Summary

Prep: 10 mins
Cooking: 10 mins
Ages: Toddlers to Teens
Difficulty: Easy peasy
Makes: 12 cookies

Ingredients

For the red velvet cookies:

• 8 Tablespoons of salted butter (115 grams)
• ½ cup of granulated sugar (100 grams)
• ¼ cup of light brown sugar (50 grams)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour (180 grams)
• ½ teaspoon of baking soda
• Pinch of salt
• 25 grams of cocoa powder
• 1 ½ tubes extra strong red food colouring
• 12 squares of milk chocolate

For the cream cheese drizzle:

• 30 grams of cream cheese
• 1 cup of powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon of milk or alternative milk
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius
2. Melt butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Your butter should be very soft, but not hot.
3. In a medium sized bowl, beat the butter with the brown and white sugars using a handheld mixer or whisk.
4. Add the vanilla, red food colouring and the egg. Mix until everything is well combined.
5. Add in the flour, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt. Beat until a dough begins to form.
6. The dough will be sticky but it should be just thick enough to be handled. If not you can pop it in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.
7. Roll the dough into twelve balls, putting a chocolate square in the centre of each ball and closing the dough around it.
8. Place on a non-stick or greased baking tray.
9. Bake in the centre of a preheated oven for 9-11 minutes.  It’s important to not overbake! Take them out as soon as the top is no longer liquid. They will still be very soft and may look uncooked but as long as the top is solid they will firm up as they cool down.
10. Let your cookies cool on the baking tray for at least 30 minutes before icing with cream cheese drizzle.
11. For the cream cheese drizzle, mix all the ingredients in a bowl.
12. Place in a piping tool, (or if you don’t have one, in a plastic food bag with the corner snipped off) and drizzle over your red velvet cookies.

Red velvet cookies – our step by step guide:

Put your butter in a small jug and microwave for about 30 seconds.

The butter should be very soft, but not entirely liquid or hot.

Get your hand mixer and beat your butter with your sugars.

Add your egg, food colouring and vanilla.

Mix just until everything is well combined.

Add your flour, baking soda and salt into the mix.

Mix until a stiff dough begins to form.

It will be sticky but it should be just firm enough to roll into balls and place on the baking sheet.

If it’s too sticky you can pop the mixture in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm it up.

Roll your dough into 12 balls.

Put a square of chocolate inside each ball of dough, close the dough around it and put the balls on a baking tray.

Bake in your preheated oven for 9-11 minutes.

Your cookies will probably not look done, but take them out anyways as it’s important not to over-bake them.

As long as the top is not liquid, they’re fine as they should be rich and gooey inside.

Now it’s time to make your cream cheese frosting.

Simply put everything into a medium sized bowl and mix well.

It should not be stiff…it’s more like a drizzle.

Put your cream cheese icing into a piping bag (or a plastic bag with a corner cut off) and drizzle it over your cookies.

Enjoy these delicious red velvet cookies!