Name: Red Velvet Cookies
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened; 1 cup brown sugar; 1 egg; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 2 tablespoons buttermilk; 1/2 teaspoon red gel food colouring; 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour; 1/4 cup cocoa powder; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 3/4 cup white chocolate chips plus more for topping

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These cookies are perfectly chewy in the centre and crisp around the edges. They have that rich red velvety flavour with little hints of sweetness throughout from the white chocolate chips. If you love Red Velvet Cake, these cookies are for you!

What you will need to make Red Velvet Cookies:

Aside from the staples like butter, sugar, and flour you probably already have on hand, here are a few extra ingredients you will need.

Brown Sugar – Using only brown sugar in these cookies gives them a really great soft and chewy texture.

Buttermilk – Buttermilk is key in anything Red Velvet. It adds a tangy flavour and keeps these cookies soft and chewy. If you don’t have any on hand, you can just use regular milk or make your own. Add a small splash of lemon juice or vinegar to the milk that is called for in this recipe. Let it sit for a few minutes. It will look curdled, but that’s ok.

Red Food Colouring – I like using gel colouring so that you don’t have to use a ton of it. The Wilton Colour Right Red is my favourite.

Cocoa Powder – Chocolate is another key flavour in Red Velvet and for that we need cocoa powder.

White Chocolate Chips – Red Velvet is usually paired with cream cheese and since we’re missing that, I’ve added white chocolate chips! They add a nice touch of sweetness against the rich Red Velvet flavour.

How to make Red Velvet Cookies:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar together on high speed. About 2-3 minutes.

Add the egg, vanilla extract and buttermilk. Beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl so all is combined.

Add the red food colouring and beat until colouring is evenly distributed throughout.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.

With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat until combined.

Lastly, stir in the white chocolate chips.

Scoop or roll balls of cookie dough (about 2 1/2 tablespoons) and place evenly on lined baking sheets. I like using a large cookie scoop like this. Press a few extra white chocolate chips into the tops of the cookie dough balls.

Bake cookies for about 10 minutes, less if you make smaller ones.

For crinkly cookies, bang the pan on your counter as soon as they come out of the oven. For perfectly round cookies, use the rim of a glass or a cookie cutter larger than the cookie and swirl it around the cookie while it is still hot.

Let the cookies cool on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes before removing cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

How to make these cookies gluten-free:

These cookies can easily be made gluten-free. Simply swap the regular all-purpose flour for your favourite 1 to 1 gluten-free flour with xanthan gum. I love Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 all-purpose gluten-free baking flour.

Other Red Velvet recipes to try:

Two-Layer Red Velvet Cake

Red Velvet Cookie Sandwiches

Make sure to tag me @cremedelacombe on Instagram and leave a review below if you make these Red Velvet Cookies. I love seeing what you bake! To pin this recipe and save it for later, you can use the button on the recipe card below.