Red Velvet Cookies

I think cream cheese frosting may be one of my favorite things about living in South Carolina.  In NYC I would find cream cheese frosting on carrot cake and red velvet cake, but even that wasn’t a sure thing (I was appalled this past summer when Crumbs gave me a red velvet cupcake without cream cheese frosting), but here in the south you can put cream cheese frosting on pretty much anything.  A few weeks ago when we were wedding cake tasting I almost walked out of the bakery with a bowl full of cream cheese frosting; words cannot explain the goodness!  So, after my bad cookie experience last weekend I decided to return to a recipe that can do no wrong:  Red Velvet Cookies.

I had a friend coming over for movie night and realized that I had no dessert to share (except for the unservable chocolate chip cookies in my freezer).  Having no cookies in my house is a major no-no, so I needed to make something quick.  These cookies are about the easiest things out there.  It is a recipe passed down from my good friend Lindsey, who is a true southerner born in Nashville.  Actually these are Lindsey’s signature cookies, so perhaps I should have Lindsey write this post.  But I will try to do her recipe justice.

As I stated before, this is a quick recipe… it only has 3 ingredients:  Red Velvet Cake Mix, Oil, and 2 eggs.  That’s it.  Yet the goodness lies in the union of cookie and frosting.  Like peanut butter and jelly, the two flavors belong together.  Don’t get me wrong these cookies are soft and chewy just the way I like them, but the flavor isn’t as intense as in cake form.  Once you add the cream cheese frosting however, this cookie jumps to the top of any cookie bakers list!  

Red Velvet Cookies

(makes about 3 dozen cookies)

1 Red Velvet Cake Mix

2 large eggs

1/3 cup oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix ingredients together.  The dough will get pretty thick and dense like cookie dough.  Form into small balls and place on a greased cookie sheet.  Flatten down slightly with your hand.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until the top starts cracking.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1  8oz. package of cream cheese softened

½ stick of butter softened

1 cup confectioners sugar

Beat the ingredients together until fluffy.  And add sugar to taste… I added a little for extra sweetness.  It all depends on how you like your cream cheese frosting.

Frost the cookies after they have cooled completely.  With extra frosting put it on a graham cracker or let’s be real, lick it straight from the bowl.

** I know that red velvet cake mix can be hard to find in NYC so for all of you northerners I will try to find a red velvet cookie recipe without using the mix.  I'm always up for a challenge, although I’ve heard it’s hard to find a recipe that will match this**