Red Velvet Cookies Recipe No Cream Cheese Chocolate ChipABy Ashton · Updated July 12, 20264.4111 reviews·Serves 2-3 dozenJump to Recipe Save Pin Add to Google posted by Ashton on July 12, 2026 Oh man, you guys. Red Velvet cookies are basically trouble spelled F-A-T-P-A-N-T-S, and this easy red velvet cookie recipe is the most dangerous kind — a classic red velvet cookie recipe disguised as an innocent little thumbprint. It’s like a cookie and cheesecake rolled into one, dangerously delicious and completely pop-able! And I mean “dangerous” as in: I could. not. stop. I think I ate maybe a million. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. And — not that this even matters, because they’re that good — these little thumbprints are also gorgeous. That deep red color with the creamy filling? Be still my heart. The bright red would be a beautiful addition to any holiday cookie plate or party tray, so festive! Why Red Velvet Is One of the Best Dessert Flavors of All Time Holidays or not, I could eat red velvet all year round — I’m a total fiend! Red velvet is honestly one of the best dessert flavors of all time, and if you disagree, well, we can’t be friends. 😂 That rich red velvet flavor comes from a combo of unsweetened cocoa powder, a touch of white vinegar, and that signature red food dye, and it’s just SO dreamy. The mild chocolate taste paired with a tangy cream cheese frosting or filling is absolutely unbeatable. Whether it’s red velvet cupcakes, a Red Velvet Cake with White Chocolate Frosting, or chewy red velvet cookies, I am obsessed with all of it. I’ve made red velvet in about a bajillion different ways, and I am never, ever stopping. Key Ingredients for the Best Red Velvet Cookies Recipe Let’s talk ingredients! This simple red velvet cookie recipe uses pantry staples you can grab at most grocery stores. You’ll need unsalted butter at room temperature (or melted butter, depending on the texture you’re after), both brown sugar and granulated sugar — yes, two kinds of sugar for maximum chewiness — plus one egg yolk for richness. For your dry ingredients, grab all-purpose flour, baking soda, and unsweetened cocoa powder. The red colour comes from liquid red food coloring or gel food coloring — I personally love gel food coloring for that really vivid, deep red color without watering down your dough. You’ll also need vanilla extract, a splash of white vinegar, and a small bowl of cream cheese mixed with powdered sugar for the filling. Optional but highly recommended: white chocolate chips stirred right into the red velvet cookie base. SO good! How to Make Red Velvet Cookies Step by Step Ready to bake? Here’s the best way to get perfect results every time! In a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream your butter and sugars together until fluffy. Add the egg yolk, vanilla extract, liquid food coloring, and white vinegar, mixing until combined and scraping down the sides of the bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour mixture — that’s your all-purpose flour, baking soda, and cocoa powder. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing just until a dough forms. Use a medium cookie scoop to portion unbaked cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. For the thumbprint, press your thumb into each unbaked cookie, then fill with the soft cheese and powdered sugar mixture. Bake in the middle of the oven, then transfer to a wire rack or cooling rack. Easy peasy! Tips for Chewy, Gorgeous Cookies Every Time Okay, a few pro tips for chewy red velvet cookies that are absolutely ah-mazing! First: chill time is your friend. Chilling the chilled cookie dough for at least 30 minutes before baking keeps the unbaked cookie dough balls from spreading too thin on the cookie sheet — so don’t skip the chill cookie recipe step! Use gel food coloring over liquid food coloring if you want that really punchy red colour. Store un-iced cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days, or freeze them for longer. If you’re piping the cream cheese filling rather than spooning it, a piping bag makes it look super polished — just saying! And if you want to slice and share, a sharp knife through thick slices of the chilled log works great for a slice-and-bake cookie form variation. Check the recipe card below for exact measurements and times! More Red Velvet Recipes You Have to Try If you’re as obsessed with red velvet recipes as I am, you absolutely need more in your life! Beyond this classic from-scratch thumbprint, I am seriously in love with Red Velvet Cinnamon Rolls for holiday breakfast, and Valentine’s Day Red Velvet Cookies are a must for Valentine’s Day — the red makes them SO cute! I also adore Red Velvet Cut Out Sugar Cookies for the christmas season. And can we talk about red velvet cheesecake brownies and chocolate-swirled red velvet brownies for a second?! Literally can’t even. If you love easy red velvet brownies, a red velvet poke cake, or red velvet cream cheese muffins, red velvet crinkle cookies, or even best red velvet truffle cupcakes, there is truly no shortage of ways to celebrate this flavor. My friend Deborah over at Taste & Tell even wrote a whole red velvet cookbook — drop everything and check it out. Then come right back and make these cookies. You have to make this! 