Red Velvet Cake Cookies

Red velvet cake cookies bring that signature red velvet flavor into a thick and chewy cookie, ready in about 20 minutes. They combine cream cheese in the dough with both white and semi-sweet chocolate chips for a soft texture. This is a no-chill cookie recipe with simple ingredients, so you can have freshly baked cookies fast.

I got into making chewy red velvet cookies by accident. My daughter had a school bake sale and asked for red velvet cake. I'd already committed to making cookies for my son's basketball team the same weekend. At 9 PM the night before both events, I realized I couldn't do both things. If I could make a wish to a genie in a bottle, I’d ask for more than two hands *lol*.

Thinking about making my go-to recipe, Nutella Brownies. But the kids had already warned me, “No more chocolate brownies, something else please.”

I grabbed cream cheese from the fridge and threw together what I hoped would work. The first batch came out looking almost too red, but once I tasted one, I knew I'd found something good. My daughter took them to school and came home asking why I'd never made these before. Yaayyy, we did it!

Now I make these thick and chewy cookies way more often than actual red velvet cake because they're simple and quick. No layering, no waiting for cakes to cool, no cream cheese frosting stress. Just scoop, bake, and done. My husband likes them better than the cake version, which he'll never admit in front of my mother-in-law. These have become one of my favorite things to bake when I need something impressive but easy.

WHY I LOVE THIS RECIPE

These easy red velvet cookies deliver all the flavor without the work of a layered cake. According to Washington Post, interesting fact in the United States, red velvet evolved from velvet cakes and became a celebratory dessert.

Here's why I adore this recipe, and why it'll become a staple in your kitchen, too:

• No chill time means you go from mixing to baking fast
• Cream cheese makes them soft with a slight tang
• The chocolate chips combo gives both sweetness and depth
• Simple ingredients you probably already have
• Easy to make without complicated steps
• Works as a shortcut for red velvet flavor
• Thick and chewy texture that stays good for days

INGREDIENTS FOR HOMEMADE RED VELVET COOKIES

Wet Ingredients

• 5½ tablespoon (≈80 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 oz (≈85 g) cream cheese, room temperature
• ⅔ cup (≈133 g) white sugar
• ⅔ cup (≈147 g) packed dark brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoon red food coloring (or to desired red color)

Dry Ingredients

• 2 cups (≈280 g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoon (≈12.5 g) natural cocoa powder
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

Chocolate Chips Mix

• ¾ cup white chocolate chips
• ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

HOW TO MAKE RED VELVET CAKE MIX COOKIES (INSTRUCTIONS)

Set your oven to 350°F/176°C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Get this ready before mixing because these cookies come together really fast.

Beat the butter, cream cheese, white sugar, and brown sugar in a large bowl until smooth and fluffy.

This takes about 2 to 3 minutes with a hand mixer. The cream cheese needs to be room temperature, or you'll get lumps.

Add your egg, vanilla extract, and red food coloring.

Beat until fully mixed and the color looks even. Don't be shy with the food coloring if you want that classic red look.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.

Pour this into your wet mixture.

Mix just until you don't see dry flour. Stop as soon as it comes together.

Toss in both types of chocolate chips and stir until evenly spread. The white chocolate adds sweetness, and the semi-sweet gives a deeper chocolate flavor.

Scoop the dough onto your baking sheets using a cookie scoop or about 1½ to 2 tablespoons per cookie. Leave about 2 inches between each one.

Bake for 11 to 13 minutes.

The edges should look set, but the centers will seem soft. They keep baking on the hot pan, so pulling them early keeps them chewy. Let the cookies sit on the sheet for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack.

RECIPE TIPS & TRICKS FOR EASY RED VELVET COOKIES

A few simple things make these quick and easy cookies turn out better. I've made these cookies probably fifty times at this point, and I've learned what works and what doesn't. Most mistakes come down to ingredient temperature or pulling them from the oven at the wrong time. Here's what actually matters:

• The chocolate chips combo gives a balance between sweet and rich
• Cream cheese makes cookies softer with a slight tang
• Adjust food coloring for your preferred red shade
• Bigger cookies need extra time, smaller ones bake in 9 minutes
• Room temperature ingredients blend better
• Use parchment paper so cookies don't stick
• They look underdone, but finish on the hot pan
• Feel free to add your favorite mix-ins like chopped nuts or extra chocolate chips

HOW TO SERVE THESE QUICK RED VELVET CAKE MIX COOKIES

Need something sweet? Try these cookies! I've served them at birthday parties, potlucks, and packed them in school lunches. They're good warm, room temperature, or cold. They're especially popular around Valentine's Day because of that lovely red color.

• Stack on a plate with cold milk
• Sandwich two with cream cheese frosting
• Serve warm so the chocolate chips are melty
• Pack in bags for gifts or bake sales
• Pair with vanilla ice cream
• Crumble over yogurt for texture

HOW TO STORE RED VELVET CAKE COOKIES

Store the cookies properly, and they stay soft for almost a week.

At room temperature:

• Keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days
• Put bread in the container to keep them soft
• Don't stack while warm
• Best in the first 3 days

Freezing:

• Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months
• Thaw at room temperature for 20 minutes
• Freeze cookie dough balls, then bake from frozen
• Add 1 to 2 extra minutes for frozen dough

Reheating:

• Microwave for 10 to 15 seconds
• Don't overdo it, or chocolate gets too melty

SUBSTITUTIONS FOR AN EASY COOKIE RECIPE

You can swap things based on what's in your kitchen. I've tried most of these swaps myself when I've run out of ingredients mid-recipe. Some work better than others, but they all get you to edible cookies. The cream cheese swap changes things the most, so keep that in mind if you go that route.

• Use all butter instead of cream cheese, but lose the tang and softness
• All white sugar works without brown sugar
• Swap chocolate chips for whatever you have
• Natural cocoa powder works better, but either is fine
• Skip red coloring, and the cookies will be brown
• Use salted butter and skip added salt
• Gel coloring gives more color with less liquid
• If you want a shortcut version, you can use chocolate cake mix as a base, though this from-scratch recipe gives better flavor and texture

FAQs

MORE DELICIOUS HOMEMADE COOKIE RECIPES TO TRY

• Peanut Butter Eggs Cookies
• Golden Syrup Cookies
• Christmas Shortbread Cookies
• Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies

Did you make these Red Velvet Cake Cookies? Drop a comment below and let me know how they turned out. Don't forget to leave a star rating!

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