Sometimes you just need a sugar cookie covered in sprinkles. Whether it’s a bad week, a particularly bad case of the Mondays, or a sad desk lunch, sprinkles cookies can be your savior. They are also perfect for birthday celebrations, picnics and movie nights. If you don’t believe me, go buy a thing of jimmies and see for yourself!
These cookies are simple, mood-boosting, and downright fun to make. They have a nice crunch around the edges but stay softer in the centers. They’re great on their own, dunked in milk, or with a little ice cream. The sprinkles make it a little tough to see when they start to brown, but it’s better to take them out of the oven a smidge early than wait for the brown to come through. The cookies will look cracked on top (sort of like a crinkle cookie) and the centers of the cookies should look soft but not doughy. They’ll keep cooking a bit on the cookie sheets after they come out too!
sprinkle cookies
adapted from Joy Wilson
3 cups flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
1 tbsp vanilla bean paste (vanilla extract will work too)
2 eggs
about 1 cup of sprinkles (I had a whole jar on hand and replenished my bowl as needed)
- In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed and beating well between additions. Add the vanilla bean paste and beat until incorporated.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture and mix until well-combined.
- Place the bowl in the fridge for at least an hour but you can leave it covered overnight. While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350°, pour ½ cup of sprinkles (to start) into a small bowl or rimmed plate, and line two cookie sheets with parchment.
- Using a tablespoon cookie scoop or just a normal measuring spoon, scoop balls of dough and roll the dough in your hands to make it a uniform sphere. Then, roll the balls in the sprinkles, making sure you have as many sprinkles as humanly possible on your cookie dough. Refill your sprinkle bowl as needed.
- Place dough on the lined baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between, and bake for 8-10 minutes until just starting to brown (see the note above re: baking time). Place the cookie sheets on a cooling rack for about five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
I made 3 dozen plus 4 extras that I used for ice cream sandwiches *highly recommended*