoons multicolored sprinkles
Instructions
- Pour the dry cake mix, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla extract into a large mixing bowl.1 box yellow cake mix, ½ cup salted butter, 2 count eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Mix with a wooden spoon until almost fully combined. You should see a few pockets of flour left at this stage.
- Stir in your sprinkles. By this time, your batter will be thick and fully combined.2 - 3 tablespoons multicolored sprinkles
- Cover the bowl and let the dough chill for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Preheat your oven to 350℉ or 175℃.
- Use a cookie scoop to portion out the dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.Using 50g scoops will yield about a baker's dozen of cookies.
- Bake for 11 minutes, until cookies are puffy and the edges are just starting to brown.
- Remove the pan and gently bang it against the counter. Let the cookies cool completely.
- Serve after the cookies have set. Enjoy!
Anonymous says
These were really soft and good. I used the recipe to make some last minute Christmas Box cookies, I was so burnt out from making the rest of them, and substituted the rainbow jimmies for red and green.
Shani H. says
Great idea, especially when making so many cookies for the holidays! Thank you for your comment 🙂