The BEST Red Velvet Cake Mix Cookies

If you are looking for the BEST red velvet cake mix cookies these are it. They take only 30 minutes to make and are soft and tasty. Plus, they are the perfect Valentine’s Day or Christmas treat.

If you love these, you will also love our dessert nachos, Valentine's cake pops, valentines cookie gifts, pink champagne cake, red hot cookies recipe and Valentines mocktails.

For a delicious treat, these red velvet cookies from a cake mix recipe is the easiest cookie recipes to put together. They are a wonderful any time of year, but especially on your anniversary, in our holiday cookie boxes or on another special occasion.

These cookies take minimal effort and have a great red velvet flavor. Here are some other easy Christmas cookie recipes with few ingredients. They are great for little hands as are our Christmas reindeer chex mix recipe and frosted ginger cookies.

They are also great Valentines gifts for a college girlfriend and go great with Valentines day chocolate dipped fruit gifts.

Just think, they would be perfection at Christmas time with some green sprinkles and could even make for an eerie little treat at halloween if dressed up right. 

We sure loved these delicious cookies and think they will also make you and your Valentine swoon…Especially when served up on our Valentines charcuterie board with some vegan chocolate sauce drizzled dessert nachos and some Valentines mocktails!

Now, I realize that the red dye isn’t ideal. Truly yucky stuff but to get that deep red color, it is almost impossible without it. As is the same in some of our fun Valentines breakfast ideas kids.

I’ve tried the natural food dyes on the market and they just aren’t potent enough for red velvet. Feel free to leave it out if you don’t mind the lack of red color. It is much healthier for you that way.

I love to throw a party and these cookies (or our apple roses) are perfect for a Galentines theme party. You can even make them into cookie dough balls, just be sure to use an egg substitute.

I personally still prefer red velvet cake cookies though. They are great in our great DIY Valentines treats for school or on our homemade Valentines charcuterie board.

What you need

These perfect and easy cookies are so delicious! This red velvet cookie recipe uses simple ingredients and really are the easiest cookies to make. For more fun Valentine’s Day recipes, check out our Valentines recipes.

• Chocolate Cake Mix - Any boxed cake mix brand will work for this recipe. Just pick up a box of cake mix at the grocery store! This recipe calls for a chocolate cake mix, but a gluten-free cake mix will also work if that is what you need.
• Butter – Swap for vegan butter if desired.
• Cream Cheese – I like full fat cream cheese for the best texture
• Red Food Dye – You can use traditional red food dye or a natural version although they result in a less vibrant cookies. A box of cake mix, when mixed with red food dye, becomes our delicious red velvet cookies recipe.
• Eggs – Swap for a flax egg if vegan.
• Cocoa Powder - Using a high quality cocoa powder gives these cookies a rich chocolate flavor

How to make them

• Preheat oven to 350
• Cream the butter and cream cheese together in a stand mixer (you could also use a large mixing bowl and a hand mixer)
• Add the egg and mix well
• Slowly add the dry cake mix, food dye and cocoa powder and mix until well combined
• Scoop by using a medium-large ice cream scoop (4 Tablespoons) onto a greased, or my favorite, a silicone mat lined cookie sheet
• Flatten each cookie with the bottom of a cup and bake 12-15 minutes
• Allow the cookies to cool on a wire rack before frosting
• Frost cooled cookies with cream cheese frosting and top with sprinkles if desired

Pro tip: Throw in some white chocolate chips when mixing the red velvet cookie dough for pops of white chocolate.

Can you make these dairy-free?

You can make these with Earth Balance butter sticks and dairy-free cream cheese, although it may taste different.

Can you make these gluten-free?

Yes, you will find a lot of brands have gluten-free cake mixes. For example, Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, and Pillsbury offer gluten-free cake mixes. Simply using a gluten-free cake mix makes these gluten-free!

What is the difference between cake mix and cookie mix?

Most cake and cookie mixes have the same basic ingredients but what you add to the mix really makes the biggest difference. You will add a lot more liquid to a cake mix than a cookie mix. There are also more rising ingredients in a cake mix.

How do you store leftovers?

Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container with parchment paper between each layer to avoid having cookies stick together. You can also use plastic wrap to seal the container.

These chewy cookies are good for 3 days. I actually love to enjoy them nice and cold. Make sure to allow the cookies to cool to room temperature before storing them.