These cake mix cookies are such an easy and delicious recipe to make with only 3 ingredients! Customize this recipe with your favorite flavor and mix-in’s.
Table of Contents
Easiest Cookie Recipe Ever
We’ve shared a few different cookie recipes using cake mix, such as the strawberry cookies, chocolate mint cookies and red velvet gooey cookies, but I thought it was about time I shared the original recipe. The options are endless depending on the flavor of cake mix you use!
I first saw this recipe in a church cookbook (along with my easy dump cake) I received many years ago and have made many different variations ever since, even cake mix brownies! These cake cookies are great for when you need to make something quick and don’t have a lot of ingredients on hand. I don’t know about you, but I pretty much always have a box of cake mix, oil and eggs on hand.
These cookies are soft, fluffy and seriously so delicious. I love how many different variations you can easily make. Plus, they are so simple that you literally can’t mess them up. My kids love to help make them too. They are always a huge hit!
3 Simple Ingredients
This recipe requires only 3 ingredients (which you probably already have on hand!). This is seriously the easiest dessert to whip up and perfect for the kids to help with.
- Cake mix: Use 1 box of cake mix (any flavor you’d like). Check out a few of my favorite variations below.
- Oil: Vegetable oil works best in this recipe. You’ll need 1/2 cup or you can use melted butter.
- Eggs: Add in 2 large eggs.
Feel free to include any extra mix-in’s like M&M’s, chocolate chips, nuts, sprinkles or candy pieces.
How To Make Cookies From Cake Mix
You can find the printable recipe and video tutorial below.
- Combine. Mix the ingredients together in a large bowl with a mixer until the dough is smooth. If I have time, I like to refrigerate the dough, so it’s easier to work with.
- Scoop. Use a cookie scoop to add place the dough onto a prepared baking sheet. Then add any extra mix-in’s if you’d like.
- Bake. Cook in the oven at 350°F for 9 to 11 minutes until the cookies are set!
Baking Tips
- Refrigerate the dough: The dough tends to be a little stickier than your typical cookie dough because of the oil, so I’d recommend refrigerating the dough for about 30 minutes so it’s easier to work with.
- Don’t over bake: You definitely don’t want these cookies to brown in the oven. Let them bake for about 8 to 10 minutes, or until they are set. You want them to have a soft texture. To help prevent the bottoms from browning, line your pan with parchment paper.
- Freeze any extras: These cookies freeze beautifully. If you have any extras, let them cool completely after baking. Then place on a cookie sheet and flash freeze for about 30 minutes. Once they’re hard, place the cookies in a freezer container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, remove from freezer about 2 hours before enjoying.
Cake Mix Cookie Variations
You can use pretty much any flavor of cake mix to make these cookie flavor combinations. Feel free to add in your favorite add-ins or dip in chocolate. Below are a few of my favorites. I typically prefer duncan hines.
- Red velvet white chocolate chip: If you’re a fan of red velvet cake, you’re going to love these red velvet cake mix cookies! The red velvet flavor is rich and delicious and the white chocolate chips add the perfect sweet touch. Plus the contrast of the red and white colors looks so pretty!
- M&M: You can use yellow or vanilla cake mix for this variation. The M&M’s are fun, colorful and add a delicious hint of chocolate. You could also make these with chocolate cake mix as well. Both versions are delicious. My kids love these!
- Devil’s food with Rolo’s: If you’re a chocolate lover, these Rolo cookies are perfect for you! The chocolate flavor paired with the gooey caramel inside is a match made in heaven! The Rolo in the middle is such a nice surprise.
- Chocolate-dipped strawberry: I made a version of these strawberry cookies for Valentine’s Day and they were so festive and delicious! Use a strawberry cake mix. They are super soft, full of strawberry flavor and best of all dipped in chocolate!
- Butter cookies: An easy variation of a butter cookie, gooey butter cookies are made with vanilla or white cake mixes, butter, powdered sugar, and cream cheese!
- Frosting: These also taste amazing with buttercream frosting or cream cheese frosting on top.
- Chocolate chips: Add in semi-sweet, peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips or chopped dark chocolate to a yellow or chocolate cake mix.
Frequently Asked Questions
They are cookies that come together by modifying the ingredients on the box of a cake mix. You only need 3 simple ingredients.
Aside from endless cookie options, you can also make brownies, cake mix cookie bars and cake mix pumpkin muffins.
I love to add in different mix-in’s such as chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, m&m’s or chopped oreos.
Yes, in this cake mix cookie recipe you don’t need any flour or additional baking agents.
More Cake Mix Cookies
- Lemon cake mix cookies – Fresh lemon flavor with a powdered sugar top
- Funfetti cookies – Full of sprinkles and that classic cake batter flavor
- Cake mix pumpkin cookies – Soft and flavorful with chocolate chips!
