Easy Christmas Sugar Cookie Cups
These sprinkle sugar cookie cups are the perfect easy Christmas sweet treat to add to a cookie exchange or dessert tray.
Christmas sugar cookie cups are one of my favorite shortcut recipes for the holidays. They’re fun, festive, and so delicious!
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We all love homemade sweet treats during the holidays, but since it’s such a busy time of year, we don’t always have time to make things from scratch.
That’s why I love a good shortcut recipe! But I’m not talking about slice and bake cookies, here…I’m talking about desserts that actually taste homemade, but that only took you minutes to make.
Nobody will guess these Christmas sugar cookie cups started with a simple sugar cookie mix! Just a few basic additions transform the mix into these super cute, colorful, funfetti cookie cups.
They taste like frosted sugar cookies, but without all the rolling, cutting, and messy decorating.
You just need a few ingredients, and you’ve got a delicious dessert worthy of a Christmas cookie swap or holiday party. I happen to know that Santa loves them, too!
Easy Sugar Cookie Cups for the Holidays
I used a Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix as the base for these holiday cookie cups, because it’s versatile and foolproof.
The less measuring you have to do, the less time you’re spending in the kitchen!
To make the dough nice and festive, I used these baking safe jimmies sprinkles. They’re less likely to bleed into the dough than sanding sugar or non-pareils, and they provide a great pop of color.
The rounds of dough get pressed into a mini muffin pan, which gives them the cup-like shape.
After they’ve baked and cooled, a dollop of frosting (I used canned frosting to save time) is added to the cookie cups.
And voila–you’ve got a delicious holiday treat that looks impressive, tastes amazing, and was super easy to make!
More Shortcut Holiday Recipes:
- Christmas Funfetti Bread from a Mix
- Cake Mix Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Holiday Pistachio Bread
- Cake Mix Gingerbread Cookies
- Gingerbread Bundt Cake from a Mix
- Eggnog Bundt Cake from a Mix
- Cake Mix Cutout Sugar Cookies
- Bisquick Gingerbread Doughnut Holes
How to Make Christmas Sprinkles Sugar Cookie Cups
It’s really easy to make these sweet cookie cups.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Sugar Cookie Mix
- Unsalted Butter
- Egg
- Vanilla Extract
- Red and Green Sprinkles
- Vanilla Frosting
How to Make It:
Find the full printable recipe available below
Mix the cookie dough. First, you’ll combine the sugar cookie mix, butter, egg, and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl.
Mix together until a soft dough forms.
Add the sprinkles. Then, you’ll add the jimmies sprinkles to the dough, mixing just until incorporated.
Scoop and bake. Then, you’ll scoop rounds of cookie dough out into a mini muffin pan, using a measuring spoon or your fingers to create a depression in the center of the dough.
Bake until the edges are starting to turn light golden-brown, but the centers are still a little soft.
Shape and fill. Once you remove the cookie cups from the oven, you’ll notice the centers will have puffed up a bit.
Take a measuring spoon and depress the center, re-creating that well in the center of the cup. Let them cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then remove to a plate or wire rack to cool completely.
Once they’re cooled, add some canned frosting to a piping bag fitted with a tip, then pipe some frosting into each cookie cup.
Serve and enjoy!
Notes and Adaptations:
- I recommend using baking-safe jimmies sprinkles (these are the slender rod-shaped sprinkles) rather than sanding sugar or non-pareils in the cookie dough, as the jimmies are less likely to bleed their dye into the dough. I used Baker’s Choice sprinkles from Amazon.
- If desired, you can add some more sprinkles on top of the frosting before serving. You can also add food coloring to the frosting if you’d like to dye it red or green!
- A piping bag and tip make it easy to add decorative frosting to the cookie cups, but if you don’t have those, you can add the frosting to a heavy-duty zip-top bag and snip the corner of the bag, then squeeze it through the opening.
Recommended Equipment:
Christmas Sugar Cookie Cups
Ingredients
- 17.5 ounce package of sugar cookie mix (I used Betty Crocker brand)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-4 tablespoons red and green jimmies sprinkles
- 16 ounce can of vanilla frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 24-well mini muffin pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a medium mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer), combine sugar cookie mix, butter, egg, and vanilla extract. Mix on medium speed until well-combined into a soft dough.
- Add red and green sprinkles to the dough (the amount you use will just depend on how much you want in your cookie cups–I use 2 tablespoons in mine). Mix on low speed to incorporate.
- Scoop dough out into the prepared mini muffin pan, placing a round of dough into each well. Use a teaspoon or your fingers to make a depression in the center of each round, forming a cup.
- Bake in preheated oven for 12-14 minutes, or until edges are turning golden brown. The centers will still be a little soft and will puff up a little.
- Remove pan from oven and use a teaspoon to gently press down the puffed up centers. Let the cookie cups cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then remove to a plate or wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cookie cups have cooled, scoop the canned frosting into a piping bag fitted with a tip. Squeeze a bit of frosting into each cup, then serve and enjoy!
Notes
- I recommend using baking-safe jimmies sprinkles (these are the slender rod-shaped sprinkles) rather than sanding sugar or non-pareils in the cookie dough, as the jimmies are less likely to bleed their dye into the dough. I used Baker’s Choice sprinkles from Amazon.
- If desired, you can add some more sprinkles on top of the frosting before serving. You can also add food coloring to the frosting if you’d like to dye it red or green!
- A piping bag and tip make it easy to add decorative frosting to the cookie cups, but if you don’t have those, you can add the frosting to a heavy-duty zip-top bag and snip the corner of the bag, then squeeze it through the opening.
Nutrition
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