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As the weather gets hotter in AZ we have to come up with more and more activities to do inside. I saw these jello cookies and knew they would be perfect for me and my son to make. Carson had SO much fun helping me with these. It was one of our favorite activities together. He keeps begging to make the “jeylo playdough and cookies!”
Make jello cookies and jello playdough with this yummy recipe!
The nice thing about this recipe is you can turn it into homemade playdough. Wash the kids hands (and counter of course) and then let the kids imaginations go wild!
Carson had so much fun smashing the dough and building BIG towers with all the colors.
Once he was tired of playing with the dough we rolled them into balls and dipped them in the jello sugar.
Don’t these cookies scream SUMMER?! I love all the bright colors! It was fun to taste all the different flavors too!
To get the flower look just smash them down with the bottom of a bowl. :)
Ingredients
- 3.5 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1.5 cups salted butter softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 4 (3 oz) pkg jello You can use any flavors you want
Instructions
- Beat butter in large bowl with mixer until creamy. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Blend in egg and vanilla. Mix flour and baking powder in a separate bowl. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
- Divide dough into 4 sections. Sprinkle 2 Tb of jello onto each section. Knead together with dough. You may want to add a few drops of food coloring to make the dough more vibrant.
- Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in the extra jello from the packets. Place, 2 inches apart, on baking sheets. Flatten with bottom of bowl.
- Bake 8 to 10 min at 350 on lined baking sheets. Cool on baking sheets 2 min. Remove to wire racks and cool completely.
The kids sure enjoyed these jello cookies! I let them each have one for being such great helpers. ;)
Thanks for reading. Come back soon!
Like this recipe? You’ll love these: best chocolate chip cookies, raspberry cookies, white chocolate and butterscotch cookies and our recipe box full of many more.
Julie
Thanks for the recipe-now I know what to do with all those boxes of Jello that I forget to use in the cupboards!
Lori @ RecipeGirl
These are completely adorable. I cannot wait to make them!
Mackenzie
So great! Thanks for this super fun idea! My little guys love to bake with me, and I can’t wait to try this with them. :)
Mackenzie
http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com
Mackenzie
We had a blast with these! Thank you for the idea! :) I linked the post up to yours.
Mackenzie @ Cheerios and Lattes
http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com/jello-playdough-jello-cookie-recipe-all-in-one/
Michelle
I LOVE this idea! Thanks so much for sharing and giving us all the diy scoop!
lisa
yum!these look sooooo good and so fun. my boys will love them!
Jessica
Oh I LOVE this idea! My boys are going to love playing with it and then eating the cookies. Thanks for sharing, and those colors are so bright and fun!
Valerie@Occasionally Crafty
So, how did they taste? Would grown-ups like them too? Looks like fun! (We’re in AZ too, so I’m always on the lookout for indoor activities. Thanks for sharing!)
Beth
Your recipe asks for sugar to be added to softened butter but its not listed on your ingredients.. how much sugar?
angela
I can’t find it either, did you ever find out how much sugar you need?
Angie
I also notice that when you print the recipe there is no sugar listed. But when I reread over the recipe on the blog, it lists 1 cup sugar :) Hope that is right…my kids and I are trying them out right now!
Laurie@TheBakingBookworm
Those cookies are so cute. I could see making them in the summer or for a baby shower. I also love using Jell-O powder as a way to tint icing.
Camille @ Makoodle
These are awesome! Great colors. My kids would love helping make these. My little girl has the same magenta shirt!
Thanks for sharing.
kelsey bang
these are adorable! i am going to make this playdough recipe with my nephews this weekend! LOVE the cute colors
Vicky
Love how you can do cookies and play dough at the same time. We are doing a rainbow theme for my kids birthday and this would be perfect to use for party favors. Thanks! Just pinned! Vicky from http://www.messforless.net
Kristyn
I know my kids would LOVE these!! Great job, girl! That top pic is gorgeous, too!! :D
Liz C
Beautiful cookies! I think my Mr. C would like to help me make these too! I also didn’t see how much sugar the recipe calls for. Thanks!
Vanessa
WOW! What a fun idea! I love the colors!!
xo!
Vanessa
Vanessa
I love how bright these are! And they look so delish. Thanks for sharing them with us!