- Spice cookies – The perfect spice flavor for fall
- Snickerdoodle cake mix cookies – A classic holiday favorite made easy
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Cake Mix Cookie Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 (15.25-ounce) box cake mix
- ½ scant cup vegetable oil , or 7 TB melted butter
- 2 large eggs
Optional Mix-in’s: Chocolate chips, M&M’s, Rolo's, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir the cake mix, oil, and eggs until combined. If you have time, refrigerate the dough 15 to 20 minutes (it will make it a little easier to work with, since it is sticky).
- Using a medium scoop or spoon, scoop the dough onto the baking sheet. Top with additional toppings, if desired. Bake 9 to 11 minutes, or until the cookies are set. You don’t want them to brown.
- Let cool a couple minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a cooling rack. Store in a covered container up to 3 days.
Notes
- Red velvet white chocolate chip: If you’re a fan of red velvet cake, you’re going to love this version! Use a red velvet cake mix and mix in 1 cup of white chocolate chips.
- M&M: You can use white or yellow cake mix for this variation. Mix in 1 cup M&M’s.
- Devil’s food with Rolo’s: If you’re a chocolate lover, these Rolo cookies are perfect for you!
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: American, Cake Mix Cookies, Cookies, Desserts, Reader Favorites, White Chocolate Cookies
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
Can you freeze these before baking?
Yes, but usually I prefer to do so after with these cake mix cookies.
These turned out awesome. The key is to not overbake them.
So glad you enjoyed them!
Loved the way they turned out! Soft and chewy! I will be making these again and again.
So glad you enjoy them!
The recipe had way too much oil the cookies got crisp and chewy not cakey.
Hi Sandy, sorry to hear of the trouble with the cookies. Alot of brands have decreased their cake mix size, so to ensure sucess of this recipe, double check the size of the cake mix, this recipe will turn out perfectly with 15.25 ounce cake mix.
This is my all time favorite cookie recipe! I love how easy they are to bake because they sure do get gobbled up quickly! A little tip I have found-if the dough is a little dry, I add whipped cream to the dough and give it another stirring.
These are our go-to cake mix cookies!! The texture is chewy and I love how you can customize with so many flavors. Yum!
Yes, endless options almost when it comes to cake mix cookies!
I loved how it turned out. my kids loved this.i will continue to make this forever !!!
I love this review Kate! So happy you and your kids enjoyed the cake mix cookies!
I normally substitute apple sauce for the oil when baking a cake. Am I able to do this with these cookies too?
Hi Joyce, we have never tested that but it may work, the cookies will be softer and fluffier, but I am sure you are used to that texture since you bake with applesauce often it sounds like! :)
Box cake mix is 13.25 oz now. Do I need to change this recipe to accommodate less cake mix?
Hi Darlene, you could use a little less oil (or butter), so just under 1/2 cup oil or around 6 Tbsp butter. There are many brands making the 15.25 ounce size though including Pillsbury, Great Value, Bakers Corner, Betty Crocker and more.
Couldn’t you just add a couple of Tablespoons of flour to bring it up to the 15 oz required? That seems like it should work.
You could try but cake mix is an all-inclusive mix meaning that it is more than just flour.
My first time making cake mix cookies! I used white cake mix with maple sprinkles (little crunchy chunks of maple) and chopped walnuts. They were amazing!!
Those maple sprinkles sound amazing! Thanks for the review of the cake mix cookies.
I made this with the Devils Food Chocolate cake mix. I made them exactly as written. I really thought they’d not be able to roll in my hands, but they did. Then I flattened them a bit with a couple of fingers. Stuck in a few chocolate chips and then froze most of them. I’ll definitely do this again.
Thanks for the review of the cake mix cookies Sue!
If anyone is wondering why yours took longer to cook is probably because you doubled the size of your cookies. These made exactly 12 bigger sized cookies for me and took 14-17 minutes at 350 with regular checking. Used melted butter and made chocolate chip strawberry cookies. (Chocolate covered strawberries.) I hope this helps someone. Awesome and versatile recipe. Thanks!
Thank you for that note on the cookie size Kaylani, your cookie combination sounds so amazing, too!
they turn out to be like a consistency of crumbl cookiess. If you don’t like crumbl cookies then cook them for way longer.
Thank you for sharing your review!
Can I freeze leftover cookie dough.
Yes, portion into cookie dough balls and flash freeze until frozen. Transfer to a freezer safe bag and store frozen up to three months. For these, thaw in the refrigerator before baking.
Made with butter pecan cake mix and topped with whole pecans and powdered sugar
That sounds like an amazing combination for the cake mix cookies!
Adding chopped walnuts to the mix ( butter pecan is my favorite) along with tiny Carmel balls sold in the baking isle makes an excellent cookie
That sounds like an amazing version of the cake mix cookies! Yum!
Easy
I think the ease of making them makes them taste even better too :). Thanks for the review Lisa!
Delicious and easy. I bake these at Christmas using a white cake mix, chopped red and green candied cherries, almonds and 1 teaspoon almond extract. Sooo good!
That sounds delicious Debi!