Soft and chewy 4-ingredient cake mix cookies topped with a super simple homemade frosting and peppermint pieces are a festive addition to your Christmas dessert table.
Cake Mix Cookies are your new secret weapon for holiday baking!
If you’re looking for a fun, festive holiday treat that’s a cinch to make and looks impressive on any cookie platter, you’ve come to the right place.
These frosted peppermint cookies will make you feel like the best baker around. And no one needs to know that they’re made with cake mix!
That means less to measure and less to clean up.
These soft, chewy cake mix cookies taste better than anything you’d pick up at the store, and they look they they came right out of your grandma’s kitchen.
Topping them with homemade buttercream frosting and peppermint candy pieces give them an extra special (and extra delicious) touch.
Pour yourself a big mug of hot cocoa and let’s get baking!
- Festive: The festive icing makes them perfect for any holiday or celebration! Try candy corn for Halloween, red hots for Valentine’s Day, or chopped mini Cadbury eggs for Easter.
- Soft and Chewy: The cookies have a great texture that’s hard to beat, with just the right amount of crunch on the outside and softness inside.
- Simple and Adaptable: made with just 4 ingredients use any flavor of cake mix you like. I used white cake, but you can use yellow, chocolate, or even red velvet!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Vanilla Cake Mix. I used Dunkin Hines French vanilla cake mix, but you can use any brand or flavor that you want. This recipe is so fun to mix and match! Just be sure to use a 15.25-15.5 ounce box so the proportions stay accurate. Otherwise, you’ll need to do math to scale the recipe up or down.
Baking Powder. A little bit of baking powder boosts the freshness of your cake mix and ensures your cookies are the perfect texture.
Melted Butter. Using melted butter in the cookie dough means you don’t have to wait for it to soften! Pull out a second stick to warm up for the frosting while the cookies bake and cool.
Eggs. Add richness to the cake mix and help make the cookies chewy instead of caky.
Powdered Sugar. If you’re making your own homemade buttercream frosting for these cookies (which I highly recommend for that extra special touch) you’ll need some powdered sugar (also known as confectioners sugar). Powdered sugar dissolves easily, so your frosting will be smooth and fluffy. Regular white sugar gives you a gritty frosting, and no one wants that!
Vanilla and Peppermint Extracts. For tons of flavor.
Candy canes, or similar peppermint candy. Crushed candy canes or starlight mint pieces make these cookies so cute and give them a great peppermint-y crunch!
Prepare your baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or a reusable silicon mat.
Mix together the cake mix, butter, and eggs until a soft dough forms. If you have a stand mixer, it makes things even easier, but a rubber spatula works just as well.
Scoop the cookie dough into balls and drop them 2 inches apart onto the baking sheets.
Bake the cookies until the tops are set and the edges begin to crisp. The tops should be beautifully crinkled and not too dark.
Cool the cookies completely on a cooling rack before frosting them.
Frost the cookies and decorate them with peppermint pieces.
Expert tips and substitutions:
If you don’t have butter, you can use vegetable oil instead for the cookie base. Do not use oil for the frosting though!
Mix it up! Try making cake mix cookies with chocolate cake mix, yellow cake mix, or even funfetti or red velvet cake mix!
If your dough is sticky, refrigerate it for 15-20 minutes and it will firm up.
If the frosting is too thin to spread, add more powdered sugar 1 teaspoon at a time until it’s thickened. Also be sure to let your cookies cool completely before frosting so it doesn’t melt!
Make the cake mix cookie dough ahead of time and freeze it in individual portions for cookies whenever you want! Thaw in the fridge over night and or cook them from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the baking time.
If you’re really in a pinch, you can use store-bought vanilla frosting with a few drops of peppermint extract mixed in.
Try different toppings! I love using Andes peppermint baking chips. You could also use holiday colored sprinkles or sanding sugar, add a few drops of food coloring to your icing, or top them with m+m candies.
For an even more decadent cookie, mix 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips into the cookie dough before scooping it.
Frequently asked questions
The peppermint candy can bleed into the frosting as they sit, so these cookies are best enjoyed the same day that you decorate them. However, they can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.
Yes!
Freeze the frosted cookies in a single layer so they don’t stick together. Once they’re frozen solid, you can transfer them to an airtight container for up to 3 months. Let the cookies defrost at room temperature. Note that if the cookies are frozen, the color of the peppermint candy will discolor the frosting. They’ll still taste delicious though!
You can also freeze the unbaked dough and a few cookies whenever you want them. (I like to make cookies in the air fryer – no waiting for the oven to preheat!)
- Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies
- Chocolate Hazelnut Brownie Mix Cookies
- Air Fryer Chocolate Chip Cookies
- 4-Ingredient Sugar Cookies
Peppermint Frosted Cake Mix Cookies
Ingredients
- 15 ounce box vanilla cake mix
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter melted
- 2 eggs room temperature
Frosting:
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1-1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup crushed candy canes
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 350℉. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix and the baking powder. Beat in the melted butter and eggs until fully incorporated.
- Use a small cookie scoop to drop 1 ½ tablespoon sized balls onto the cookie sheets, 2-inches apart (the cookies will spread as they bake).
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the tops are set and the edges begin to crisp.
- Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before decorating.
- To make the frosting, beat the butter until smooth and creamy.
- Add the powdered sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until a thick frosting forms. Stir in the vanilla and peppermint extracts.
- Use a small icing spatula or butter knife to spread 1 tablespoon of frosting on each cookie. Sprinkle with the candy cane pieces.
