Soft Birthday Cake Cookies: 3-Ingredient Homemade Sprinkle Treats
These soft birthday cake cookies are a nostalgic, easy-to-make treat using just cake mix, an egg, and oil. They puff up like clouds, stay soft for days, and offer the perfect balance of chewy and tender with festive rainbow sprinkles.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
- Total Time: 20-22 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
- 15.25 oz box yellow cake mix
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup milk or water
- 1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles (jimmies)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Pour the cake mix into a mixing bowl and whisk briefly to break up clumps.
- Add the egg, vegetable oil, and milk (or water) to the dry ingredients.
- Mix vigorously with a fork or spoon until the dough becomes thick and sticky.
- Fold in half of the rainbow sprinkles gently to avoid crushing them.
- Scoop dough onto prepared baking sheets, leaving 2 inches of space between cookies.
- Press the remaining sprinkles onto the top of each dough ball.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are lightly golden but centers still look soft.
- Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Do not overbake; the centers should look slightly underdone as they continue to cook on the hot pan. Store in an airtight container with a slice of bread to maintain softness. For a chewier texture, add an extra tablespoon of flour. Use standard jimmies sprinkles, not nonpareils, to prevent bleeding.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 130
- Sugar: 14
- Sodium: 150
- Fat: 5
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Carbohydrates: 20
- Protein: 1
Keywords: birthday cake cookies, cake mix cookies, easy cookies, sprinkle cookies, soft cookies, 3 ingredient cookies, homemade treats