Welcome to day 2 in Sally’s Cookie Palooza!
I’ve had a cookie like this on my mind for over a year now. Red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting in cookie form. (While we’re on the subject of cakes as cookies… anyone try the carrot cake cookies in Sally’s Cookie Addiction?!)
It took me many failed attempts and horrific cream cheese disasters… but here it is. Cream cheese stuffed red velvet cookies will be the talk of the town on every holiday cookie tray this year.
The red velvet cookie dough is pretty straightforward. It’s basically the same cookie dough I use for my red velvet chocolate chip cookies, and it’s similar to my red velvet kiss cookies, only I use a little extra cocoa powder in place of flour. The extra cocoa flavor definitely stands out. One of the main questions I receive regarding this red velvet cookie dough is… how is it red velvet? Isn’t it just chocolate chip cookie dough tinted red? Honestly, that’s a great question. But to me, red velvet is a blend of cocoa and vanilla paired with LOTS of buttery flavor. It’s a buttermilk-based cake, so you have a tangy flavor mixed in as well. And the chocolate flavor is toned down by only adding a small amount of cocoa. The cookies include all of it, though the buttermilk flavor isn’t as strong.
So what about today’s cookies?
I had a wonderful starting off point with my red velvet cookie dough, so the real issue was with the cream cheese filling. Man this stuff was annoying! It would either seep out the sides of the cookie, taste gross, or pull a disappearing act. Like, it would melt into the cookie dough itself. It simply wasn’t thick or sturdy enough. Like most cookie doughs, the cream cheese filling needs to be super cold going into the oven. And it needs to fit snugly inside the red velvet cookie dough. So how do we make it? The filling is basically an extremely thick cream cheese frosting.
Um, did you read that? These are cookies stuffed with frosting (!!!).
You’ll need cream cheese, obviously. Confectioners’ sugar to sweeten and thicken, a smidge of flour to also thicken, and a touch of vanilla extract for flavor. I always add butter to my cream cheese frosting, but butter caused the filling to melt. Once I (1) ditched the butter, (2) got the filling as cold and sturdy as possible, and (3) shaped the cookie dough completely around the filling… we were golden!!!
Let’s walk through the general process:
- prepare + chill red velvet cookie dough
- make the cream cheese filling
- drop spoonfuls onto baking sheet and freeze
- roll frozen spoonfuls of filling into balls
- assemble cookies
- bake cookies!
After the cream cheese filling is mixed together, it’s pretty sticky. So that’s why we have to freeze it. I don’t recommend freezing the filling in the bowl; rather, freeze it as little spoonfuls. It will freeze faster and more evenly this way. Once the little spoonfuls are frozen/cold, it’s easier to roll into balls to fit inside the cookie dough. It’ll still be a little sticky, but much more manageable.
Step Photos
Red velvet cookie dough:
Cream cheese filling:
Drop spoonfuls + freeze them:
Roll frozen cream cheese filling into balls as best you can:
Assemble cookies:
That bottom right picture shows how to mold the cookie dough around the cream cheese filling. Just push the dough down the sides to completely enclose the filling. As you’re assembling the cookies, the cream cheese filling balls may get a little soft. So don’t be afraid to just pop them back in the fridge for a few minutes.
Roll the stuffed cookie dough balls in granulated sugar for some sparkle because sparkles are pretty.
Bake up some stuffed cookie success!
Red Velvet Cookie Conclusion
- If you love red velvet, you’re going to obsess over these cookies.
- If you don’t love red velvet, you’re going to obsess over these cookies.
- I haven’t met a single person who doesn’t love these cookies.
- Even people who are all like “eh, I don’t really like dessert” (who even are you?) love these cookies.
See all cookie palooza recipes. And for your next red velvet-inspired bake, try my red velvet seven layer bars!