Sue {munchkin munchies}
Your cookies are beautiful! I will be making them! :) Time to pin!
Sue {munchkin munchies}
I don’t know if I’m going crazy or what, but I don’t even see the recipe. I would love to make these!
Jamielyn
Hey Sue! Sorry the recipe widget went away, it’s back up now. :)
Sue {munchkin munchies}
Hooray! Thanks!
Sandi
These look amazing! Love the vibrant colors.
June
I could not find the jello cookie recipe on this page. They look so beautiful and delicious. Help!
Barbara
I can’t find the recipe either. They look very fun and would like to make them. I’m thinking I am blind or something!
Sharon Macias
where is the recipe for the cookie dough?
Babbling Little Booties
Wow! that is so beautiful.
Colorful cookies for the kids. I love it!
Good job on that!
Karri Reiser
These look absolutely delicious. I’m looking forward to trying them out, they will be perfect for a Summer Kickoff picnic I’m going to.
Heather
These look so fun, I love the bright colors! and it looks like your son had a ton of fun helping! Thank you for the idea!
Linda @ Home is Where My Heart is
Your children are beautiful, your cookies are beautiful and your pictures are beautiful. I feel like eating a cookie! ~Linda
Megan
I love these cookies and am hoping to make them tomorrow for a barbeque! How did you get the colors so bright and cheerful? Was it the flavors you used? Did you split the dough into four sections to color them individually? Thanks!!!
Patty @ My Craft Spotlight
Oh Yummy!! I’ll have a happy kiddo at home if I make these! I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Miranda
these so fun!! any idea how they would turn out using rice flour? just recently found out our 3 yr old has a wheat allergy
Miranda
too cute, any idea if these would turn out ok using rice flour, in the same amount i guess? just found out our 3 yr old has a wheat allergy
Janet Davies
My Mother has been making Jelly Biscuits like this for the last 40 years. They are very common in New Zealand. :) We put some of the jelly in the icing for the top of the biscuits.
Tera
Loved these! Thank you for sharing! We made them tonight for pur son’s carnival themed birthday. My blue isnt as bright as yours, although it’s perfect for this occassion. Care to share what you used to color them? I used Boss gels. Thanks again!
be blessed!
t
Rachel
These look amazing!!! I will have to try them sometime!
shelley wyatt
Did you use regular jello? Have you ever tried sugar free? My daughter is diabetic.
Melissa
I have, it works good!
Sydney
I’m a Diabetic myself, so I’m glad the sugar free works well also!
Ami w/AliLily
GAH!!! Jaime! These are so great! I saw them on Whipperberry and just had to come take a closer look. I know my sweetie lil princess would just LOVE to help me make these!! Your lil girl is looking so precious and big!
Ami w/AliLily
Sorry Jamielyn!! My phone auto-corrected your name! Lame phone!!
Maysem
Yummy looking and so pretty!! I definitely will be trying this one. Pinning it on my recipe board:)
Joan Hayes@chocolate and more
I’m in love with this! I’ve been playing around with Jello and Kool aide lately, can’t wait to give this a try, perfect way to color for any holiday or theme! Pinned!
Erin @ Making Memories
These are fantastic! Pinned them so I could make them. Thanks!
Angie @ Big Bear's Wife
How pretty!! I am in love with all of the colors!!
Katie
they look great! I do love all the colours you can make!!!
Dianne Unterbrink
Thanks for sharing this recipe! So very generous of you and I love how bright the colors are. My grand-daughter is getting to the age of play-dough play and she also loves to “help” bake/cook. This is perfect for our next visit with her. She will have fun, nannie will love seeing her having fun, and eating the cookies will be extra fun.
Since she is gluten intolerant, I have to use gluten free flour in everything we make for her. I have found that Williams Sonoma has a blend called “C4C” which stands for cup for cup. It is by far the best blend I’ve found and it works well in every recipe I’ve used it in. Just like real flour – just substitute like regular flour, and every recipe becomes gluten-free. Just thought other moms might like that info. Since you shared with me…
Hope these taste as good as they look! They sure will be fun to make.
Ahna
The colors are so fun. They would be awesome for a birthday party!
