Snickerdoodle Cake Mix Cookies

These snickerdoodle cake mix cookies are quick, easy, and made with just 5 simple ingredients. Starting with a yellow cake mix means these tasty cookies come together fast, and they cost very little to make. Rolled in cinnamon sugar and baked until soft and chewy, these sweet cake mix snickerdoodles will disappear in no time!

🤔Can You Turn Boxed Cake Mix Into Cookies?

Yes, you can, and it's time to start thinking outside the box (sorry, I had to 😁!). If you've ever wondered what you can make with a boxed cake mix besides cake, cookies are one of the easiest answers. These snickerdoodle cake mix cookies need no mixer and have just five basic ingredients that you most likely already have on hand. Once you see how simple it is, try more cake mix treats like our Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies and Pumpkin Trifle!

🍪How These Cake Mix Cookies Compare To Classic Snickerdoodles

Classic snickerdoodles rely on cream of tartar for their signature tang and chewy bite, but this easy shortcut recipe doesn't need it. The yellow cake mix already has the leavening built in, so these cookies bake up just as soft and chewy, with a texture that's surprisingly close to the original. You also skip measuring flour, sugar, and baking soda, which makes them faster and cheaper to make. The flavor is a touch sweeter and a little less tangy, but the cinnamon sugar coating still delivers that classic snickerdoodle taste.

🥘Just 5 Simple Ingredients Needed

• Yellow cake mix: The shortcut base of the recipe, with the flour, sugar, and leavening already built in, so there's no measuring and no mixer.
• Butter: Adds rich flavor and gives the cookies their soft, chewy texture.
• Eggs: Bind the dough and help the cookies bake up soft instead of crumbly.
• Sugar & cinnamon: Mixed together for the classic cinnamon sugar coating that makes these taste like snickerdoodles.

See recipe card for quantities.

🧈Why Butter Is Better Than Oil for Cake Mix Cookies

Many cake mix cookie recipes call for oil, but butter gives these cookies a clear edge. It adds richer flavor and helps the dough hold its shape, so the cookies bake up thick and chewy instead of flat and greasy. Butter also browns lightly at the edges, which gives you a golden, bakery-style finish. It's the same fat used in classic snickerdoodles, so the flavor tastes more familiar too.

🔪How To Make Snickerdoodle Cookies From Cake Mix

Step 1: Combine yellow cake mix, melted butter, and eggs. Dough will be thick.

Step 2: Use a mini cookie scoop to form cookies.

Step 3: Roll each cookie in cinnamon sugar mixture; place on cookie sheet.

Step 4: Bake until cookies are puffed, formed, and just beginning to golden around the edges.

For step-by-step instructions, see the printable recipe card below.

Hint: I like using this Spring Chef Mellon Baller Scoop (affiliate link) for even cookie portions. If you don't have a cookie/mellon scoop, form dough with a round measuring tablespoon.

🌿Healthy Ingredient Substitutions

• Cinnamon Sugar Substitute for the Coating: Rolling the dough in a granulated sweetener blend with cinnamon (like a monk fruit or erythritol blend) lowers the sugar. Since it's only the coating, it changes the cookies very little.
• Reduced-Sugar Yellow Cake Mix: If your store carries a reduced-sugar mix, it's an easy way to cut sugar without changing the recipe. The cookies may bake a little paler and taste slightly less sweet.

📖Easy Recipe Variations

• Spiced Pumpkin Snickerdoodles: Swap the yellow cake mix for a spice cake mix, or stir ½ teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice into the yellow mix dough. Roll the dough balls in a blend of sugar and pumpkin pie spice for a warm, cozy fall spin.
• White Chocolate Cinnamon Chip: Fold ½ cup of white chocolate chips or cinnamon baking chips directly into the dough before scooping. The melted pockets add extra richness and a creamy contrast to the crunchy cinnamon-sugar coating.
• Apple Cider Snickerdoodles: Mix 1 packet of spiced apple cider drink mix powder directly into the cinnamon-sugar coating bowl before rolling the dough balls. It gives each cookie a bright, tart spiced-apple flavor reminiscent of bakery cider donuts.

For more easy cookie recipes, see Halloween Spider Cookies and Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. Both of these recipes are made with refrigerated cookie dough!

