Sugar Spun Run

Sweet, simple, and from-scratch dessert recipes

Join My Facebook Page Follow Me on Pinterest Follow Me on Instagram Subscribe to my YouTube Channel

  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About Me
  • Contact
    • Work with Me
  • Subscribe
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About Me
  • Contact
    • Work with Me
  • Subscribe
You are here: Home / Desserts / Cookies / Sprinkle Cookies

Sprinkle Cookies

March 15, 2019 Updated February 26, 2020 BySam 38 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy.
Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe
Sprinkle Cookies

Fun, colorful, Sprinkle Cookies! Soft, buttery, chewy cookies encased in a colorful sprinkle shell! Oh, and did I mention that there’s no chilling necessary!?  

Sprinkle cookies cooling on cooling rack

Happy Friday!

It also happens to be Zach’s birthday today and while I’d love to say I made these sprinkle cookies to celebrate, unfortunately that’s not the case. The man hates sprinkles. I’m not even kidding here, he hates them. He loathes the texture (!?!), and he especially hates the way they get all over the house every time I make anything that uses them.

For his birthday he asked that I make him my chocolate cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting, and he was adamant that not so much as a single sprinkle should adorn his cake. I guess at 29 he’s really falling into his grumpy old guy stride.

Anyway, rather than being a festive birthday share, it’s kind of ironic I’m sharing these sprinkle cookies on the birthday of the biggest sprinkle-hater in my life, but here we are. And I have no apologies because these sprinkle cookies are amazing. Soft and chewy on the inside with a candy-like sprinkle coating on the outside… he doesn’t know what he’s missing.

cookie dough rolled in nonpareil sprinkles

The base for these sprinkle cookies is a buttery vanilla cookie. I actually based it largely off of my Snickerdoodles recipe, and you’ll notice that this cookie recipe uses cream of tartar.

I wanted a cookie that was soft and chewy, but not overly sweet on its own. We’re adding a lot of sugary sprinkles to the outside, so a cookie with a subtle tang (thank you, cream of tartar) was the best choice to counter the sweetness.

AND, there’s absolutely no chilling required with this recipe. I have so many cookie recipes that require chilling, it’s nice to make cookies without needing to use the fridge for once!

Sprinkle cookies on baking pan after baking

Tips for Making Sprinkle Cookies

  • Roll your sprinkle cookie dough through the sprinkles immediately after rolling. Immediately after rolling the surface of your cookie dough will be slightly warmed from your hands and sticky enough to pick up all the sprinkles that you roll it through. If you wait and roll out all of your dough and then go back to roll it, the surface will have lost its stickiness and won’t pick up as many sprinkles.
  • Jimmies/traditional sprinkles will work instead of nonpareils. In my opinion I prefer the texture and snappy crunch of the nonpareils and I prefer the way the nonpareils completely coat the cookies, leaving much less cookie showing through than traditional sprinkles do.
  • The centers of your cookies should be ever so slightly underdone when they finish baking. Let them finish cooling completely on the cookie sheet before enjoying. They’ll finish cooking here, too, and will be nice and soft (or at least the interiors will be).

Sprinkle cookies on cooling rack

Enjoy!

Other Recipes You Might Like:

  • Funfetti Cookies
  • Sugar Cookies
  • Chocolate Snickerdoodles
  • Snickerdoodle Blondies

Free E-Book

Treat yourself to a FREE E-BOOK!

Sprinkle cookies on cooling rack

Sprinkle Cookies

Fun, colorful, SPRINKLE COOKIES! No chilling required! Buttery chewy cookies encased in a colorful sprinkle shell! 
Be sure to check out the how-to VIDEO at the bottom of the post! 
5 from 13 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Cookies, Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: fun cookies, sprinkle cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 35 cookies
Calories: 100kcal
Author: Sam Merritt

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature 226g
  • 1 1/2 cups granulatedsugar 300g
  • 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups all-purpose plain flour (375g)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 ¼ cups nonpareil sprinkles

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl and using an electric mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until well-combined
  • Add egg and egg yolk and vanilla extract. Beat until thoroughly combined.
  • In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt until completely combined.
  • Gradually add dry ingredients to wet until completely combined.
  • Scoop dough into Tablespoon-sized balls and roll between your palms until smooth and round. Immediately roll through nonpareils until cookie dough ball is completely coated with sprinkles.
  • Place on prepared baking sheet, spacing cookies at least 1 ½” apart.
  • Transfer to 350F (175C) preheated oven and bake for 9-10 minutes. Allow to cool completely on baking sheet before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 100kcal
Tried this recipe?Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

Filed Under: Cookies, Desserts

Related Posts

None found

Previous Post Homemade Gobs (Whoopie Pies)
Next Post Homemade Peanut Butter Eggs

Comments

  1. Linda says

    December 14, 2020 at 3:06 pm

    5 stars
    Can these be rolled in Christmas Sprinkles ?

