Easy Gooey Butter Cake Cookies: The Ultimate 5-Ingredient Holiday Delight
Discover the magic of Gooey Butter Cake Cookies – a truly sweet, incredibly buttery, and super moist treat that will melt in your mouth. These delightful cake-like cookies are an absolute must-have for the festive Christmas cookie season, requiring only 5 simple ingredients and ready to enjoy in under 30 minutes!
The enchanting Holiday season is finally here, bringing with it the joyous opportunity to gather with cherished friends and family. It’s a special time for reconnecting, creating lasting memories, sharing laughter, and, of course, indulging in delicious food. If you’re looking for a simple yet show-stopping dessert, you’ve found it! These Gooey Butter Cake Cookies are a beloved St. Louis classic, renowned for their incredible flavor and unbelievably easy preparation. With just 5 common ingredients, you can whip up a batch of these irresistible treats that taste like pure happiness.
One of the best aspects of these delectable cake cookies is their speed and convenience. They are ready to bake and enjoy in under 30 minutes, and the best part? They require absolutely no chilling time for the dough! This means you can satisfy those sudden cookie cravings or prepare a last-minute dessert without any fuss. Need to get a head start on your holiday baking? No problem! The versatile cookie dough can be easily prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge, or even frozen for future baking sessions, making these gooey butter cookies perfect for busy schedules.
Why You’ll LOVE These Gooey Butter Cake Cookies
Super Simple: Only 5 pantry-staple ingredients required, making grocery shopping and prep a breeze!
Lightning Fast: From mixing bowl to cooling rack in under 30 minutes, perfect for last-minute treats.
Versatile: Ideal for all holidays, bake sales, potlucks, or a fun Sunday baking activity with kids.
Irresistibly Gooey: A unique cake-like texture with a wonderfully chewy and moist center that everyone adores.
Freezer Friendly: Easily prepare the dough or baked cookies ahead of time and freeze for later enjoyment.
Essential Ingredient Notes
Achieving the perfect gooey butter cake cookie texture and flavor starts with understanding a few key ingredients. While the list is short, each component plays a crucial role in creating these magnificent St. Louis treats.
- A Boxed Yellow Cake Mix: This is the secret weapon for ultimate simplicity and that signature cake-like texture. My personal favorite is the Betty Crocker Super Moist Yellow Cake Mix, as it consistently delivers a tender and flavorful base. However, feel free to use any brand of boxed yellow cake mix you have on hand or prefer. The boxed mix provides the perfect blend of flour, sugar, and leavening agents, making your cookie prep incredibly easy.
- Softened Cream Cheese and Unsalted Butter: The combination of cream cheese and butter is what gives these cookies their rich, decadent flavor and incredibly moist, melt-in-your-mouth texture. It’s absolutely crucial that both the cream cheese and unsalted butter are softened to room temperature. This ensures they blend smoothly and evenly with the other ingredients, preventing any lumps in your dough and contributing to the perfect “gooey” consistency. Take them out of the fridge at least 30 minutes to an hour before you plan to bake.
- Egg: A single large egg acts as the binder for our cookie dough, helping to hold everything together and add richness. Make sure it’s also at room temperature for optimal incorporation into the butter and cream cheese mixture.
- Vanilla Extract: While optional, a good quality vanilla extract elevates the flavor profile of these cookies, adding a warm, aromatic depth that complements the buttery goodness. It’s a small addition that makes a big difference. For a delightful twist, you could even swap this out for a touch of lemon juice or lemon extract to create a bright, zesty lemon butter cookie, perfect for a springtime treat or a refreshing change.
- Powdered Sugar: This isn’t just for dusting! Powdered sugar, also known as confectioners’ sugar, is essential for coating the cookie balls before baking. It creates that beautiful crackled top and adds an extra layer of sweetness and a delicate, powdery finish that is characteristic of classic gooey butter cakes.
Simple Instructions for Perfect Cookies
Get ready to bake a batch of these incredible gooey butter cake cookies in just a few straightforward steps. Follow along for perfectly moist and delicious results every time!
Easy Dough Preparation
- Preheat Oven and Prepare: First, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking and ensure even baking. This simple step makes cleanup a breeze!
