Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies taste like cake mix cookies but they’re homemade.  They’re soft and chewy, with a luscious cream cheese frosting, and they get rave reviews every time!

Red velvet sandwich cookies piled high on a white plate

I think you all know that I’m a red velvet fanatic by now. Normally I steer clear from food coloring, but somehow it seems ok in order to achieve a beautiful red hue that’s perfect for Valentine’s Day and Christmas.

Red happens to be my favorite color, too. 🙂

I fell head over heels for red velvet cupcakes many years ago, and they’ve inspired me to create more tasty treats including red velvet brownies.

These Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies are one of my favorite recipes to make for the holidays. Most of the red velvet cookies I’ve tried in the past were made from a cake mix, but it was important to me to make this recipe completely from scratch as I try to use processed ingredients as little as possible.

I worked hard on this recipe, and I’m so happy with the results.  These cookies are soft like cake mix cookies, with just the right amount of crispness. 

They couldn’t be easier to make either, and they taste just like red velvet cake.

Red velvet sandwich cookies piled high on white plate atop a wooden server

Recipe ingredients

There are only a few simple ingredients in this recipe 

  • All purpose flour
  • Unsweetened cocoa powder
  • Baking soda
  • Butter, softened
  • Granulated sugar
  • Egg
  • Vanilla Extract
  • Red gel paste or food coloring
  • Cream cheese, softened
  • Powdered sugar
Red velvet cookies piled high on a plate with focus on bottom left cookie

How to make red velvet cookies

Pro tip: It’s essential that the butter is softened and all of the ingredients have been gathered before getting started as this recipe goes quickly.

How to make red velvet cookies collage
  • Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg, mixing on low just until combined, then beat in the vanilla and red food coloring until well incorporated.
  • Add the dry ingredients and beat on low just until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.  Chill the dough for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Bake the red velvet cookies:

How to make red velvet cookies collage 2
  • Form about 1/2 tablespoon of dough into a ball and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough and place 2″ apart.
  • Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 6-8 minutes or until the cookies appear dry on top.

Prepare the cream cheese frosting and assemble the cookies:

How to make red velvet sandwich cookies collage 3
  • Place the softened cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl and beat on high until light and fluffy. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat on low until incorporated, then add the vanilla.  Beat on high speed for about 3 minutes until fluffy.
  • Pipe or spread the frosting on the bottom half of half of the cookies, then top with the other half.
Red velvet sandwich cookies stacked up on a wire rack

Recipe notes

  • If you’re looking for a grain and gluten free alternative, these red velvet macarons are the perfect solution. They’re crisp, chewy and taste just like red velvet cake! 
  • I used gel coloring paste for this recipe, which is linked below.  I suggest starting with 1 tablespoon of coloring and adding more as desired.
  • Store red velvet sandwich cookies in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Red velvet sandwich cookies stacked up on white plate with bite out of top cookie

More red velvet recipes you’ll love:

Did you try this recipe?  If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram

Red velvet cookies piled high on a white plate

Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies

Servings: 16 sandwich cookies
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 16 mins
Total Time: 36 mins
Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies taste like cake mix cookies but they're homemade.  They're soft and chewy, with a luscious cream cheese frosting!
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Ingredients

For the cookies:

  • 1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 stick unsalted butter softened
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoons red gel paste or food coloring*

For the filling:

  • 4 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
  • 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar sifted
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions 

Prepare the cookies:

  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
  • Place the butter and granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and add the egg, mixing on low speed until combined, then beat in the vanilla and red food coloring until well incorporated.
  • Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line (2) rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator. Scoop out about 1/2 tablespoon of the dough and roll into balls. Place the dough balls the prepared baking sheet 2" apart.
  • Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 6-8 minutes, or until the cookies appear dry on top.
  • Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove the cookies from the pan and cool completely on the wire rack.

Prepare the filling:

  • Place the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined. Add the vanilla extract and increase the speed to medium high and beat for 3 minutes until the filling is nice and creamy.
  • Spread or pipe the filling onto half of the cookies, and top with the other half. Enjoy!

Notes

  • Total time above includes the 30 minutes for chilling the dough, and cooling the cookies.
  • *I used gel coloring paste for this recipe, which is linked below.  I suggest starting with 1 tablespoon of coloring and adding more as desired.
  • Cookies should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Serving: 1sandwich cookie, Calories: 206kcal, Carbohydrates: 35g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 28mg, Sodium: 89mg, Sugar: 27g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Sweets
Cuisine: American
Author: Marcie
Keyword: cream cheese frosting, red velvet cookies, red velvet sandwich cookies
All recipes and images © Flavor the Moments.
Did you try this recipe?Be sure to tag @flavorthemoments with the hashtag #flavorthemoments on Instagram so I can see what you made!

**The photos and text were updated in this post in January 2020.

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