Print
Cream Cheese Stuffed Red Velvet Cookies
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes
- Yield: 18 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These cream cheese stuffed red velvet cookies are like a chewy and dense slice of red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
- 1 and 2/3 cups (210g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 cup (21g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk*
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon red liquid food coloring (or 3/4 tsp red gel food coloring, or 2 tsp beet powder alternative)*
Cream Cheese Filling
- 4 ounces (113g) full-fat brick cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 and 3/4 cups (210g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (8g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For Rolling
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
Instructions
- Make the cookie dough: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, and the brown sugar together on high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, milk, and vanilla extract and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- On low speed, slowly mix the dry ingredients (flour mixture) into the wet ingredients until combined. Finally, beat in the food coloring. Add 1-2 teaspoons more for a brighter red, if desired. The cookie dough will be slightly sticky. Cover dough tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 and 1/2 hours and up to 2-3 days.
- Meanwhile, make the cream cheese filling: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, flour, and vanilla extract together on medium-high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Drop teaspoonfuls onto a lined baking sheet that will fit in your freezer. Freeze for at least 1 and 1/2 hours and up to 2-3 days.
- Remove cream cheese spoonfuls from the freezer. Roll each into a ball as best you can. It will be a little sticky. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use in step 7. You want them as cold as possible!
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.
- Assemble the cookies: Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator. If the cookie dough chilled longer than 3-4 hours, let it sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes. This makes the cookie dough easier to scoop and roll. Roll cookie dough, 1 Tablespoon each, into balls. Using your thumb, make an indent into one cookie dough ball. Remove cream cheese balls from the refrigerator. Place one inside the indentation. Cover the cream cheese ball with another cookie dough ball and mold the two dough balls around the cream cheese, making sure it is completely covered and snug inside. Repeat with remaining cookie dough and cream cheese.
- Rolling: Roll each stuffed cookie dough ball in remaining granulated sugar and arrange 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 12-13 minutes or until edges appear set. Centers will look soft.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for 3 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 2-3 days. You can also make the cream cheese filling in step 4 and freeze for up to 2-3 days. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving. Unbaked cookie dough balls with cream cheese inside (that you assembled in step 7) will freeze well for up to 3 months. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, pre-heat the oven, then roll in remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Bake as directed. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Americolor Super Red Food Coloring | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Milk: Any milk, dairy or non-dairy, works. I like to use buttermilk.
- Red Food Coloring: I’ve successfully made these cookies using beet powder instead of red food coloring – this is a wonderful natural alternative to food coloring. Use 2 teaspoons for a slight red color.
- Keep Everything Cold: If the cream cheese filling or cookie dough become too soft as you assemble the cookies in step 7, simply place back into the refrigerator for a few minutes.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi Sally! I love this recipie and the flavor. Made it twice. But both times I came across.. a big struggle.
The cream cheese balls, despite being frozen overnight both times, weren’t super hard. They got soft quickly too in room temp, so im not sure how to wrestle with the cookies when the ones I already shaped now have cream cheese too soft inside them. When the cookies are done and transferred to the rack.. the cream cheese breaks through the cookies and falls onto the counter.
The major thing for me though is the dough. Even leaving it overnight in the fridge, it gets room temp really easily and will stick to my hands within 4 cookies and even the parchment. Could I add cornstarch next time to make it a bit easier?
Hi Amina, Feel free to thicken with cornstarch or flour, though we haven’t tested the recipe this way. You can also add more flour to the cookie dough if it’s much too sticky. The colder the dough, however, the easier it is to handle. Also, make sure your butter isn’t too soft. If the butter is too soft, the cookie dough will be too sticky. Our room temperature butter post may be helpful if you’re interested.
Hi! I made these a couple of days ago and baked a few test them out just now. The cookie tastes great but unfortunately the filling melted in the middle ☹️. I’ve been keeping the cream cheese balls in the freezer, but im not sure what I did wrong. Is there any way to salvage it before I bake up the rest?
Hi Grace, we’re happy to help troubleshoot. Is the dough and filling warming up a bit too much during the assembly process? It may help to stick the assembled cookies back in the refrigerator for a few minutes so that the dough is extra cold going into the oven. This will prevent any excess melting. Hope this helps!
Hi! These cookies were wonderful! Thank you SO much for the freezing tip with the cream cheese filling. Was wondering if you could sub in or add a good quality cocoa powder (same used for the cookies) in the cream cheese filling to make it a dark chocolate cream cheese filling. Or would this dry out the filling too much?
Would love your thoughts / expertise on it.
Hi Gisela, we have a recipe for chcolate cream cheese frosting. Enjoy!