- Combine the Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, softened unsalted butter, one egg, and the vanilla extract (if using). It’s crucial that your cream cheese and butter are at room temperature to ensure a smooth, lump-free mixture.
- Mix Until Creamy: Using either a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the ingredients on medium speed. Mix until they are thoroughly combined and the mixture is light, fluffy, and completely smooth. Make sure there are no large chunks of butter or cream cheese remaining; this might take a few minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure everything is incorporated.
- Incorporate the Cake Mix: Next, add the entire box of yellow cake mix to your wet ingredient mixture. Begin stirring the cake mix into the dough. The dough will be very thick and might seem a bit crumbly at first. I find that stirring and occasionally mashing the dough against the side of the bowl helps it come together more easily and quickly. Continue mixing until the cake mix is fully incorporated and you have a thick, cohesive dough. The finished dough will be notably thick and slightly sticky to the touch.
Pro Tip for Smoother Rolling!
While not strictly required, letting the dough chill in the fridge for 30 minutes can make a world of difference. This optional step helps to firm up the dough, making it less sticky and significantly easier to roll into perfect balls, keeping your hands much cleaner in the process. If you’re in a hurry, don’t worry – you can skip this step and proceed with rolling, but be prepared for a slightly stickier experience!
Baking the Cookies to Perfection
- Roll the Cookie Dough: Once your dough is ready (chilled or not), measure out about 1 to 1.5-inch pieces of dough. Using the palms of your hands, gently roll each piece into a smooth, round ball. The size should be roughly equivalent to a tablespoon of dough.
- Coat in Powdered Sugar: Pour your measured powdered sugar into a separate small bowl. Take each rolled dough ball and drop it into the bowl of powdered sugar. Roll it around until the entire surface is generously and evenly coated. This step is essential for that signature crackled top and extra sweetness.
- Arrange on Baking Sheet: Place the coated cookie balls onto your prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches of space between each cookie to allow for spreading. Repeat this rolling and coating process until all of your delicious dough has been transformed into perfectly sized cookie balls.
- Bake for 10-12 Minutes: Place the baking sheet on the center rack of your preheated oven. If you are using multiple pans, make sure to switch and rotate them halfway through the baking time to ensure all cookies bake evenly. Bake these cake cookies for approximately 10-12 minutes. The key is to watch for the tops to become visibly cracked and for the cookies to appear set in the middle, without any “doughiness.” It’s crucial that these cookies do not brown or get dark on top; they should remain light in color to maintain their moist, gooey texture. Over-baking will make them dry, so keep a close eye on them!
- Finishing Touches: Once baked to perfection, carefully remove the cookies from the oven. Let them rest on the cookie sheet for just a minute or two before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. For an extra touch of sweetness and visual appeal, you can sprinkle them with additional powdered sugar while they are still warm. Serve them warm for the ultimate gooey experience, or store any leftovers for later enjoyment. Happy eating!
Storing Your Leftover Cookies
To maintain their incredible freshness and gooey texture, store any leftover gooey butter cookies in an airtight container. Keep them at room temperature for the best results. When stored correctly, these delightful cookies will remain perfectly fresh and delicious for 1 to 2 weeks, ready to be enjoyed whenever a craving strikes!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS)
Absolutely, yes! Freezing gooey butter cookie dough is a fantastic way to prepare ahead and enjoy freshly baked cookies anytime. You can freeze the prepared cookie dough for up to 3 months. To do this, simply follow the recipe instructions for dough preparation and rolling the cookies into balls. Instead of placing them directly onto a cookie sheet for baking, arrange the rolled dough balls on a baking sheet and freeze for about an hour until firm. Then, transfer the firm dough balls into a freezer-safe bag or airtight container and store. When you’re ready to bake, you can pop out as many as you want and bake them directly from frozen at your convenience. When baking frozen cake cookie dough, you may need to add a couple of extra minutes to the bake time (typically 2-4 minutes) to ensure they are cooked through and achieve that perfect gooey texture.