    Reply
    • Sam says

      December 14, 2020 at 10:03 pm

      Sure thing! Enjoy! 🙂

      Reply
  2. Cindy says

    October 23, 2020 at 11:33 am

    5 stars
    These sugar cookies are SO good!! They are so easy to make and the taste is amazing. Really the perfect sugar cookie. My whole family loved them, even my husband who doesn’t normally love sugar cookies. I like them on the crispy side, so I left them in a little longer. I’m making another batch today. Can’t wait to eat them. Thank you for this perfect sugar cookie recipe.

    Reply
    • Sam says

      October 23, 2020 at 10:01 pm

      I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Cindy! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Aria says

    October 21, 2020 at 5:30 pm

    5 stars
    The cookies was so good I could not stop eating them. This recipe was so good i am going to use it so many more times. You did a great job with the cookies!

    Reply
    • Sam says

      October 21, 2020 at 9:05 pm

      I am so glad you enjoyed them so much, Aria! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Katie says

    October 5, 2020 at 3:57 pm

    5 stars
    Easy recipe! The cookies were nice and chewy with the awesome crunch from the nonpareil. Will definitely make again!

    Reply
    • Sam says

      October 5, 2020 at 9:03 pm

      I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Katie! 🙂

      Reply
    • Aria says

      October 21, 2020 at 5:37 pm

      5 stars
      The cookies was so good I could not stop eating them. This recipe was so good i am going to use it so many more times. You did a great job with the cookies!

      Reply
      • Sam says

        October 21, 2020 at 9:04 pm

        Thank you so much, Aria! I am so glad you enjoyed them. 🙂

  5. Nayy says

    August 29, 2020 at 5:31 am

    5 stars
    Does the egg & egg yolk have to be room temperature or can it be straight from the fridge? Sorry just want to make sure. Can this recipe be tripled?

    Reply
    • Sam says

      August 29, 2020 at 11:07 pm

      It’s always best to use room temperature ingredients. You should be able to triple the recipe without issue. 🙂

      Reply
      • Nayy says

        September 1, 2020 at 12:21 am

        5 stars
        Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us all they’re absolutely delicious very sweet but pair wonderfully with coffee since the texture is like shortbread. I tripled this recipe & everything went well thank you again!

      • Sam says

        September 1, 2020 at 10:07 am

        I’m so glad you enjoyed the cookies so much! 🙂

  6. LEOMANT says

    August 25, 2020 at 11:37 am

    5 stars
    Vivement les prochaines vacances scolaires…en attendant je vais m’acheter de la poudre de tartre, ce n’est pas trop utilisé en France,
    vos chocolate chip cookies sont excellents, merci Sam

    Reply
    • Sam says

      August 25, 2020 at 4:56 pm

      I am so glad you enjoy them so much! 🙂

      Reply
  7. Michelle says

    August 21, 2020 at 8:55 pm

    5 stars
    Great easy, recipe. My 4yo loved rolling the balls in the sprinkles! <3

    Reply
    • Sam says

      August 21, 2020 at 9:30 pm

      I am so glad you enjoyed them so much! Hopefully they didn’t make too much of a mess rolling the cookies! 😂

      Reply
  8. Jan says

    July 31, 2020 at 4:45 pm

    5 stars
    First of all, I love your recipes. My husband is extra happy that I found you online.
    I have made these before but today I was out of the multi color nonpareils so I tinted the dough a medium pink and rolled them in all white nonpareils. They are so cute! They would be perfect for a grandchild’s tea party.
    Thank you for all the work you do on these recipes.

    Reply
    • Sugar Spun Run says

      August 1, 2020 at 7:14 am

      I am so glad that you found my site and have enjoyed the recipes that you have tried so far, Jan. Thank you so much for commenting. Your cookies sound adorable and would pair perfectly with a good cup of tea. 😉 Something you may also enjoy is my icebox cookies. Thanks again!

      Reply
  9. Ebbi says

    April 8, 2020 at 5:05 pm

    5 stars
    Delicious!!! These totally brightened my three-year-old’s day and were super easy to make!! I am consistently impressed with the quality of your recipes…keep them coming!

