These birthday cake cookies are chewy, buttery and fun! They are filled with chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles and that delicious classic birthday cake flavor. This recipe is completely from-scratch and the cookies make the best sharable birthday treat!
These chewy, vanilla and butter flavored birthday cake cookies are the perfect treat. They’re made from scratch with simple pantry friendly ingredients. You’ll definitely want to make this birthday cookie recipe whether it’s your birthday or not!
I created these funfetti cookies during the pandemic. People were not able to get together to celebrate. These confetti cake cookies pack well and are so easy to share!
For more birthday cake treats, try my Birthday Cake Donuts and Birthday Cake Ice Cream.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
- These are the perfect cookie to make for a birthday.
- You’ll love how soft, chewy, thick and flavorful they are!
- Make them in place of or in addition to a birthday cake or just anytime you need a smile!
INGREDIENTS
Below are useful notes on some of the ingredients needed to make these chewy birthday cake cookies. Please see recipe card below for full list of ingredients and their measurements.
- Butter
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar: Dark brown sugar makes a good substitute. Brown sugar makes the cookies chewy and flavorful.
- Eggs
- Vanilla…Lots of vanilla equals lots of flavor in birthday cake cookies!
- Flour
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Sprinkles
- Chocolate chips: You can use regular sized or mini chocolate chips for these funfetti chocolate chip cookies. Dark, semi-sweet, or white chocolate chips are all delicious in these cookies!
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS
- Start by combining your dry ingredients.
- Cream the room temperature butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer until they’re creamy and combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl then add the eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla.
- Turn the mixer down to low and gradually pour in the dry ingredients followed by the sprinkles then the chocolate chips and mix until just combined.
- Use an ice cream scoop to form the dough balls. Place the cookie dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake until the edges start turning golden brown. The middles will still be soft, but the cookies will set more as they cool. Let them cool on the cookie sheet for about five minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool.
DO I HAVE TO CHILL THE COOKIE DOUGH
One of the many things I love about these cookies is that they are nice and thick. Part of the reason for that is that the dough is chilled before it’s baked. Chilling the dough prevents it from spreading too thinly while it bakes.
Chilling the dough also enhances the flavor and has many other benefits. Check out this article by King Arthur Flour for more info on why it’s a good idea to chill cookie dough!
Chill the cookie dough for at least an hour. Before chilling the dough, you’ll want to pre-scoop it. If you wait to scoop it after chilling the dough, it’ll be way too hard to scoop.
When the cookies are ready to bake, just pull the dough off the tray for each batch. Leave the remaining dough balls in the fridge while the first batch bakes.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Use rainbow, chocolate, or a combination of the two!
These cookies are so cute and happy looking with their sprinkles and mini chocolate chips, so I could not bring myself to cover them up with frosting! That said, they are delicious with a simple buttercream or even store bought frosting.
This recipe makes 18 giant cookies, but you can make them smaller if you like. You’ll just need to reduce the cooking time by a few minutes.
EXPERT TIPS
- Tip #1: Use a cookie scoop or ice cream scoop to form the dough balls. These cookies are monster sized which means they’re baked with about 1/4 cup of dough! I like to use a 2 oz cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop. It makes the dough balls all the same size and makes measuring the dough out a lot easier.
- Tip #2: Chill the dough balls. Keep the remaining cookie dough in the fridge while the cookies bake.
- Tip #3: Scoop the cookie dough before chilling. Before chilling the dough, you’ll want to pre-scoop it. If you wait to scoop it after chilling the dough, it’ll be way too hard to scoop.
Birthday Cake Cookies
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 33 minutes
- Yield: 18 cookies
- Category: Desserts, Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Birthday Cake Cookies filled with sprinkles and chocolate chips are super fun and easy to make! They are also buttery, chewy and delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar, light or dark, packed
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles
- 3/4 cups mini chocolate chips (or regular sized semi sweet, white, or dark chocolate chips)
Instructions
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt Set aside.
- Cream the sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment or with a handheld mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl then add the eggs and blend well then add the vanilla.
- With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients followed by the sprinkles then the chocolate chips.
- Use a 2 ounce cookie scoop* to drop the cookies onto the cookie sheet. Place them 3″ apart. Cover the cookie dough balls with plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour
- After chilling the dough for at least an hour, preheat oven to 375 F. Keep remaining balls in fridge while the first batch bakes.
- Bake 11-13 minutes until edges have started to turn light brown. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before then transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
Notes
*Use a 2 ounce cookie scoop or a 1/4 cup measuring cup or a scale to measure out the cookie dough. I find using a cookie scoop or even an ice cream scoop works best. It makes the dough balls all the same size and makes measuring the dough out a lot easier.
This recipe makes 18 giant cookies. You can make them smaller if you like. You’ll just need to reduce the cooking time by a few minutes. Smaller cookies won’t take as long to bake.
The nutrition information provided is an estimate. The calorie accuracy is not guaranteed.
Keywords: Cookies, birthday cake cookies, sprinkles, funfetti
These are one of the best cookies you can make! Absolutely delicious
★★★★★
Thank you so much Yous 🙂 So happy you love these Birthday Cake Cookies!
Hello,
Could you make this recipe without the chocolate chips and have the same results? Thank you!
Hi Maggie! I haven’t tried these cookies without the chocoalte chips, so unfortunately I can’t say exactly how they would turn out. The flavor would be a little different minus the chocolate and I imagine the texture may be a bit different as well. Please let me know if you try them minus the chocolate chips and let me know if you have any other questions 🙂 Natalie
Thank you! I just made the cookies (including chocolate)…I haven’t baked them yet as they are chilling but did you find your cookie dough was dry? After pressing it together in ic cream scoop it would form balls however, I found dough very hard to mix because of dryness. Normal for this recipe? I weighed ingredients so I know it’s not too much flour. Thanks so much!
Hi Maggie you are welcome! Glad to hear you just made the cookies. I wouldn’t say it is normal for the cookie dough to be very dry and I haven’t heard anyone else mention that before. Thank you for letting me know. I am not sure why it would be the case here especially since you weighed the ingredients. I will be sure to pay close attention to that next time I make them. Please let me know how they turn out!
Hi! Can these be chilled overnight? Thank you!
Hi Joan, I’m sorry for the slightly delayed response! Yes these cookies can be chilled overnight. You’ll want to make sure they are covered tightly with plastic wrap. Also, I would make sure to form them into balls before chilling. Please let me know if you have any other questions! 🙂 Natalie
These are AMAZING!!! SO SOFT AND CRISPY ON THE BOTTOM THANK YOU FOR THIS WONDERFUL RECIPE!!!
Hi Selena, Thank YOU for making these brithday cake cookies and for taking the time to write a such a nice comment!! I’m so happy you enjoyed them 🙂 Have a great day! xxNatalie
Yum! Second time making these as school treats (first for my daughters birthday and now for Christmas) and I’m sure they’ll be a big hit again.
★★★★★
Yay!! Thank you so much for making these cookies Brittanie!! I’m so honored you made them for such special occasions!! Hope you have a very Merry Christmas! 🙂 -Natalie