Easy Patriotic Cookies

These Easy Patriotic Cookies are the perfect recipe to involve the kids! The cookies are just 4 ingredients, add frosting and decorate!

It is always helpful to have quick and simple recipes for holiday baking. These Easy Patriotic Cookies are just the ticket! The kids will love helping to make these fun and pretty cookies.

By using a cake mix, packaged frosting, and candies and sprinkles to decorate, you will quickly have a fun dessert ready to enjoy.

Also try my Easy Valentine’s Day Cookies and Easy St. Patrick’s Day Cookies!

This recipe has been shared in Weekend Potluck. Head on over to these great sites for LOTS of new recipes each week!

Other fun Patriotic Games and Treats:

The Cake Mix:

I used Betty Crocker white cake mix. Use any brand you like. You could also use any flavor you like as long as it is light colored to mix the green food coloring into.

The vanilla extract is optional but it is recommended. It does give the cookies good flavor. Without it, they are very plain.

The Frosting:

I used Betty Crocker cream cheese frosting so that is what I listed in the ingredients. Any white frosting would work just fine. You could even color it green if you like but I thought the green candy and sprinkles showed up best with white frosting.

The M&M’s:

Usually when I make trail mix or bark, I just buy a big bag of M&M’s and pick out what colors I want. It usually works out fine but I can’t always count on it. BUT! Amazon has a great 62oz container of Patriotic colors! You will be set to make ALL of the treats! If you like that idea, I linked it below.

The Sprinkles:

I found the sprinkles in this post at Walmart. They had a great multi-section container of Patriotic sprinkles that worked great.

Tip when you are decorating: don’t wait long to apply the sprinkles! The frosting dries quicker than you may think—quicker than I thought anyway, and those little balls in the sprinkles were rolling off fast! Get those right on there!

The Food Coloring:

I added food coloring to the dough for the cookies in the pictures. This is really optional. If you don’t like a lot of artificial colors in your food, it could definitely be left out. There is enough in the M&M’s and sprinkles. You could also keep the cookies white and add the coloring to the frosting. Change it up however you like.

The Vanilla Extract:

This is optional but highly recommended. They do taste much better with the vanilla. They are really plain without it.

Can Easy Patriotic Cookies Be Made Ahead of Time?

These could be made a day or so ahead. Store them in an airtight container and do not pile them on top of each other. If the main event is over and a little imperfection is OK, store them carefully in a couple of layers with parchment or wax paper between layers. As long as the frosting has had time to dry, you are very gentle and there is a layer of parchment or wax paper between, they will be OK in a few layers.

Can Easy Patriotic Cookies Be Frozen?

Yes! They can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Don’t pack them too tightly and put a sheet of parchment paper or wax paper between layers to protect them from each other. See picture above.

Ingredients:

Betty Crocker white cake mix

eggs

vegetable oil

vanilla extract, optional

red and blue food coloring

Betty Crocker cream cheese frosting

blue and red M&M’s

Patriotic sprinkles

Instructions:

Add cake mix, eggs, oil and vanilla (if using) to a bowl.

Mix well with mixer, wooden spoon or whisk.

If making two colors of cookies, divide dough into two bowls. You could also do 3 colors by leaving 1/3 of the dough uncolored/white.

Add in several drops of food coloring and stir in. Add a few more at a time and stir after each addition until desired color.

Refrigerate dough for about 30-60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350* or 325* if you are using dark, nonstick pans.

Place 2 Tbsp of dough rolled into balls and flattened with palms of your hand on ungreased or parchment lined cookie sheets. They will spread some. Eight on each cookie sheet fit well.

Bake at 350* (or 325* for dark, non-stick pans) for 8-10 minutes. Ovens vary so check after 8 and add another minute or two if needed.

Remove from oven and let sit on cookie sheet for about 2 minutes for soft, chewy cookies.

Remove to cool completely on wire racks.

When cooled, frost with frosting and decorate with M&M’s and sprinkles.

Yield: 20 cookies

Notes: Decorate when frosting is freshly applied. If it is dry, the M&M’s and sprinkles won’t stick well. Frost a few cookies at a time and apply decorations quickly. The sprinkles especially won’t stick well if you wait very long. When I work alone, I decorate one cookie at a time.

Store in airtight container.

Cookies can be frozen in airtight container for up to 3 months.

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