    Reply
    • Sugar Spun Run says

      April 9, 2020 at 10:15 am

      Thank you so much, Ebbi! I am happy that these cookies could bring a smile to your kid today. 🙂

      Reply
  10. Deanna says

    February 29, 2020 at 3:54 pm

    5 stars
    I made these last night with my niece who loves sprinkles. They were really soft & delicious! Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply
    • Sugar Spun Run says

      February 29, 2020 at 7:49 pm

      I hope that you both had fun making the cookie together, Deanna! I am so glad that they turned out perfectly for you. 🙂

      Reply
  11. Monica says

    April 2, 2019 at 1:35 pm

    Is the tartar really necessary or can I skip it?

    Reply
    • Sam says

      April 2, 2019 at 3:40 pm

      Hi Monica! I really don’t recommend leaving it out. 🙂

      Reply
      • Alice says

        April 6, 2020 at 7:33 am

        The cream of tartar Helps rise the cookie so you could replace it with baking powder

      • Rodney Greenfield says

        August 25, 2020 at 11:25 am

        What is cream of tartar?

      • Sam says

        August 25, 2020 at 9:48 pm

        Hi Rodney! You can usually find it in the grocery store with the spices. 🙂

  12. Melissa Griffiths says

    March 25, 2019 at 10:15 pm

    My kids would freak out over these!

    Reply
    • Sam says

      March 26, 2019 at 2:01 pm

      I hope they love them! 🙂

      Reply
  13. Caroline says

    March 22, 2019 at 8:03 pm

    5 stars
    My sprinkles did not coat the entire ball. I put the ball of dough directly in the sprinkles. Not sure what I did wrong. My cookies came out very hard. I think I baked too long. When I tested the first batch after 9 minutes, I thought the center was too gooey. I should have let them sit instead of returning to oven. They tasted delicious in spite of thinking I was going to lose a tooth. Thank you. I’ll try again.

    Reply
    • Sam says

      March 22, 2019 at 9:03 pm

      Hi Caroline! If the sprinkles don’t stick to the dough, roll the dough ball through your hands for a few more seconds to warm it up and they should stick. They may have been baked too long. It’s best to let them finish cooking on the tray out of the oven to avoid over-baking. I’m glad you still enjoyed them! 🙂

      Reply
      • Caroline says

        March 22, 2019 at 9:17 pm

        Thank you for responding. I enjoy your videos. Have to get it correct because they taste so good. Keep up the good work!

  14. Liana says

    March 18, 2019 at 8:18 pm

    Did you put sprinkles around the whole ball of dough? Or just what the top would be, I cant tell in the video. Thanks!

    Reply
    • Sam says

      March 18, 2019 at 8:25 pm

      Yup, around the whole ball. Sorry for not making that clearer, Liana!

      Reply
      • Liana says

        March 18, 2019 at 8:30 pm

        Thanks for the fast response! I will try them tonight!

      • Sam says

        March 18, 2019 at 8:45 pm

        You’re very welcome! I hope you love the cookies! 🙂

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




The author (Sam) in blue shirt holding donut Hi, I'm Sam! I'm dedicated to bringing you sweet, simple, and from-scratch dessert recipes. My life may or may not be controlled by my sweet tooth. Send help (or chocolate). Read more about me.

Most Popular

flaky biscuit on white cloth

Easy Homemade Biscuits

Pizza dough in glass bowl, after rising

The Best Pizza Dough Recipe

Slice of yellow cake with chocolate icing on white plate

The Best Vanilla Cake Recipe

stack of 5 chocolate chip cookies

The WORST Chocolate Chip Cookies

Slice of cheesecake

The Best Cheesecake Recipe

Potato soup in bowl, with toppings

The Ultimate Creamy Potato Soup

Best Holiday Recipes!

christmas sugar cookie decorated with icing on white plate

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (With Icing!)

Stack of decorated gingerbread cookie men on plate

Gingerbread Men Cookies

Gingerbread slice with whipped topping

Gingerbread

cookies dipped in chocolate on marble surface

Butter Cookies

Peppermint bark fudge stacked

Peppermint Bark Fudge

Slice of hot chocolate cake topped with marshmallows with a mug of hot chocolate in the background

Hot Chocolate Cake

Never miss a recipe!

places sugar spun run has been featured (Women's Day, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, Country Living, the huffington post, People, Delish, MSN, TLC, Parade, Better Homes & Gardens, Buzzfeed)

Copyright © 2021 · Sugar Spun Run

Privacy Policy|Accessibility Statement