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Home » Recipes » Cookies

Sprinkle Cookies

Published: Jan 20, 2023 · Modified: Mar 22, 2025 by Leona Konkel · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads

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I don't know about you, but I need some cookies to chase away the January grays. So I recently decided to revisit one of my favorite cookies - these bright, cheerful Sprinkle Cookies.

I call it a not-too-sweet sugar cookie, which sounds like an oxymoron, but I promise it isn't. It's a wildly vanilla-y cookie dough, made a little richer with a little cream cheese.

They bake beautifully, and the dough freezes well. And they're delicious!

Seriously, you should make these. After all, who could resist this face?

sprinkle cookie with candy eyes baked onto it to make it a face

[This post contains affiliate links. I may make a commission for purchases made through links on this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.]

Jump to:
  • Ingredients
  • Instructions
  • Make-Ahead
  • Storage
  • More Vanilla
  • 📖 Recipe

I originally wrote about this recipe back in 2016, when I made them with a toddler nearby. She played with Keurig cups while I assembled cookie dough, and stole sprinkles that fell off of the cookies that I put on baking sheets.

(She was very good, and only smooshed one cookie with a container after I flattened it with a glass. But who can blame her for trying to help with the cookies!)

The cookies were delicious then, and are still delicious now, but this walkthrough needed a thorough update!

stack of sprinkle cookies, with one broken open to show texture

Ingredients

This is a basic (and good!) sugar cookie dough that's been enriched with a little cream cheese. Since it uses cream cheese, it's imperative that you bring it and your butter to room temperature before making the dough. As we know from making cheesecake, cold cream cheese leaves behind lumps, which will never blend in.

In addition to adding a little richness and complexity, I believe the cream cheese helps keep the cookies moist and fresh for longer. We use a little baking soda with our baking powder to interact with the cream cheese to help the cookies puff and rise.

flour, sugar, butter, cream cheese, egg, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, salt, vanilla, sprinkles

Vanilla is the main flavoring in this. Don't skip it! Use real vanilla, not the artificial stuff. You can also add ¼ teaspoon of almond extract.

Other usual ingredients include granulated sugar, all-purpose flour, eggs, and salt.

I've adapted this recipe from Smitten Kitchen's Confetti Cookies, which she adapted from King Arthur Baking's Sugar Cookies. King Arthur Baking added the cream cheese; Smitten Kitchen added the sprinkles. I cut back on the sugar in the dough by accident, but we like it that way!

Instructions

So your butter and cream cheese are at room temperature, finally. Let's make some cookies!

butter and sugar, creamed together in the bowl of a stand mixer

Start by beating together your butter and cream cheese until fluffy.

butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla, beaten together in a stand mixer bowl

Add egg and vanilla, and beat well.

sugar cookie dough, in a stand mixer bowl

Mix in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low until just combined.

ball of cookie dough partially coated in sprinkles

Portion the cookie dough, form into balls, and drop into sprinkles!

I highly recommend using a medium (1.5-tablespoon or #40) cookie scoop (affiliate link); it makes portioning the dough evenly so much easier! But you can scoop with two spoons instead - just be careful that you make all your cookies the same size.

You can roll the whole ball in the sprinkles, or just the top that you see, as I do. If you run out of sprinkles or don't want to buy that many, roll the cookie dough in sugar instead.

a glass flattening cookie dough

Use the bottom of a glass to flatten the cookies to about ½ inch thickness. The cookies will puff up as they bake, rather than spread out, thanks to the cream cheese. The dough doesn't usually stick to the glass, but dip it in granulated sugar if it does.

balls of sprinkle cookie dough, flattened out on a baking sheet, before baking

Move the cookies to a silicone mat (affiliate link) -lined baking sheet, if you didn't already flatten them directly on it.

sprinkle cookies, after baking, on a baking sheet

Bake until they're pale and just beginning to brown on the bottom.

Let cool for about 5 minutes before transferring them with a spatula to a cooling rack.

Make-Ahead

I have a shelf in my freezer that's just premade cookie dough, ready to be baked at the drop of a hat. I usually freeze about half of the dough of any batch of cookies that I make.

cookies on a counter, with one broken open

Sprinkle Cookies are a great addition to it! This dough freezes very well. Simply make and scoop the dough and roll it in sprinkles as above.