Kristy
Ooooh these look awesome~ I’m always looking for fun new cookie recipes. The fact that the kiddos can play with it while in progress is a bonus ;)
Thanks for sharing!
Natalia
If I hadn’t just come home from having gallbladder surgery, I would be heading to my kitchen to make these right now. They look so good!
Jesseca
Ok. These are seriously cute. I’ll have to make these with my son this week. Thanks for sharing!
Kari the Sweetest Memory
love the colors! Great photos!
Shawna Johnsen
Yum! Just made these (had some boxes of Jello just up in the cabinet) and turned out great! Thanks!
victoria
After finding 12 boxes of jello in the pantry while organizing this weekend, this is going to be perfect!! :)
LeAnna
I made these cookies for Mother’s Day, and instead of using a bowl to flatten the cookies, I used a glass with a pretty bottom that looked kind of like a flower. They were a big hit. Thank you for sharing!
Erin
This are beautiful! I can’t wait to make them with my little guy. :-)
Diane {Created by Diane}
oh they are so pretty!!!!
onelmon
love this idea and their colors. =) Thanks for sharing
Maureen
The above text for ingredients and instructions for the Jell-o Cookies is too difficult to read – aaargh! The lines are not spaced but instead are slightly on top of each other. I have tried three different people’s links and they are all the same. I would like to Pin to a board. Can you fix from your end?
Mindie
These cookies are so pretty and simple, love it.
Hippie Mama Kelly
I have these in my oven right now! I made fruit punch, watermelon, peach, and berry blue. I haded just a drop of gel food coloring to enhance the colors. My only question is what did you do with the remaining jello? Just throw it away? Or did you use it for something else?
Amanda
I saved my jello in snack size ziplock bags. I figure I will make these again soon and it seemed like such a waste to through all that jello out.
urbanflowerpot
I’m making these today – so excited! Thanks for the recipe – I make Jello molds a lot so this will be something different for me :)
Erin
I’m featuring your cookies over at Taking Time To Create tomorrow. I’d love it if you stopped by. :-)
kat
Seriously, am I the only one who thinks this is just dreadful?
Kyla
Yes. They are great!
Lisa
Looks great! Can you use sugar free jello?
Jo and Sue
These are sooooo cute! Thank you for sharing this delightful recipe. My sister and I blogged about these on our blog if you would like to have a peek. http://joandsue.blogspot.ca/2012/05/jello-cookies.html
Kelli Fears
Thank you for this great idea, it’s going to keep us busy on this quiet Sunday afternoon.
erin
Are you sure you didn;t leave something out of this recipe? I even added more jello than called for and the flavor is dull and not sweet at all. Disappointed!
Michelle
Do you happen to know the nutritional information for these cookies? I would like to make them, but I need to keep track of the carbs that are in our foods.
Jude
Hi Jamielyn,
I’m in Melbourne, Australia, these biscuits are genius! made them with my 4 and 2 yr olds and they LOVED playing with the dough and then rolling the balls in the jelly crystals….. such a fab idea!! Love your site!!!
Shawna Giesbrecht
Hey there, Im wanting to make these for my daughters birthday party but wondering if you have ever made them ahead and froze them? Please let me know! Thanks so much!
Amanda
I made these tonight and they are super yummy! The only problem I had was my dough was a little dry, so when I was kneading in the jello I added a teaspoon or so of water. They turned out really pretty and tasty!
Megan F
Really fun recipe! The only caution I’d provide is for purple lovers- don’t try grape Jell-O! The sugar is colorless and the cookies just have a grayish tint to them. Not really appetizing. If you stick to the color choices above you’ll be golden. :-)
Jelli
These are so pretty and look like a ton of fun to make. Just saved the recipe. I can’t wait to try it out to welcome summer!
Rhonda
Hi Jamielyn! These look awesome! What flavors of Jello did you use?
Natalie
Hi there, lovely cookies! We don’t tend to get Jello in the UK. We get block jelly, gelatine based wobbly stuff that you break up and melt with water, rather than the powdered stuff. Do you have any idea how these cookies would be different with jelly cubes instead of jello granules?
michelle
That was so fun! The strawberry ones taste like a gourmet poptart :)
Grandma Patty Ann
I love your blog. The colors are so refreshing and the ideas that are here make me want to have more children. I am thinking it would be easier to move closer to my grand children! I do wish I had this to help raise my kids. We would have had so much fun! Love, Patty
Melissa
Can you use the packaged sugar cookie mix and add the jello? I’m being SUPER lazy with this one!
