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Fun, bright and festive cake mix cookies are all dressed up to look like monsters. Gooey monster cookies are great all year long!!
If you need more monsters try Monster Bark, Monster Rice Krispies Treats, and Monster Cupcakes.
Kid Favorite!
We love cake mix cookies, and when my son was having a Monster themed birthday party, we decided to change up our classic cookie and make them match the party!
I couldn’t help but think of the Gooey Monster Eye Cookies I made a month or so ago but decided to add some more colors and just a few more eye balls.
The result? Gooey Monster Cookies that are now a new favorite and are requested all year long, especially around Halloween!
How to Make
BATTER. Beat butter, vanilla, egg and cream cheese until fluffy. Mix in cake mix.
COLOR. Divide batter into bowls for the amount of colors you want. Add food coloring to each individual bowl and mix until all combined. Chill for 30 minutes.
BAKE. Roll into balls and dip in a bowl of powdered sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet and pat down a bit. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.
Note: Do not bake the eyes. They will turn to goo and/or burn in the oven.
DECORATE & ENJOY! Add candy eyeballs while cookies are still warm. ENJOY!
Tip: When a batch of cookies are baking put the dough back in the fridge to chill. Bake the cookies in small batches as you need to add the eyes after you pull the cookies out of the oven. Unless you have helpers it can be tricky to get all the eyes on each cookie before they cool off.
Tips + Variations
Although these cookies are supposed to be “Gooey Monster Cookies” you don’t want them so gooey that they are raw. Here are a few tips to help you troubleshoot cookies that are too gooey:
- Did you use the correct size cake mix.
- Do not mix up the cake mix according to the directions on the box. For these cookies you only need the cake mix powder and then you mix it with the ingredients listed in our recipe.
- Not chilling the dough long enough. You can even put it in the freezer for a bit.
- Different ovens may require a different bake time. Add a few extra minutes if necessary.
- If the dough still feels too sticky for your liking add a tablespoon of two of flour to firm it up.
Storing Tips
MAKE AHEAD OF TIME. You can make the dough ahead of time and store it in the fridge or freezer until you are ready to bake them. Do not add the powdered sugar until right before baking.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Form the dough into balls and put them on a baking sheet. FREEZE them until solid then transfer them to a freezer safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw before baking.
STORE baked cookies in the fridge for 3-5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
For a few more FUN HALLOWEEN RECIPES:
- Graveyard Dirt Cake
- Gummy Worm Jello Cups
- Boo-Nilla Ghost Milkshakes
- Candy Bar Trifle
- Witches Brew
- Pumpkin Guacamole
Gooey Monster Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix
- 1/2 c butter softened
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 1 egg
- powdered sugar
- food coloring I used NEON food coloring to make them more vibrant
- candy eyeballs
Instructions
- Beat butter, vanilla, egg and cream cheese until fluffy.
- Mix in cake mix. Divide batter into bowls for the amount of colors you want.
- Add food coloring to each individual bowl and mix until all combined.
- Chill for 30 minutes.
- Roll into balls and dip in a bowl of powdered sugar.
- Place on greased cookie sheet and pat down a bit.
- Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.
- Add candy eyeballs while cookies are still warm. ENJOY!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
For a non-american, “white cake mix” is absolutely alien. What is in it, and could you mix up flour+baking soda to do the trick as substitution?
Oh yes! It is essentially flour, sugar, baking soda, powdered milk… You could probably search for “white cake mix substitute” or “homemade white cake mix” and find a specific recipe and use that in place of the boxed mix.
These are so fluffy and tasty! My son claims they are “off the charts”! Thanks for the great recipe
Can you make these cookies using a gluten free cake mix?
Yes you can me and my grandson just made them and they are great
These were absolutely awful. Dry no flavor just terrible. I baked for a living and these I thought would be a quick and easy cookie. Even my grandson said they sucked lol
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What size box cake mix?
I really loved these cookies the first time I made them and I was excited to play with the recipe. I tried to make them with lemon cake mix and I used a smaller scoop with a shorter baking time and they turned out way too cakey and not very lemony. Next I tried a chocolate cake mix with the original size scoop and they still turned out cakier than I’d like. I don’t see anyone complaining about them being too cakey. What did I do differently? Is it the box mix?
We have lots of different variations of these gooey cookies, so switching up the cake mix shouldn’t be a problem. I’d say to just make sure the cake mixes are the same size. If it does seem too dry and cakey, you can possibly leave out some of the mix. Usually the problem for readers is the cookies are too gooey, so I’m not totally sure. Could be the baking time too? Maybe pull the cookies out just a bit earlier so they don’t set up so much. It may just take a little trial and error to figure out how to get the just the right texture again. 🙂
We love these cookies! They are so much fun to make and serve. Plus they taste so good that even the adults want to eat them!
Love these cookies! We make them every Halloween!
Great recipe; quick and easy; and fun. Turned out perfectly I can imagine these cookies for many different holidays. There are so many fun shaped candy embellishments, you’re only limited by your imagination. 🙂
Yes, I love that thought!! If you can imagine it, you can make it! So glad you enjoyed the recipe.