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Jello Cookies are a fun & colorful cookie recipe that starts with a simple homemade sugar cookie dough, and then colorful Jello packets get mixed in to create the bright color and fruity flavors! Kids love making these cookies and you can choose any flavor of Jello that you want.
Jello Cookies Recipe
These bright, colorful, and happy cookies are such a fun treat to make with the kids. They’re fruity, sweet, and brightly flavored with a nice chewy, soft-baked texture. Eating one reminds me of when I was a kid and would eat Fruity Pebbles cereal.
The best part is that you can use any Jello flavor you want – grape, cherry, lime, raspberry, lemon, berry blue, apricot, peach, pineapple – as long as there is a small box of it, you can use it!
Why You’ll Love Jello Cookies
- Fun & Colorful – Who doesn’t love a bright and fruity treat. These are especially fun for a baking project during the long summer days.
- Versatile – Use any small box of Jello gelatin powder that you want. Test them all out and pick your faves.
- Chewy Soft-Baked Cookies – The texture of these cookies are the best of both worlds. Slightly chewy with that soft-baked goodness we all love.
Ingredients Needed
- Unsalted Butter – I normally use salted butter in baking but for some reason the unsalted butter works better for making Jello cookies. If you do use salted butter I would omit the added salt.
- Granulated Sugar
- Large Eggs
- Vanilla Extract – For the best, authentic flavor I recommend only using pure vanilla extract rather than imitation.
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt – Omit this if you are using salted butter.
- 4 Boxes of Jello
- Additional Granulated Sugar – This is for rolling the dough balls in before baking.
How To Make Homemade Jello Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, silpat liner, or spray with cooking spray. I highly recommend using these Pre-Cut Parchment Paper Cookie Baking Sheets. They help cookies bake more evenly and prevent the bottoms from browning.
- In a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, or use a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. This takes at least 1-2 minutes to get it creamy and fluffy.
- Add in the eggs and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed just until the eggs are incorporated.
- In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix on low speed (increase speed as needed) just until the flour is combined and no flour streaks remain in the dough.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal portions and place each one in a bowl.
- Add one package of jello to each bowl – do not prepare the jello, just add the dry powder – mix the dough (softly knead it) until evenly colored and combined.
- Working with one color at a time, use a medium cookie scoop (about 1.5 tablespoons) to roll the dough into balls. Roll the dough ball in the sugar and place 12 cookies per cookie sheet. Repeat with the remaining colors.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges are just starting to turn a light golden brown color and the cookies have spread somewhat and are crinkly on top.
- Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the warm pan for about 15 minutes. Move them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
FAQ’s + Expert Tips
- Jello Tip : For the pictures I used cherry, lime, lemon, and blue raspberry gelatin powder. You can use whatever flavor you want! Just ensure that it’s a small box (3 oz) of jello, and that you are only using the dry powder and not preparing it first. For a true vibrant red, I recommend using cherry instead of strawberry. The strawberry tends to turn out very pale, with a tint of orange, and not as vibrant red as the cherry.
- How Long Will Jello Cookies Stay Fresh? : These cookies will stay fresh and soft for up to 1 week, when stored properly, in an airtight container.
- The Dough Is Hard to Work With and Soft – What Should I Do? : If after mixing in the Jello the dough seems soft and hard to roll, simply cover the bowls with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. This will also slightly reduce spread if that’s what you prefer. I’ve never had a problem with this, but if the dough seems soft and sticky, this will fix it.
- How To Store Leftovers : Store leftover inside an airtight container, or Ziploc bag, at room temperature for up to 1 week. You can also store them in the fridge for longer.
For perfectly round shaped cookies gently use a biscuit cutter to reshape the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven. Use a circular motion to push around, or swirl the cookie around, inside the biscuit cutter. Doing this neatens the edges and makes the cookies look ‘perfect’ and ‘uniform’.
I love this Biscuit Cutter Set because it comes with several sizes which comes in handy depending on how big or small the cookies are.
More Cookie Recipes You’ll Love
- Oreo Crab Cookies
- Funfetti Sugar Cookies
- Monster Cookie Recipe
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Jello Cookies
Jello Cookies are a fun & colorful cookie recipe that starts with a simple homemade sugar cookie dough, and then colorful Jello packets gets mixed in to create the bright color and fruity flavors! Kids love making these cookies and you can choose any flavor of Jello that you want.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)
- 4 boxes (3 oz each) different flavors Jello
- additional granulated sugar for rolling (about 1/3 cup)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line two cookie sheets/baking sheets with parchment paper, baking mat, or spray with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar
- Add in the eggs and vanilla extract and beat on low speed just until the eggs are incorporated.2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until combined.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Dump the dry ingredients into the wet ingredient bowl and beat on low speed just until combined and no flour streaks remain in the dough.
- Divide the cookie dough into 4 equal portions and put each one in a separate bowl. Add one package of Jello powder to each bowl and mix until the dough is evenly colored.4 boxes (3 oz each) different flavors Jello
- Place the additional granulated sugar (for rolling) into a small bowl.additional granulated sugar for rolling
- Use a medium cookie scoop, about 1½ tablespoons dough, to scoop the dough and roll into balls. Roll each ball in the granulated sugar until well coated, and place 12 cookie dough balls per cookie sheet.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges are just set and turning very lightly golden brown. * The middle of the cookies should not look wet or like raw dough, but look cooked but still soft and lighter in color. They will continue cooking slightly while cooling on the warm pan so be careful to not overbake them in the oven.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the cookie sheet for about 15 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
Jello : These cookies use the dry jello powder. Do not prepare it before adding it into the cookie dough. Just dump in the dry powder. Use any flavor you want – I do recommend using cherry for the red color because it’s more vibrant than the using the strawberry jello. The strawberry ends up with a slightly orange tint to it once baked.
If you don’t want 4 different colors of Jello cookies then split the dough up in half or leave it all one color. Use two large boxes (6 oz each) of Jello for the entire batch of cookie dough so you end up with one color. Or you can divide the cookie dough in half and use one large box (6 oz) per half.
Tip : Use a biscuit cutter to reshape the cookies when they come out of the oven (if wanted). This will give them a ‘perfectly round’ and uniform look. Gently swirl the cookie around inside the biscuit cutter until the edges are rounded and set neat.
Nutrition
Calories: 220kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 138mg | Potassium: 26mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 269IU | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 1mg
Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love to see it! You can share it with me on @happy.familyrecipes and follow on Pinterest @happyfamilyrecipes or Facebook @happyfamilyrecipes for more!
These look so fun, can’t wait to try them!
Yay, let me know! Enjoy 💕