Place the balls of cookie dough on plate or baking sheet lined with plastic wrap or parchment or waxed paper. This lining makes it easier to remove the cookies later on.

frozen sprinkle cookie dough crowded together on a baking sheet

You don't want the cookies touching each other, but you can crowd them close since you're not baking them yet. Flatten the cookies, then place the baking sheet in the freezer.

After the cookies are frozen, remove them from the sheet and store them in a labeled freezer-safe zipper bag. Don't forget baking instructions!

frozen sprinkle cookies in a labeled bag

When you're ready for cookies, preheat the oven. Once it's ready, remove however many cookies you want from the bag. Place them on the baking sheet and bake them, from frozen, for 1-2 minutes longer than you would originally - so for 10-11 minutes.

Storage

Store in an airtight container at room temperature. They'll stay good for several days, if you and your family don't devour them all before that.

sprinkle cookies, with one broken open to show interior texture

Interested in other recipes? I save and share recipes I like or want to try on my Pinterest page - follow me there! You can also check out my Facebook page for more recipes and helpful tips. I'm also happy to try to help troubleshoot my recipes there.

Have you tried this recipe? Or have a question about it? Rate it or leave a comment below! (PS: rating my recipes helps other people find them, too!)

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📖 Recipe

top of a sprinkle cookie
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Sprinkle Cookies

These sugar cookies are easy to make in advance! Coat with sprinkles, flatten, freeze, and bake for 2 extra minutes directly from the freezer. 
Prep Time20 minutes mins
Cook Time30 minutes mins
Total Time50 minutes mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: confetti cookies, sprinkle cookies, sugar cookies
Servings: 32
Calories: 135kcal
Author: Leona Konkel

Ingredients

  • 16 tablespoons butter 2 sticks/8 ounces/227 grams; softened
  • ¼ cup cream cheese 2 ounces/56 grams, or ¼ of a 8 ounce brick of cream cheese; softened
  • 1 cup sugar 200 grams
  • 1 egg ~50-55 grams
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 10 grams
  • 3 cups flour 360 grams
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon table salt
  • 1 cup sprinkles

Instructions

  • In a stand mixer or with a hand mixer (affiliate link), cream butter, cream cheese, and sugar for 1-2 minutes on medium speed, until fluffy.
  • Add the egg and vanilla extract. Mix for another minute, until it's blended. Scrape the bottom of the bowl to be sure everything's well mixed.
  • Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix on low speed until dough is almost combined. Scrape the bottom of the bowl again to check for unmixed bits of butter or flour. Stir again briefly to get the dough to just come together.
  • If your dough is too soft to hand, refrigerate it for 20 minutes. Otherwise, start scooping.
  • Place sprinkles in a bowl. Use a #40/ 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop, or two spoons, to portion the cookie dough. Roll the dough briefly in your hands to make a rough ball. Then dip the top ½-2/3 of the ball in the sprinkles, coating it thickly.
  • Place cookie dough, sprinkle-side up, on a parchment- or Silpat-lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Use the bottom of a glass to flatten the cookies to ¼-1/2 inch thickness.
  • Bake cookies for about 9 minutes at 375F. Cookies will be pale, but will have began to brown on bottom.
  • Cool for 4-5 minutes on the baking sheet, then remove the cookies to a cooling rack. Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Make-Ahead

  • Roll the dough into balls and coat in sprinkles as above. Place on a plate or baking sheet lined with plastic wrap or waxed paper, then flatten each with a glass.
  • Once the cookies are completely frozen, remove them from the plate and store in a labeled freezer bag.
  • When you want cookies, remove them from the freezer once your oven has preheated. Place them on your prepared baking sheet and bake them, from frozen, for about 11 minutes. No need to thaw first. Enjoy!

Notes

I've only used full-fat cream cheese in this recipe. Lower-fat Neufchatel cheese may work fine.
If you run out of sprinkles - and sometimes I do! - just roll the cookies in granulated sugar instead. 
We flatten these cookies because they will puff up as they bake, but they will not spread as much due to the cream cheese in the dough. 
This recipe was adapted from Smitten Kitchen and King Arthur Baking
Originally written in September 2016. Rewritten in January 2023.
Calorie count is an estimate only, and will vary.

[Post was originally published September 16, 2016. Instructions, walkthrough, and photos updated in January 2023.]

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Leona Konkel, November 2020

Hi, I'm Leona!

I love homemade sweets and baked goods, using real ingredients, not mixes. I also share easy-to-make meals - so that I can spend the rest of my time baking, not making dinner.

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front of sprinkle cookie
cookie with purple sprinkles and candy eyeballs
stack of sprinkle cookies