Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
Red velvet crinkle cookies are soft, chewy cookies with a light cocoa flavor and a powdered sugar coating that cracks as they bake.
Their bright red color makes them a fun choice for Valentine’s Day, Christmas, cookie exchanges or any occasion that calls for an easy red velvet dessert.
This recipe uses white and chocolate cake mixes to create the familiar flavor of red velvet without measuring several dry ingredients.
Once the dough is mixed, chilled and generously coated in powdered sugar, the oven does the rest of the work.
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What Are Red Velvet Crinkles?
They are red cocoa-flavored cookies rolled in powdered sugar before baking. As the dough spreads in the oven, the powdered sugar coating separates and creates the cookies’ signature crackled appearance.
They have the flavor and color of red velvet cake but are served in an easy handheld cookie.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Cake mix keeps the preparation simple.
- Chilling helps the cookies hold their shape.
- The centers stay soft and chewy.
- A thick powdered sugar coating creates noticeable cracks.
- The red color works well for Valentine’s Day and Christmas.
- The cookies can be made ahead and frozen.
How Do You Make Red Velvet Crinkles?
- Mix white and chocolate cake mixes with butter, eggs, and red food dye to create a vibrant dough, then chill it for easy handling.
- Refrigerating the dough makes it easier to handle and prevents the cookies from spreading too much during baking.
- Roll into balls, coat in powdered sugar, and bake until beautifully crackled. The more sugar, the more dramatic the cracks!
- For a Valentine’s Day version, gently press heart-shaped sprinkles into the tops while the cookies are still warm.
Don’t Forget To…
- Scroll down to print the full recipe with step-by-step instructions and exact measurements.
- Check out my Kitchen Essentials for the pans, mixing bowls, and baking tools I use to make this recipe a breeze.
- Save or share this recipe on Pinterest!
Crinkle cookies may not crack if the dough is too warm, the powdered sugar coating is too thin or the oven is not hot enough. Chill the dough thoroughly, coat each ball heavily and make sure the oven reaches 350 degrees before baking.
Old cake mix or inaccurate ingredient measurements can also affect how the cookies rise and spread.
You can experiment with other cake mix flavors, but substitutions will change the cookies’ red velvet flavor. The combination of white and chocolate cake mixes provides a mild cocoa taste while allowing the red food coloring to remain visible.
What Is the Secret to Crinkle Cookies?
Be sure to use chilled dough, plenty of powdered sugar and a properly preheated oven. The cold dough spreads more slowly while the surface dries and cracks, revealing the red cookie underneath the white coating.
Follow these tips for more defined crinkles:
- Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
- Use a cookie scoop so the cookies are similar in size.
- Roll the dough balls in a generous layer of powdered sugar.
- Do not flatten the dough before baking.
- Leave enough room between the cookies for them to spread.
- Bake the cookies as soon as they are coated.
- Check that your oven is fully preheated before adding the pan.
- Avoid overbaking if you want the centers to remain soft.
More Easy Cookie Recipes
Looking for another easy cookie to bake? Try these reader favorites:
- Cake mix cookies are a simple option when you want soft cookies without measuring several dry ingredients.
- No-bake cookies make a quick dessert when you don’t want to turn on the oven.
- Learn how to store cookies properly so they stay fresh, soft and ready to enjoy for as long as possible.
Fix baking fails fast with this handy troubleshooting guide.
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Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 white cake box mix
- 1 chocolate cake box mix
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted
- 4 large eggs
- Red Food Coloring
- Topping
- Powdered Sugar
- Heart Sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13 baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, sift together the white cake mix and chocolate cake mix until well blended.
- Add melted butter, eggs, and red food dye to the dry ingredients.
- Mix until the dough is smooth and a vibrant red color is achieved.
- Adjust the food dye as needed.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes to make it easier to handle.
- Place powdered sugar in a shallow dish for rolling.
- Scoop dough into 1-inch balls and roll each ball generously in powdered sugar.
- Place coated dough balls onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until cookies are slightly puffed and crackled.
- Cool cookies and decorate: Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack.
- Optionally, press heart sprinkles onto the tops while the cookies are still warm.
- Serve and enjoy: Serve once completely cooled.
- Store in an airtight container.
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