Birthday Cookies
Birthday cake flavor x soft chewy cookies = the best celebratory treat! Dotted with sprinkles, these birthday cookies are the new birthday cake.
Birthday Cookies Recipe
Not a fan of cake? You still deserve a celebratory treat on your birthday! And this Birthday Cookie absolutely brings the partay. It is beyond soft with the most perfect chewy texture that you’re hoping for whenever you bite into a sugar cookie. BUT this isn’t just your normal sugar cookie. It has cake batter flavoring in the dough, giving it the best birthday cake taste (just in a superior form). The cookie is also dotted with melty white chocolate chips and sprinkled with colorful sprinkles.
TL;DR: skip the cake, the cookie is better.
These celebratory cookies are festive, fun, and delicious. I love making these quick treats for everything from parties to simple gatherings at the park. And as a special gift to you, these cookies can be customized to any occasion just by switching up the color of the sprinkles you’re using.
Ingredients
*You can find exact quantities and instructions for making these beauties in the recipe card at the bottom of this post!
- Salted butter, softened – I always use salted butter, but you can use unsalted and add an extra pinch of salt to the dough.
- Margarine, softened – The combo of the margarine + butter will give these cookies a superrrr soft interior and a slightly buttery crisp edge (yes, please).
- Granulated sugar – In addition to the sugar in the dough, you will want a little extra to roll the cookies in.
- Egg
- Light corn syrup – A key ingredient to getting these cookies very chewy.
- Cake batter flavoring – I LOVE Cake batter flavor so much that I have actually made and sell my own! I use 1 1/2 tsp of it. It can be purchased on my shop website for under $10. Buy your own Cake Batter Flavor Here!
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Sprinkles – I like to buy my sprinkles from the bakery section at my local grocery store. They let me customize the colors + mixes.
- White chocolate chips
How to Make Birthday Sugar Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside.
- Cream together the butter, margarine and granulated sugar until smooth.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg, corn syrup and cake batter flavoring. Mix until well combined.
- Next, add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until a soft dough forms.
- Finally, add in the sprinkles and white chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed.
- Portion out the cookie dough into equal sized portions. For small cookies, use a #40 scoop or 1 ½ Tbsp of dough. For larger cookies, use a #24 scoop or 3 Tbsp of dough.
- Bake at 350°F until the cookies spread and no longer look wet and glossy in the center. For the small cookies, about 7-9 minutes. For the larger cookies, 9-11 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
Cookie storage
Once cooled, store your cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days!
Can I freeze these cookies?
Yes! You can freeze these cookies for up to 3 months. I usually just put them in a ziptop bag, but you can use an airtight container or even vacuum seal them!
Karli’s Kitchen Faves
Here are a few of my favorite kitchen tools that I used to make this recipe!
- Kitchenaid Mixer – I really love this thing. It’s not necessary for making good cookies, but I love the size of the bowl and the power. A Hand Mixer is also an excellent option for when you don’t want to mix things by hand.
- Cookie Sheet – These cookie sheets have put in WORK in my kitchen. If you’re looking for a brand that will stand the test of time (and cookies), this is my recommendation.
- Silicone baking mat – I love using this or parchment paper to line my cookie sheets to make it easy-peasy to get cookies off of the pan without sticking.
- Cookie scoop set – These are sturdy and won’t break when it, you know, scoops dough. I love these for making pretty + even cookies. For the smaller cookies, I used a #40 scoop and for the larger cookies I used a #24 scoop.
- Spatula – I love these silicone spatulas for scraping down the sides of the mixer.
Recipes Like Birthday Cake Cookies
Birthday Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (111g) salted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (111g) margarine, softened
- 1 1/4 cup (288g) granulated sugar + more for rolling
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp light corn syrup
- 1 tsp cake batter flavoring
- 2 1/2 cups (380g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (107g) sprinkles
- 1/2 cup (100g) white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and set aside.
- Cream together the butter, margarine and granulated sugar until smooth.1/2 cup (111g) salted butter, softened, 1/2 cup (111g) margarine, softened, 1 1/4 cup (288g) granulated sugar + more for rolling
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg, corn syrup and cake batter flavoring. Mix until well combined.1 egg, 2 Tbsp light corn syrup, 1 tsp cake batter flavoring
- Next, add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix until a soft dough forms.2 1/2 cups (380g) all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt
- Finally, add in the sprinkles and white chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed.1/2 cup (107g) sprinkles, 1/2 cup (100g) white chocolate chips
- Portion out the cookie dough into equal sized portions. For small cookies, use a #40 scoop or 1 ½ Tbsp of dough. For larger cookies, use a #24 scoop or 3 Tbsp of dough.
- Bake at 350°F until the cookies spread and no longer look wet and glossy in the center. For the small cookies, about 7-9 minutes. For the larger cookies, 9-11 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
These are even better than I anticipated!!! Sooo delicious!!
Just made the cookies. They smell super delicious but unfortunately they did not spread at all. Any tips on this? Or idea what I did wrong? I followed the instructions… Made 2 large cookies and 4 small. Thank you! I am not able to upload the pictures
I recommend always baking a test cookie to make sure they are turning out how you want them to! If your cookies aren’t spreading, a quick fix is to flatten the dough balls slightly before baking or whack the pan against the counter after baking.
Do you use cold butter?
Thank you for answering ♥️
I use room temperature, softened butter.
I have a question. I do not like canola oil. I don’t want to buy a ton for the 3 tablespoons. can I use a different type of oil?
Absolutely! You can use any substitute you’d like. I recommend starting with vegetable oil, but applesauce should work too (although I haven’t tested it in this specific recipe).
What can I use in place of margarine?
You can do all butter, but it will change the texture slightly (no buttery crisp edge).
I don’t have margarine, can I substitute all butter in the recipe or perhaps shortening in place of it? Thanks!
Yes, you can do all butter instead! It will change the texture of the cookie slightly, but will still be delicious!
Any substitutes for the corn syrup?
You can omit the corn syrup. It will change the texture slightly!