Cookies from Cake Mix

I love cookies as much as the next person, but I'm not going to lie, I'm not really big on making cookies.  I tend to only make cookies when I have to (for a social event, for neighborhood Christmas gift cookie plates, or as a "thank you" gift, etc.).  They just take so long when you have a ton of batches.  Plus, they can make such a mess of your kitchen.  And then if I don't give some of them away, I can't keep my hands off of them and I eat way too many.

So, these cookies are great because you won't have a ton of batches, you only use one bowl, and they are really quick and easy to throw together.  Besides that, with all of the different flavors of cake mixes and all of the add-in possibilities, the kinds of cookies that you can make are endless.

Seriously, you could do so many things with this basic cookie idea.  You could add nuts (not me because of my boys' nut allergies, sniff, sniff), dried fruit (such as chopped dried apricot or cherries), any kind of baking chip (semi-sweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate, white vanilla, mint, butterscotch, peanut butter, toffee chips, etc.), or you can add candies (like M&Ms, red hots, etc.).  And as you can see from the two recipes, you can make them with or without the pudding mix too.  So many possibilities! (Be sure to read to the end of this post to see a list of combinations and possibilities...only the tip of the iceberg, folks!).

So, follow the basic recipe, get creative and have some cookie fun!

Banana-Rainbow Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist party rainbow chip cake mix
1 box (4 serving size) banana cream instant pudding and pie filling mix
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
3/4 cup white vanilla baking chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

In large bowl, stir together all ingredients.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until light brown (centers will be soft).  Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.

Recipe Notes: Replace banana cream pudding with another flavor if you are not a fan of banana.  Store tightly covered at room temperature up to 2 days or in refrigerator up to 5 days.

Makes 16 servings.

Notes: I made these twice, two different ways.  I didn't follow the recipe exactly either time.  I doubled the recipe both times.  The first time, I used the party rainbow chip cake mix, vanilla instant pudding, and no white vanilla baking chips (I forgot to buy them and didn't have time to run to the store).  The second time, I used a white cake mix, half vanilla instant pudding, and half banana cream instant pudding, I used white vanilla baking chips, and I rolled the cookies in pink sugar sprinkles.  They were great cookies--both versions.  The first version is what I would describe as "cake mix cookies" in that they taste like yellow cake mix, only in cookie form.  They definitely fit the cake mix flavor trend that is going on right now.  The second version was really yummy too.  The banana pudding helps the cookies to taste less cake-like.  It deepens the flavor without making you think "these taste too banana-like."

Also, perhaps I made these cookies smaller than the recipe intended, but I ended up with 24 cookies (four batches of 12 cookies each).  I thought that the cookies were the perfect size.

Source: Betty Crocker website, recipe found here.  It is a recipe featured on Betty Crocker originally featured on a blog called Inspired Taste.

Quick-Mix Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:

1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist devil's food cake mix
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F (325 degrees F for dark or nonstick pans).  In large bowl, mix cake mix, oil, vanilla, and eggs with spoon until dough forms.

Refrigerate dough 15-30 minutes or as needed for easier handling.  Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in sugar.  On ungreased cookie sheets, place balls about 2 inches apart.

Bake 9-11 minutes or until set.  Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.  Cool completely, about 30 minutes.  Store tightly covered.

Recipe notes: To make Chocolate Chip-Chocolate Cookies, stir 2/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips into the dough.

Makes 30 cookies.

Nutrition information: 1 cookie is 90 calories, 3.5 g fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 125 mg sodium, 13 g carbohydrate, 0 g dietary fiber, 1 g protein.

Source: Betty Crocker website, recipe found here.

