Description
These festive Reindeer Cookies are a fun and easy holiday treat made with chocolate cake mix and decorated to look like adorable reindeer. Soft, chocolatey cookies topped with chocolate frosting, mini Nilla Wafers, candy eyes, colorful M&Ms, and pretzel antlers make these the perfect Christmas cookie for kids and adults alike.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 1 box chocolate cake mix
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
Decorations
- 1 can chocolate frosting (or 1-2 cups homemade chocolate frosting)
- 24-28 mini Nilla Wafers
- 24-28 red and brown M&Ms
- 1 package candy eyes
- 48-56 mini pretzels
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure it’s ready for baking the cookies.
- Make Cookie Batter: In a medium-sized bowl, combine the chocolate cake mix, eggs, and vegetable oil. Stir until fully incorporated to create a thick cookie batter.
- Form Cookies: Scoop 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of dough and roll it into a ball. Repeat this process with the remaining dough.
- Arrange on Baking Sheet: Place 12 cookie dough balls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, spacing them evenly.
- Bake Cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for about 8 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies start to get crinkly.
- Cool Slightly: Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes to help them set without breaking.
- Transfer to Rack: Move the cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before decorating.
- Frost Cookies: Spread a generous layer of chocolate frosting over the top of each cooled cookie.
- Add Nilla Wafers: Place one mini Nilla Wafer onto the bottom half of each frosted cookie to form the reindeer’s snout.
- Attach Eyes: Place two candy eyes above each Nilla Wafer, sticking them in place with a little frosting.
- Add Antlers: Position two mini pretzels above the eyes on each cookie to resemble antlers, pressing gently to secure.
- Attach M&Ms: Use frosting to attach one red or brown M&M to each Nilla Wafer to represent the reindeer’s nose.
- Set Frosting: Allow the frosting to set completely before serving to keep decorations intact.
Notes
- These Reindeer Cookies are simple to make and perfect for Christmas parties or holiday baking with kids.
- You can substitute homemade chocolate frosting for the canned variety to add a personal touch.
- For extra flair, use different colored M&Ms or add edible glitter to the frosting.
- Store the decorated cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days for best freshness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 160
- Sugar: 15g
- Sodium: 150mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 23g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 1g
- Cholesterol: 20mg