Hi there. I’ve tried your other cookies and am just curious why you removed the cornstarch and extra egg yolk from this cookie recipe? Thanks!
Hi Amy, these cookies are based off our red velvet chocolate chip cookies, which don’t call for cornstarch or the extra egg yolk either. Those two ingredients help to create an extra soft and chewy cookie, and we found these to be perfectly soft and chewy without! Hope you enjoy these just as much!
Hi Sally, I’m just making these now for the first time. I have tried loads of your recipes and swear by them. I’m hoping that these ones turn out as well. I did struggle with the cream cheese balls as it says to make teaspoon size drops, but I had way more than 18. I started making some bigger so will see what happens. Maybe a weight for the cream cheese balls would be helpful as I’m sure the ratio of filling to cookie is important. I haven’t scrolled too far, but a video for this recipe would be amazing, as I’m sure others might be as nervous as me about the stickiness as we are making them. Anyways, thanks for all your amazing recipes.
I’d like to make these for a friend, as she loves red velvet and cookies in this style, but has an aversion to cream. Is there any way I could use buttercream or another alternative, or would the recipe then not work?
Hi Kaylee, we wouldn’t recommend baking buttercream inside cookies. But we have several other red velvet cookie recipes on the site you could try that don’t call for cream cheese!
i made this but the dough turned to be very sticky. it’s a mess trying to stuff the cream cheese in.
These cookies are unbelievably good.
I want to make these cookies for my friend but she’s vegan. Do you recommend any specific cream cheese brands for the frosting?
Hi Wendy, we always use Philadelphia cream cheese.
Hi! Second time making these and they are SO good, thank you for the recipe! I accidentally made double the cream cheese filling though. Any suggestions on what other cookie I could use it for?! 🙂
Hi Cam, you could use it in these chocolate cookies (and leave off the frosting)–sounds delicious!
What am I doing wrong? I’ve made these a couple times, and they always turn into flying saucers! Very delicious flying saucers, but they always end up being big flat disks with a glob of cream cheese in the middle. Are my ratios off? Is the temperature of the dough wrong? Still, 4 stars for flavor!
Hi Jessica, If you chill the assembled cookie dough balls (or even freeze them!) for at least 30 minutes prior to baking, the cookies are bound to hold their shape better. We have a post that will be helpful for you, too: 10 Tips to Prevent Cookies from Over-Spreading
I love these! I used about 1.5T of dough and 0.75T of cream cheese filling and baked at 350F for 10-11 mins. The dough was difficult to keep cold enough to not be sticky, but they turned out great. I was worried that the filling would seep out, but it never did! I dipped the dough balls in white nonpareils and then rolled in granulated sugar for a little extra flair
This just didn’t work
I made these and they were so tasty, my mum and my son’s favourite of a few different cookies that I made.
I have a question about the cream cheese filling – what makes them ok to store at room temperature? I would like to sell some at a market stall but I’m worried about the room temperature cream cheese filling.
Any help would be appreciated!
Thank you so much!
Hi Tammy, baked goods that use only a small amount of cream cheese, like cookies or brownies, may not require refrigeration. The flour and sugar in these baked goods can absorb excess moisture, reducing the risk of bacteria growth. So glad you love these cookies!
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! Much appreciated!
This recipe looks wonderful! Would it be possible to use the cream cheese filling in a sugar cookie?
Hi A! We haven’t tested that, but would love to hear if you do!
Divine cookies! They turned out absolutely perfect. I added less icing sugar to the cream cheese part because i like it more sharp/tangy/salty and they are just lovely. Could not find suggestions for storing these though, i presume in the fridge as they have cream cheese in them?
Hi Stefani! See the last step of the recipe: Cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for 3 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. So glad you enjoyed these!
To the baked cookies freeze well? I saw where you said the dough will freeze, but I’d like to have them all baked ahead of time for Christmas and freeze the completed cookies.
Hi Nicki, baked cookies also freeze well for up to 3 months.
I never get the amount that the recipes say they make but I’m probably making the cookies a bit big but there so yummy great recipe
hiii, big big fan Sally!! i made this recipe twice and it tasted amazing. however, after an hour my cookies unfortunately turned out soggy even when i stored it in an airtight container :/ any tips?