Amanda
I found this on pinterest and just wanted to say thank you for the great recipe and fun idea! I made these today with my 2 year old son and he had a fun time playing with the playdough (although he wanted to eat it at first, so I let him have a taste!). The colors are so much fun and the cookies are yummy. The only suggestion I had when making them is to just at the jello mix first, mix well and then see if you need to add food coloring. Because I dumped the jello in, and then immediately added a couple drops of fodd coloring right on top. It kind of crystalized the jello and would not mix in with the dough. But I was able to just scoop it out and add more, so no big deal. Thanks again for the wonderful idea, we will make these again!
Briana Dee
These are so cool! Do they turn out to be hard cookies, or soft and crumbly? Just asking because I was thinking of shipping some to a friend.
Screendoorgirl 3
These look fun and pretty! I don’t have little ones, but I’ll sure enjoy trying them. I just pinned them . Thanks!
Jamielyn
Thanks so much! They are a fun summer treat. Have a great day! :)
phyllis asman
these is great , soo easy for kiddies to help, even young teenagers , it will be fun , thank you for having this .
Blue
cool idea, I’m gonna have to try to make it lactose/soy/gluten/casein free somehow so I can use up the boxes of jello we have stacking up…will post results later
Kyndal
It says up top that it makes about 2 dozen cookies… When we made them today I tried making six of each color to add up to 2 dozen and they were wayyyyyy too big and didn’t cook right… but my second batch I made 4 dozen and they were perfect! Huge hit with my boys!!(:
Oh, also I think I did something wrong because the dough wasnt dry enough to play with, and it was pretty sticky.. So I think we messed up a little.. They still taste good though!(:
Cathy
good idea…will have a party this tues…I’ll make this..Ty
Erika
Thanks for posting this up. I blogged about your post. My youngest will like making this.
Anna
Wow, those look amazing! I love the colours =)
Alicia Tennison
I cannot read the jello cookie recipe. It is all jumbed. Please send via email.
Debi Nattier
These look wonderful. I just have one question, after your son played with them did they get tough???? This would be so much fun, but I wouldn’t want the cookies to be hard.
WhitG
Just made them, thanks for the clever and fun idea!
nate
We recently featured this recipe in our weekly food trend post. You can check it out here -
http://blog.recipelion.com/food-trend-sweet-jell-o-recipes/
Michelle
Thanks for posting this! They came out delicious! So cute too! Its just mine came out flat, like every other cookie I make. Any suggestions on how to get them fluffy like yours? Thanks!
txsgrbny
These did not turn out for me. The dough was super greasy, needed way more flour. The jello crystals on the outside of the cookie tasted so tart we couldn’t eat the cookies! I think they would have tasted okay without the rolling in jello, that made them taste gross. The kids didn’t even want to eat them. They did enjoy making them, though.
Megan's Cookin'
Hi Jamielyn, So nice to meet you at the EVO conference. I’m loving these cookies. So colorful and fun. A “must try”!
Jamielyn
Thanks Megan, they are so fun! Yes, I loved meeting you! I finally feel rested from no sleep. lol! Hope you’re having a great weekend!
Michele
They were a lot of fun to make, and taste just great. Great family time.
Michele
P.S. better with the food coloring.
Kat
Really good!! But the next time I make these I am going to roll them in sugar instead of the jello powder because it makes the outside really sour, other then that they are great cookies and fun for a party!
Christina Fox
I remember when my mom made these for me when I was a kid, and know I’m making them for my kids.
Pavi
It´s such a good idea!!
I´d like to bake them for my 3 year old upcoming party, can I make them in advance?
Jessica
We had so much fun making these. The kids had a blast. A few thoughts: make sure to have food coloring, as without it, the cookie have a dull color. Also, be advised: these don’t taste very good. They look great and the kids will love making them, but none of us (12 year old, 5 year old and 40 year old) wanted to have seconds once we tasted them. Yuck!
emm
I’m definitely making these for the next cookie day at my daughter’s daycare!