Making the cookie dough ahead of time is a great strategy for effortless entertaining or simply having fresh cookies on demand. You can prepare the gooey butter cookie dough up to 24 hours in advance and store it in the refrigerator. After mixing all the ingredients, you have a couple of options: you can either store the entire batch of dough in the prep bowl, covered tightly with plastic wrap, or you can go ahead and roll the dough into individual balls, coat them in powdered sugar, and then store the rolled balls in an airtight container in the fridge. When you’re ready to bake, simply take the dough out of the fridge, let it sit for about 10-15 minutes (if rolled), and proceed with baking as per the recipe instructions. This method allows the flavors to meld beautifully and saves you time on baking day.
To truly appreciate gooey butter cookies, it’s helpful to understand their origins in the legendary Gooey Butter Cake. The story goes that this delightful dessert was invented in the 1930s by a German baker in St. Louis, Missouri. Legend has it that the baker was attempting to make a regular cake but accidentally reversed the proportions of flour and butter, resulting in a wonderfully moist, dense, and pudding-like texture rather than a traditional cake. This “happy accident” quickly became a local sensation.
Today, this classic St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake, with its distinct dense bottom layer and sweet, gooey top layer, is still beloved and made all over St. Louis and throughout the Midwest. The Gooey Butter Cookie is a brilliant adaptation of this iconic cake. These cookies capture all the essence of the original cake in a portable, bite-sized form. They feature a rich, dense, and incredibly moist texture, often described as chewy and cake-like, with a generous dusting of powdered sugar. Gooey butter cookies are similar to this traditional cake formula: they are super moist, wonderfully chewy, and truly impossible to resist. They deliver that comforting, buttery, and sweet flavor in every single bite.
Absolutely! While classic yellow cake mix provides the authentic Gooey Butter Cake flavor, these cookies are incredibly adaptable. You can use virtually any boxed cake mix to create exciting new variations. Imagine Red Velvet Gooey Butter Cookies for Valentine’s Day, Lemon Gooey Butter Cookies for a bright summer treat, or even Chocolate Fudge Gooey Butter Cookies for a decadent twist. The base recipe remains the same, allowing you to easily experiment with different flavors and customize them for any occasion or preference. It’s a fantastic way to get creative in the kitchen with minimal effort!
Fun & Easy Customizations for Your Cookies
While these Gooey Butter Cake Cookies are absolutely divine in their classic form, they are also incredibly versatile and easy to customize! Here are some creative ways to make them your own for any occasion:
Add Some Color and Sparkle: If you’re looking to theme these cookies for a specific holiday or celebration, adding some festive sprinkles is a fantastic idea. For Christmas, stir in red and green sprinkles. For Valentine’s Day, use pink or red heart sprinkles. For birthdays or other parties, a mix of colorful rainbow sprinkles works wonderfully. Just gently fold them into the dough at the very last step after you’ve incorporated the cake mix, ensuring they don’t get crushed too much during mixing.
Infuse More Flavor: I adore the traditional rich butter taste, but these cookies are a perfect canvas for additional flavorings.
- Lemony Brightness: For a delightful zing, add a teaspoon of lemon juice or lemon zest to the dough. This creates a refreshing lemon butter cookie that’s perfect for spring or summer.
- Warm Spices: A smidge of cinnamon (about half a teaspoon) stirred into the dough can give them a cozy snickerdoodle-like effect, especially wonderful during the fall and winter months.
- Nutty Notes: For a rich, nutty flavor, consider adding a ¼ cup of finely chopped pecans or walnuts to the dough.
- Chocolate Indulgence: Fold in ½ cup of mini chocolate chips or white chocolate chips for a delicious chocolatey twist.
- Seasonal Extracts: Experiment with other extracts like almond extract for a marzipan-like flavor, or peppermint extract for a festive holiday cookie (just a small amount goes a long way!).
Try a Different Cake Mix: The beauty of this recipe lies in its adaptability with various boxed cake mixes. Virtually any flavor of boxed cake mix can be used to create exciting new cake cookies!
- Chocolate Lovers: Use a chocolate fudge or devil’s food cake mix for a rich, deep chocolate cookie.
- Fruity Fun: Strawberry, cherry, or even lemon cake mixes can create vibrant and fruity cookies.
- Spice It Up: A spice cake mix would be perfect for autumn-themed cookies.
- Funfetti Celebration: A funfetti or birthday cake mix will add instant joy and color to your cookies, making them perfect for parties.