🍽Essential Equipment Needed

• large mixing bowl + sturdy wooden spoon
• small shallow bowl
• mellon scoop or round measuring tablespoon
• 2 large cookie sheets, lined with parchment paper for easy cleanup
• wire cooling rack

🍶Storing Your Cake Mix Snickerdoodle Cookies

Yellow cake mix snickerdoodles will keep for 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container. It's helpful to add a slice of bread to add moisture to the container. The cookies will keep fresh for longer this way by absorbing the bread's moisture.

❓Snickerdoodle Cake Mix Cookies FAQ

🍪What are Some Variations of Cake Mix Cookies?

You can make endless cookie flavors simply by changing the boxed cake mix or adding mix-ins:

• Spiced Pumpkin or Apple Cider: Use spice cake mix or add warm spices to yellow cake mix, then roll in cinnamon sugar for a cozy fall treat.
• Chocolate Crinkle: Use devil's food or fudge cake mix, roll the dough balls in powdered sugar, and bake for bakery-style crinkles.
• Funfetti / Birthday Cake: Use funfetti cake mix and fold in extra rainbow sprinkles or white chocolate chips.
• Lemon Crinkle: Use lemon cake mix, add a splash of lemon juice or zest, and dust heavily with powdered sugar.
• Red Velvet & White Chocolate: Use red velvet cake mix and fold in white chocolate chips for a rich, festive cookie.

For more cake mix recipes, see Clever Recipes Using Cake Mix That Taste Completely Homemade.

More Easy Cookie Recipes

Looking for other easy recipes like this? Try these, or head over to our Cookies and Bars page:

🌲What To Serve With Snickerdoodles

These are my favorite classic holiday treats to serve and package with snickerdoodle cake mix cookies. Find more on the Holiday Baking page.

📋Recipe With Step-By-Step Instructions

Snickerdoodle Cake Mix Cookies

Kitchen Ready Betty

These soft, chewy snickerdoodle cake mix cookies are made with just 5 simple ingredients and come together in minutes. Rolled generously in cinnamon sugar and baked until golden, they deliver bakery-style flavor with the ultimate pantry shortcut.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Rest time 5 minutes mins

Total Time 32 minutes mins

Course Baking, Cookies, Desserts, Holidays

Cuisine American

Servings 24

Calories 116 kcal

Equipment

• large mixing bowl
• sturdy wooden mixing spoon
• shallow mixing bowl
• 1-inch mellon baller OR rounded measuring tablespoon
• 2 large rimmed baking sheets lined with parchment paper
• wire cooling rack

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 15.25 oz yellow cake mix Duncan Hines and Pillsbury still have boxes this size (most others have less in the box)
• 1 stick butter (½ cup) melted and slightly cooled
• 2 eggs at room temperature
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• 1 & ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

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Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350℉.
• Mix cake mix with melted butter. Then add eggs, one at a time. Stir until just combined. Batter will be thick, so using a sturdy wooden spoon is helpful.
• Mix sugar and cinnamon together in shallow mixing bowl; have ready for next step.
• Use a 1-inch mellon baller or rounded measuring tablespoon to scoop up the dough and make rounded balls.
• Roll each cookie dough ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture, then place on parchment lined rimmed cookie sheet about 1.5 - 2 inches apart. Ideally, you should be able to fit 1 dozen cookies on each cookie sheet.
• Bake cookies for 10-14 minutes, or until edges are set and lightly golden, even if the centers look slightly puffy and underdone. Allow cookies to rest on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to completely cool.

Notes

If your melted butter is hot when added, it will warm the eggs and make the dough overly sticky and difficult to scoop. Let the butter cool until just warm to the touch. If the dough still feels too loose to roll neatly in the cinnamon sugar, pop the bowl in the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes to firm up.

Yellow cake mix snickerdoodles will keep for 3-4 days when stored in an airtight container. It's helpful to add a slice of bread to add moisture to the container. The cookies will keep fresh for longer this way by absorbing the bread's moisture.

See above post for more helpful tips.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cookieCalories: 116kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 1gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 167mgPotassium: 15mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 138IUVitamin C: 0.005mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 0.5mg

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_{Please note that nutritional information is provided by a third party service and is intended for guidance purposes only. KitchenReadyBetty.com makes no claims to its accuracy.}