Hi Nicole, were the cookies underbaked a bit by chance? That could cause them to turn greasy/soggy. You can also try leaving your container open just a crack so that excess moisture won’t get trapped inside. We’re glad these were a hit for you!
Hi, what can I use instead of cocoa powder? I’m not sure what kind of cocoa I need. Will Swiss miss hot cocoa mix work? Or a chocolate bar chunked into pieces?
Hi Diany, We recommend an unsweetened natural cocoa powder.
Thanks for the reply, I’d like to make only half of these cookies since we are a small family. Should I just cut the quantities in half?
Hi Diany, absolutely.
Loved the recipe. These cookies came out great. For future reference, I would like to know after baking how long/days can we keep these cookies at room temperature for? Since they contain the cream cheese filling inside.
Hi Amber, these cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for 3 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. So glad they were a hit!
These cookies intrigued me, but I need to make 36 and smaller is better. What modifications in cooking temperature and time would you recommend?
Hi Pat, you can make smaller cookies, bake time will be slightly shorter, so keep an eye on them in the oven.
Why would you publish the comment by Erica (2/14/2024) using ****ing in the content?
Hi Jan, I do see that comment now. It must have been bulk approved, so thank you for bringing it to my attention. Profanity is immediately blocked, but since the word had the asterisks, it wasn’t caught. Thank you.
These are SO good! I’ve made them twice now. The second time I rolled the dough and filling into plastic wrap and chilled in logs (thicker for dough than filling) and cut them. This made it a bit easier. This recipe is a bit of a labor of love but soooo worth it. I also subbed a bit of the cocoa powder for espresso powder. Yummm
I made this recipe a few times. The cookies came were delicious and chewy though they came out really flat and wrinkly on the sides. 🙁
Delicious recipe! I struggled with portions though and had a ton of cream cheese filling left, which i ended up using with a peanut butter cookie dough and a hot cocoa dough (both were sooooo good). I think I could have used instructions on weight (g) for cookie balls and cream cheese filling. Delicious either way!
Just made those for my family for a festive start of the holidays. Doubled the recipe but made the mistake not to consider the fact that they get almost triple the size lol. And from 36 I ended up making 16 huge cookies. But they were sooo good. Same time for cooking, skipped the rolling them in sugar and added chocolate chips instead. They turned out chewy a bit crunchy on the side but really soft in the middle. The cream cheese filling is melting in your mouth. Definitely saving this and making it again soon!
PS the recipe is time consuming so make sure to keep that in mind but it’s so worth it. Probably spend around 3-4 hours from start to finish, almost two hours went in chilling then in the fridge.
I made these for a friend’s birthday and they could not stop raving about them! I need to perfect the cookie dough to cream cheese ratio better (my cream cheese balls were too big). But they are amazing!
Would this recipe still work if I wanted to make these cookies bigger? Like, larger stuffed cookies? Would cooking temp and time change any?
Hi Michelle, that should work, although you may find they spread a bit more that way (adding an additional tablespoon or two of flour should help). Same temperature, but bake time will be a little longer. Enjoy!
Hey. I just left my comment on the recipe. I wanted to make more cookies for my big family, but ended up making 16 cookies in total from this double batch. Had to bake them 6 at the time, for 13 minutes each and they came out perfect. I still have 1/3 of the cream cheese filling left over for next time.
The taste of these cookies are wonderful. I made few times in the past, the first time I did it, I had half of the cream cheese left, after that, I always doubt the cookie dough without double the cream cheese. Today I made it again, however, the cream cheese just don’t get hard period , I ended up used a half running cream cheese feelings, and probably used less than normal as the result. In the end, the cookies kept their shape after baking. Few of them can spot the white feeling from outside (while still keeping the shape), can’t complain. Daughter loves them, begged me making it. It’s a lots of time consuming. I will keep the leftovers cream cheese feelings in freezer for next time.
Turned out pretty good despite accidentally adding the whole cup of sugar into the cookies. Whoops! I love Sally’s recipes and I think they are usually so easy to follow but I don’t want anyone else to make the same mistake I did! Please edit the recipe to be more clear that only a half cup of sugar goes into the cookies themselves (Write that in the ingredient list!!). Mine were quite sweet but still a hit!