Gooey Vanilla Sparkle Cookies
Thanks to Duncan Hines for sponsoring my writing. There’s no limit to the baking possibilities, so grab your favorite Duncan Hines mix and Comstock or Wilderness fruit fillings and Bake On! www.duncanhines.com.
Oh hi, who wants to talk about dessert? Or drinks? Or maybe holiday parties? How about a fancy sparkly dessert themed holiday party I’m throwing for my baby girl when she turns one this month? I’ve got myself on a pretty strict baking schedule to get as much as possible done in advance, so my house is FULL of sweets right now. After the cake near-disaster at Evan’s 2nd birthday, I decided maybe fancy frosting is little outside my skill set, in the same way running a marathon is outside my skill set. You think, come on, it’s just running. Anyone can run. Here, let me just run right into the kitchen and make a cake worthy of its own TLC special. Hahahahaha. Do you know HOW HARD it is to make frosting smooth? Imagine how hard you think it is. Now multiply that by one hundred. And then give up and go drink a glass of wine because it is not even worth trying.
The plan for Caroline’s first birthday is to stick with easily frosted cupcakes, lots of cookies…and cocktails for the grown ups. I firmly believe the best way to celebrate surviving the first year of a child’s life is with a stiff drink. Day drinking: It’s not just for lonely cat ladies anymore! Now it’s appropriate for women who haven’t slept more than 4 hours in a row in 365 days and don’t even try to tell me it’s not because I am too tired to argue and will probably just punch you in the face instead. And then go eat a cookie. Luckily, a little peppermint schnapps makes everything from hot cocoa to egg nog to champagne more festive – plus it tastes great with gooey vanilla sparkle cookies.
Gooey Vanilla Sparkle Cookies
1/2 cup butter softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 8-ounce package of cream cheese
1 box Duncan Hines French Vanilla cake mix
White sparkling sugar sprinkles (from the cake decorating section at the craft store)
Parchment paper
Beat butter, vanilla, egg and cream cheese in an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add cake mix. Cover bowl and chill for at least 30 minutes, so dough is firmer and easier to roll. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lay parchment paper on cookie sheets. Use a teaspoon to scoop out chilled dough. Roll into balls, then roll in sparkle sugar, pressing lightly to make it stick. Place cookies on the parchment paper, leaving room between for cookies to spread. Bake for 12 minutes or until edges start to brown slightly. The sugar crystals make them a little crunchy on the outside but the inside is super soft. Variations: add food coloring to make them match your color scheme, roll them in rainbow sprinkles or powdered sugar, or use chocolate cake mix instead. Happy Baking!
Remember to check out Duncan Hines’ website www.duncanhines.com to find some great recipes for your holiday get-together! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective.
Tags: caroline's first birthday, cookies, delicious, dessert, duncan hines, food, recipes, sponsored
I love using cake mix for cookie recipes. It’s such a time saver!
Mmm these sound delicious! We had a white “sparkle” cake at our wedding….I have no idea how they got all of the sparkles to stick, but it was amazing! A little sparkle goes a long way ;)
These look really good. This is probably a silly question, but have you actually tried making these cookies? They look simple, but I’m looking for something yummy and quick for a cookie exchange. I don’t want to try them if you don’t give them a full 2-thumbs up. =)
I made them! I made up the recipe! I took that picture (along with 45 other ones trying to get them to sparkle!) I’m sorry if that wasn’t clear – The post was sponsored in the sense that Duncan Hines asked me to write about dessert. The content is still 100% mine. And yes, I recommend them :)
That photo looks so professional! Mine would’ve been taken at 10:00 at night and looked nasty. Yours looks absolutely amazing. Girl, you have skills!! I really want to give these a try.
I think even this super tired pregnant lady {who kinda misses day drinking now that you mentioned it} could handle making these soon! They sound & look so yummy!!!
Hi,
This recipe looks great! I’m just curious how much cookies does this recipe make? Thanks.
It made about 2 dozen but mine were a little big. You could easily make 3 dozen with slightly smaller cookies.
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Hi! Just wondering how long these keep for? I am making about 9 types of cookies for family in a week and need to know when I should make them. I need them for Christmas Eve. Thanks!
Jessica
Hi Jessica! They’re really best fresh (I can barely wait for them to cool after I take them out of the oven!) but they should keep for several days in an air tight container.
Thanks so much!
These look so gorgeous! I like their simplicity, and they look moist and chewy! Perfect.
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These have become my favorite cookie. They are SO good, and so easy to make. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!!
These look absolutely delicious! You’re giving me a Sugar Rush just looking at them!
Lovely! Sparkly! Thanks for the sweet recipe! (I love your adorable “ginger babies” too! Mine is all grown up, and now I have a grand-ginger baby!)
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