Just 4 ingredients to make these soft, chewy, sweet and oh-so- yummy – Chocolate Crinkle Cookies! Super easy to make as well and perfect for the holiday season! Our favorite Christmas cookies for sure.
Even when I was in the Philippines, chocolate crinkles have been a huge favorite of mine. I was in college then and though I had often wished to learn how to bake these gorgeous cookies, I never dared to do it.
I suppose it doesn’t help when you don’t really have a proper oven at home….lol 🙂 Nonetheless, I knew that someday when I got married, I would have to learn to make these beauties. That day has arrived.
At first, I made an attempt to make a batch of these from scratch, which as you would know, has always been my first choice as 99% of our baked goodies here are from scratch.
However, though my initial trial was quite yummy the cookies came out rather flat and unappealing. They tasted wonderful but looked like somebody sat on them as they were just big and really flat – not exactly the kind that I remembered eating during my college days.
Thankfully, I found a popular Chocolate Crinkle recipe online that uses a chocolate cake mix and with very minor ingredients. I thought I’ll try it again and see if it’s any better.
After another attempt, I observed that the taste made from the cake mix wasn’t bad at all – pretty good actually – however, I still wasn’t happy with their appearance so after a few more tweaking, I came out with a version that for me was pretty acceptable – delicious and the cookies look pretty good, too – not totally flat and so chocolatey-good.
I chill the dough for about an hour before baking (so it’s easier to handle, too) and also roll the dough ball on a paper towel to remove as much oil as possible.
So, while in the future I may still attempt to make crinkle cookies from scratch, for now I am happy with this cake mix version. I note below some very simple techniques I use to make them look really nice and of course yummy, too!
Freshly baked Crinkle Cookies below, don’t they look pretty and yum? Chewy, fudgy and so easy to make – what are you waiting for?
FOR FULL RECIPE & INSTRUCTIONS and to PRINT, SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW.
NOTES ON INGREDIENTS FOR Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
1 box of Devil’s Food Cake Mix (choose your fave brand)
1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
2 large Eggs
Confectioner’s (icing) Sugar, enough for rolling the cookie dough in
HOW TO MAKE Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Mix all the ingredients together (except the icing sugar) by hand until a dough forms. Chill the dough for about an hour in the fridge.
Shape the dough into balls at least 1 1/2 inch size. Use a rounded tablespoon for easier measurement. Scoop the dough and fill the tablespoon (use a measuring spoon, not a serving spoon) to almost double the amount. To eliminate extra oil from the dough I roll them on a paper towel after shaping them. You can also leave them out to dry for about 10 minutes. This is to ensure that the sugar coating won’t be totally absorbed by the oil while baking.
Roll the balls in the confectioner’s sugar. Be very generous with the coating, roll each dough ball a few times to ensure a thick coating; this will ensure the sugar prints will remain thus achieving that crinkle/crackled look. Place each ball about 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet(s).
Bake for about 8-10 minutes or until just set. Remove from the cookie sheets after a couple of minutes and let cool on the wire rack completely. Enjoy while warm but it’s still perfectly yummy even at room temp. These cookies retain their moisture even after a day or two. Store in an airtight container, assuming there’ll be any left. 🙂
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Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 box Devil’s Food Cake Mix, choose your fave brand
- 1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
- 2 large Eggs
- Confectioner’s or icing Sugar, enough for rolling the cookie dough in
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F.Mix all the ingredients together (except the icing sugar) by hand until a dough forms. Chill the dough for about an hour in the fridge.
- Shape the dough into balls at least 1½-inch in size. Use a rounded tablespoon. for easier measurement. Scoop the dough and fill the tablespoon (use a measuring spoon, not s serving spoon) to almost double the amount. To eliminate extra oil from the dough I roll them on paper towels after shaping them. You can also leave them out to dry for about 10 minutes in the fridge. These extra steps are employed to ensure that the sugar coating won't be totally absorbed by the oil while baking.
- Roll the balls in the confectioner's (icing) sugar. Be very generous with the coating; roll each dough ball a few times to ensure a thick coating. This will ensure the sugar prints remain this achieving that crinkled/crackled look. Place each ball about 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet(s).
- Bake for about 8-10 minutes or just until set. Do not overbake. Remove from the cookie sheets after 2-3 minutes and let cool on the wire rack completely. Enjoy while warm-ish but it's also quite yummy at room temperature.
Nutrition
Last updated on November 14th, 2022 at 11:09 am
These chocolate crinkle cookies are incredible!
Thank you so much. I am so glad they turned out well and yummy.
I love chocolate crinkle cookies, Abby! Mine never seem to turn out this pretty though, LOL.
I had to make several attempts to finally achieve this….lol. Thanks, Cindy.
This looks gorgeously beautiful! And photos are awesome as well 🙂
Thanks, Anu! Hope you enjoy them.
Oh I love Chocolate Crinkle cookies Abby, and I don't have a good recipe. And I can't even believe how easy this one is. Really amazing recipe. These will look beautiful on my Christmas cookie gift trays! 🙂
these were one of my ALL TIME favorites from childhood – I need to make them, it has been so long!
If you like them puffy and not flat, I would chill the batter after mixing. Then roll them into balls and bake. The cold dough prevents it from spreading too much.
Thanks for the tip! 🙂
These cookies are a favorite of my friends and family. I also chill the dough for about an hour before baking and I also roll the dough ball on a paper towel to remove as much oil as possible. They turn out fabulously perfect each time! Thanks for the recipe!
Awesome cookies, only thing is that it doesn’t make very many. One batch made me 13 cookies so I recommend doubling it if you’re making for the holidays 🙂 otherwise they taste amazing and so easy!
These are amazing. My beautiful neighbor made some for me. Thank you, Tammy.
Author
Glad you liked it. One of my favorite cookies! Thanks!
Do you know if it works with Gluten Free Cake Mix?
Author
I haven’t tried this with a gluten-free mix. Sorry. Maybe worth a try.
These are sooo easy and so delicious. Being one of those bakers who can’t leave well enough alone, I added a few chopped pecans (leftover from holidays) and a couple pinches of ground coffee beans. Yummy, BUT they as they were baking they looked puffed up, but after cooled–flat. What did I do?
Author
There were a few things that you could have done to ensure they don’t flatten – remove excess oil and chilled the dough ahead. That would have helped. Glad you enjoyed the taste though. Thanks for stopping by.
Have you tried using less oil to start with? I’d like to try with egg replacement to make vegan. Saving recipe! B thanks.
Author
No, I like it the way it is but you can certainly adjust the amount to what you prefer. Let us know how it goes. Thanks!
Do these cookies freeze well?
Author
Yes! You can freeze these cookies for up to three months. Arrange them first on a baking sheet, cover, and flash freeze for a few hours then transfer to a freezer-safe container.