For inspiration, check out My Chocolate Peppermint Cake Cookies recipe, which offers a completely different flavor profile but maintains the same super quick and easy preparation method. The possibilities are truly endless!
Shop This Recipe’s Essentials
These Large Baking Sheetsare an absolute game-changer, providing ample space for all your holiday baking needs!
These versatile Prep Bowls come with convenient lids, making them perfect for organizing ingredients or storing your dough in the fridge ahead of time.
You May Also Enjoy...
If you loved these easy Gooey Butter Cake Cookies, we’re sure you’ll find other delicious recipes to explore and enjoy. Here are some of our other favorite quick and simple desserts perfect for any occasion:
- Bakery Style Raspberry White Chocolate Cookies
- Easy Pumpkin Cheesecake Dip Recipe
- Easy Texas Sheet Cake Cookies Recipe
- Easy Snickerdoodle Blondies Recipe
Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to explore this delicious recipe! If you made these Gooey Butter Cake Cookies, I would absolutely love to hear from you. Please share your thoughts and experiences below in the comments section! Your feedback and stories truly make my day. If you want to keep up with what The Erhardts are Eating (and exploring on our adventures), be sure to follow along on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter& Youtube.
Happy Eating!
Gooey Butter Cake Cookies
Caitlyn Erhardt
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Ingredients
- 8 Oz Cream Cheese Softened to room temperature
- ½ Cup Unsalted Butter Softened to room temperature
- 1 Large Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract Optional, or substitute with lemon juice for a twist
- 1 Box Yellow Cake Mix (approx. 15.25 oz / 432g)
- ½-3/4 Cup Powdered Sugar for coating
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, softened butter, vanilla extract (if using), and the egg. Using a hand or stand mixer, whisk the dough on medium speed until all ingredients are thoroughly combined and the mixture is smooth and creamy with no lumps.
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Add the entire box of yellow cake mix to your dough. STIR the cake mix in until it is well combined and forms a thick, cohesive dough. The dough will be thick and slightly sticky. Set aside. In a separate small bowl, measure out your powdered sugar for coating. Set aside.
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Take a small piece of dough, about 1 to 1 ½ inches in diameter, and roll it into a ball using the palms of your hands. Drop the ball into the powdered sugar bowl and roll it around until it is completely and generously coated. Place the finished ball onto your prepared cookie sheet, leaving enough space between each cookie (about 2 inches). Repeat this process until all the dough is rolled into balls.
*See Recipe Note For Optional Chill Time: Chilling the dough for 30 minutes before rolling can make it less sticky and easier to handle.
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Bake for 10-12 minutes on the middle rack of the oven. The cookies should remain light in color, not brown on top, but will have visibly cracked tops and appear set in the middle (no raw “doughiness”). If using two pans, switch and rotate them halfway through for even baking. Once baked, remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 1-2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Serve warm, or store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. Enjoy!
Notes
- Chilling Tip: It is highly recommended (though not strictly required if you’re in a rush) that you let the cookie dough chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before rolling. The dough is naturally sticky, and a brief chill firms it up significantly, making it much easier to handle and roll into neat balls with cleaner hands.
- Leftover Storage: For the best quality, store any leftover gooey butter cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. When properly stored, these cookies will maintain their freshness, moisture, and delicious flavor for 1 to 2 weeks.
- Freezer Option for Dough: For future fresh-baked treats, you can freeze the rolled cookie dough balls. First, flash freeze them on a baking sheet until firm, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or airtight container. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. When baking from frozen, there’s no need to thaw; simply place them on a prepared baking sheet and add an additional 1-2 minutes to the suggested cook time.
- Freezer Option for Baked Cookies: Fully baked gooey butter cookies also freeze well! Once completely cooled, place them in an airtight container with parchment paper between layers to prevent sticking. Freeze for up to 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature or gently warm for a fresh-from-the-oven feel.
- Flavor Variations: Don’t hesitate to experiment! Stir in mini chocolate chips, sprinkles, lemon zest, or a pinch of cinnamon to the dough for different flavor profiles. You can also use different boxed cake mix flavors like chocolate, strawberry, or funfetti for unique results.
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