Leslie
I totally need those colors!! What flavors did u use??
Laci
How far ahead can I make these for an event?
Nicole
Thanks for sharing! My mother makes these at Christmas. They are really tasty and I love the endless flavor possibilities.
Stephanie
I just made these.. I put the powder into my tablespoon and only got one Tblspn. So I thought maybe I am supposed to actually put the mix in the cup of water so I did it that way. Which I assumed was wrong because you’re supposed to roll it in the extra jello powder. Am I missing something?
Amanda
These look so good! I found the recipe through reddit and will be sharing with everyone!! :) You should like up your great recipes some time at my weekly recipe hop (here is the link to this week if you are interested: http://copingwithfrugality.com/2012/10/delicious-dish-tuesday-bruschetta-with-a-twist.html)
idella
great ideal was looking for cooking ideal to do with my class i have never heard of jello cookies i will be doing this with my kids thanks
Cyndi
Love this idea! Going to make them today but am curious about how much sugar to use? I see someone mentioned 1 cup? Is that correct? Thanks in advance! :)
Cristina
How wonderful!! is perfect for a fun and yummy activity with the kids, greetings from Peru!
xx
Jodi
How could I make these cookies gluten free?
Pam
which Jello to use? regular Jello or the pudding Jello ????
Lyndsie
These taste like playdoh. Yuck
Jess
These have been a hit everywhere I’ve taken them and I love them! These were the first cookies I ever baked from scratch and it was so much fun. Thank you for posting this!
Nicole
Can this dough be rolled out and used with cookie cutters? Was thinking of using this for Christmas cut outs if possible
Emily
Made these last night for a cookie exchange and they are DELICIOUS!!! I DEFINITELY would recommend using food coloring as the Jello alone put NO color into the dough but LOVE the scent of biting into them after they were rolled in the Jello. You smell the sweet Jello flavor but the Jello DOES NOT over power the cookie!! they were a big hit!
Irene
These look so cute and I can’t wait to try them with my son! I was wondering if anyone has tried baking them without flattening them because I love the way they look on the cookie sheet when they’re still balls! I assume they will flatten out somewhat but I’m probably going to try it.
jennylynn
I think my teenagers would love making those jello cookies. They are bright and fun looking.
Caitlynd
Can you replace the jell-o with Kool-Aid?
Jamielyn
I haven’t tried, but I would think that would work good too! Try it and let me know how it goes. :)
Michele Jamison
These will be great for the lorax party I am having next month. Can’t wait to make them.
buttercream bakehouse
These DO scream summer. I will have to make them for my kids who LOVE jello. They are very pretty.
Maryanne
These look amazing! Such a great idea. I can’t wait to make them :)
sharon-lee
where I come from jello comes in a rubbery form…must find this powdered jello…arghhh
Kelsey P
So u really love the look to these cookies but can anyone tell me if they have are delicious or taste like the jello flavors? Nothing upsets me more than making cookies only to find out they look great but don’t taste great!!
SusieQ
Thank you for the detailed recipe. Someone who has never baked before could even successfully make them! A good recipe for beginning cooks:-)
ashlee
any chance the dough can be made in advance and/or made into the balls.. and then just thawed and baked. Trying to plan ahead for party preparations…
Jamielyn
Hi Ashlee! Yes you could freeze the balls. Just make sure to let them thaw out on the pan before baking them. :)
Jamie Dye-Fait
How many cookies does the recipe yield?
Jamielyn
About 24 cookies :)
Teresa Young
my aunt made these cookies for Easter and they were delicious! (:
Jamielyn
Yay! So glad you liked them. Such a fun treat for Spring! :D
Natalie A
Hi! I just made these and they are wonderful! However, my blue ones didn’t turn out as blue as yours – they were more teal (even after adding a couple drops of food coloring). Any suggestions? I want to make more of the blue ones again when I have my son later this month. Thanks!
Jamielyn
Hi Natalie! I used the food color gels (found at jo-ann’s) which seem to make them more brighter. Hope that helps!
Natalie A
Thanks! I’ll try that next time!
Stephanie
This is such a fantastic idea, especially for such a gloomy April here in Northern California. I tried them this weekend – tasted just as good as they are cute.