Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies are soft, fudgy, chocolatey cookies with a gorgeous crinkle exterior. They’re a great addition to any Christmas cookie box, Valentines Day or random Tuesday!
What is Red Velvet?
So let’s talk about this. Do you know what red velvet is? Most people think that red velvet is its own distinct flavor, when in reality it is just chocolate with some red food coloring mixed in.
Historically, the red in red velvet cake was due to the non dutch processed cocoa powder used in the batter that created a red tint in the final product.
My red velvet crinkle cookies pack a chocolatey flavor and have a soft and fudgy texture! Read below for my advice on how to make the best red velvet cookies!
Tips for the best Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
- Don’t overmix the dough! To maintain the more dense, fudgy flavor of these cookies it’s important not to overmix them and incorporate too much air into the batter!
- Do not chill the dough–the batter for these red velvet crinkle cookies is going to be soft and sticky, use a spoon or cookie scoop to scoop the dough and avoid a mess.
- Roll the cookie dough in granulated sugar first, then powdered sugar. The layer of granulated sugar helps create a barrier between the cookie dough and the powdered sugar, so the powdered sugar doesn’t melt into the batter and you end up with the classic crinkle.
- Use a highly pigmented red food coloring to avoid a “food coloring” taste. Here is the one I used for these cookies!
Don’t want to make a ton of cookies? Try my Single Serve Red Velvet Cookie topped with cream cheese frosting!
Can baking be therapeutic?
I often talk about baking being a therapeutic hobby but I’d like to share more about why I feel that way as well as how it can become a relaxing hobby for you!
When I bake, it’s my creative time. I may put on my favorite nostalgic movie or tv show in the background, or a Spotify playlist titled “French café” and leave my troubles behind.
Sometimes I pour myself a glass of wine and light a candle. Then, with the mood set, the mixing of batter, kneading of dough and smoothing of icing is my only care in the world.
When I say baking is therapeutic, sometimes people respond saying “not for me it isn’t!” I completely understand why someone might feel that way. There have been plenty of times where I spend hours on something only for it to fail or something breaks that shouldn’t or I forget to clean as I go and am left with a disastrous kitchen to clean.
So I should in reality, have a caveat to my “baking as therapy” claims…
Baking is therapy when you curate the experience to be relaxing.
How do you curate that relaxing experience for yourself, you ask?
How to make baking therapeutic…
- Prepare your mind–know that it’s okay if the cake doesn’t rise, or the butter wasn’t chilled enough. Shift your mindset from seeing your failures as mistakes to seeing them as opportunities for learning.
- Prepare your space–I cannot and will not bake on top of a messy kitchen. If I were to do this I would be starting from a place of stress! Take an extra 10 minutes to clean any dishes in the sink and wipe down the counters, this small effort will pay you back greatly in brain space and clarity.
- Clean as you go! I’ll tell you the one way to make baking stressful and tiresome, is to not clean as you go! After I use each ingredient that I no longer need, I put it away.
After each major step in the process, I wipe down the counters and put dishes that are no longer needed in the sink. If there is chill time or baking time I don’t sit, I do the cleaning then. Make this shift and you’ll really notice the difference!
By the way, this last tip really helped me when I was on The Great American Baking Show–and the crew that cleaned up behind us made a point to tell me that my workspace was always so clean they didn’t have much to do!
I would reply by saying “it’s how I stay sane in this tent!”
Additional suggestions:
*Maybe try printing off the recipe instead of looking at it on your phone, tablet or laptop and use this time to unplug from technology for a few hours
**Invite friends or family over to share your creation with you. Time spent with loved ones over food is a universally special experience
And that’s how I discovered baking for my mental health. If you try any of these suggestions, let me know how it went for you! I’m really invested in spreading this message to others in hopes that baking will enhance your lives more than it already does!
Happy Red Velvety Baking!
Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
For the Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick, room temperature
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp red food coloring
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar for rolling
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar for rolling
Instructions
For the Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (roughly 180°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together 1/2 cup of unsalted butter at room temperature with 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of granulated sugar. Mix for 1 minute.
- Add 2 large eggs at room temperature, 2 tsp of vanilla extract and 1 1/2 tsp of red food coloring and mix. Scrape down the bowl when necessary to make sure all ingredients are incorporated.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together 2 cups of all purpose flour, 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/2 tsp of salt.
- Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and mix until just combined. The batter should be fairly wet, this is what you want. Finish off scraping the bowl and mixing by hand to make sure all the ingredients have combined into the dough.
- Place 1/3 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup powdered sugar into two separate bowls.
- Using a tablespoon or a 1" cookie scoop, scoop out balls of dough and place them directly into the bowl with the granulated sugar. Roll each cookie dough ball in the granulated sugar until it's completely coated.
- Transfer the ball of dough from the granulated sugar to the powdered sugar and roll until it's completely coated. Place on the lined baking sheet.
- Place cookie dough balls at least 2" apart from each other. Bake for 8-10 minutes depending on the level of fudgyness you desire. The crinkle design should start to reveal itself in the oven.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
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