Notes: I made these exactly as written, except for two changes.  I used a Triple Chocolate Fudge cake mix instead of the Devil's Food...because that's what I had on hand.  The Triple Chocolate Fudge cake mix has little chocolate chips in it.  It tasted great.  Also, instead of 30 cookies, I made a total of 24 cookies--two batches of 12 cookies.  We might have had more, but my son kept asking for more cookie dough.  I would have had 30 cookies.  He ate about 3 cookies worth of dough!  I took dough from what would have been the other three cookies and just added it evenly into the other cookie dough balls so that I wouldn't have to put a batch of three cookies in the oven.  Because I hate when that happens!

These taste like brownies in cookie form...and there's nothing wrong with that!

Here are some other mix and add-in ideas I found in the comments sections of each cookie on the Betty Crocker website: 

• Chocolate cake mix, chocolate pudding, white chocolate chips.
• Chocolate cake mix, peanut butter chips.
• Chocolate cake mix, mint chips.
• Yellow or white cake mix, rolled in cinnamon-sugar for a Snickerdoodle cookie.
• Yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding, and rainbow sprinkles (you could either mix the sprinkles into the dough or roll the cookie dough balls in the sprinkles).
• Lemon cake mix rolled in powdered sugar.
• Chocolate cake mix, chocolate chips, rolled in powered sugar.
• Strawberry cake mix, vanilla pudding, white chocolate chips.
• One person shared her personal cake mix cookie version: She used 1 box of cake mix, 1 egg, 4 drops of vanilla (maybe 1 teaspoon?), and one 8 oz container of frozen whipped topping (such as Cool Whip).  They mixed the dough together, formed it into balls, and rolled it into powdered sugar, then baked.
• Another person said that they followed the chocolate cookie recipe, wrapped the dough around unwrapped Rolo candies, and rolled the cookie dough balls in a mixture of sugar and chopped pecans.
• Another person said that they made a Christmas cherry cookie using white cake mix and almond extract.  They topped the cookies with half of a red or green maraschino cherry and drizzled it with melted chocolate.  They also noted that this same version would be great with a chocolate cake mix, cherry, and a drizzle of melted white chocolate. 
• You can use white or chocolate cake mix and roll them in different colors of sugar for different holidays: green, orange, and purple for Halloween, red and green for Christmas, pink and red for Valentine's Day, multiple pastel or bright shades for Easter, red and blue for a Patriotic twist, etc.
• You could use two cookies and fill them with your favorite frosting for a cookie sandwich, similar to a whoopie pie.
• White cake mix, dried chopped pineapple, coconut (toasted or un-toasted), macadamia nuts, white chocolate chips for a tropical/pina colada cookie.
• White cake mix, craisins, orange zest.
• White cake mix, chopped dried apricots, white vanilla chips.
• Lemon cake mix and chopped crystallized ginger.
• Red velvet cake mix and white chocolate chips.
• Chocolate cake mix and toffee chips.
• Chocolate cake mix and butterscotch chips.
• White cake mix, white chocolate chips, and chopped macadamia nuts.
• Carrot cake mix and white chocolate chips.
• Spice cake mix rolled in granulated sugar.  Kind of like a gingersnap.
• White cake with M&Ms (red and green for Christmas).
• Spice cake mix with craisins and walnuts.
• Carrot cake mix...use two cookies and fill with cream cheese frosting for a carrot cake sandwich cookie.
• Spice cake mix with oatmeal and raisins.
• German chocolate cake mix rolled in powdered sugar to make chocolate crinkles cookies.
• Yellow cake mix, toffee bits, rolled in cinnamon-sugar.
• Yellow cake mix, butterscotch chips, butterscotch pudding.
• Chocolate cake mix (follow recipe above, but omit coating cookie dough in granulated sugar), frost with fluffy white frosting, and top with crushed candy canes.
• Chocolate cake mix, white chocolate chips, and craisins or dried cherries.
• Chocolate cake mix cookie recipe, made into a sandwich cookie with cream cheese frosting for a homemade soft Oreo cookie.  You could even add food color and different extracts to the frosting...such as green food color and peppermint extract for a Christmas version.