🍪❤️ Red Velvet Cream Cheese Thumbprint Cookies Yield: 2-3 dozen These Red Velvet Thumbprints are a cookie and cheesecake in one! Perfect for Christmas cookie plates and dangerously delicious. Print Ingredients For the cookies: 1 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 egg yolk* 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 cups all-purpose flour 4 tsp red food coloring 2 tsp cocoa powder 1/2 cup granulated sugar or sanding sugar* For the filling: 4 ounces cream cheese, softened 1 egg yolk* 1/4 cup sugar 1/8 tsp salt 1/4 tsp vanilla Instructions Preheat oven to 300ºF. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Beat together the butter, brown sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Mix in the flour, food coloring, and cocoa powder until soft dough forms. Scoop out the dough by heaping tablespoons and roll them in the sugar* before placing on the prepared baking sheet (about 2 inches apart). Use the back of a round teaspoon to make a small indentation in the cookie dough. Bake for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, make the filling: using an electric mixer or small food processor, beat together the cream cheese, egg yolk, sugar, salt, and vanilla until smooth. After the first 10 minutes of baking, use the back of a round teaspoon to deepen the indentation in the cookies. Spoon a teaspoon of the filling into each indentation. Bake for an additional 12 minutes, until filling is set. Let cool completely before serving. Store covered and chilled. Notes *In the book, Deborah says to reserve the egg whites and dunk the cookie dough balls in the egg whites before rolling them in the sugar. I had some beautiful sanding sugar I had been dying to use, so I opted to roll my cookies in sanding sugar instead and loved it. But in case you're averse to wasting egg whites (or just want to try the original version), there it is 🙂
These look great! I wonder if to make it more festive can you add a bit of green food coloring gel for icings to the cream cheese. I was stuck on what to make for a cookie exchange party. I think I’m making theses. Thank you!
I’m not positive (the best person to ask would be Deborah– I linked to her in the post). But you could definitely refrigerate them for a few days!
this recipe calls for Cocoa Powder, however I can’t believe you mean the chocolate cocoa powder, can you be more specific? And where would you get a white coca powder if that’s what you mean? Please email me and let me know right away, I’m planning on trying this recipe very soon…. Thank you
They look beautiful. Mine didn’t come out as pretty. My sanding sugar, which has quite large crystals, just melted into the cookie for the most part and doesn’t really show up. I think white decorative sugar might work next time? Looking forward to tasting them when they cool!
Hi! Tried these cookies twice over the last week and they were a miserable failure both times. They seemed way too wet – either by too much butter or too much food coloring? I tried firmer (cooler) butter, cooling the dough before portioning them onto the pan, reducing oven temp. The only thing I didn’t try was adjusting ingredients because I always modify and I didn’t want to mess these up – I actually followed the recipe exactly (for once). So what’s missing?
Hm….. I wish I could help, but I’m not sure? I followed the recipe from the book exactly as written and didn’t have any problems. The only troubleshooting question I can think of is– did you measure out the food coloring exactly?
I made these ans they were awesome. I got about 20 cookies out of the recipe. FYI if you use gel food coloring, you will need to add 4tsp of water to get the dough to combine together.
RED-red is a hard color to achieve and needs a lot of food coloring. BUT, the good news is that the food coloring doesn’t affect the taste. So you can use less if you want or none at all 🙂
Got it. Thanks for the response! I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t reading it wrong. I am definitely making these for a cookie exchange on Monday, they look so good!
I made these last night when I was in a hurry for a nice pretty cookie that would be relatively quick and easy. Mine weren’t as perfectly round, because it was late and I was tired and just wanted to get them done to take to work today. I also didn’t roll them in sugar because I just didn’t have it in me. But otherwise, I followed the recipe exactly, and they were awesome. The sweet tang of the cream cheese goes perfectly with the cookie which is not too sweet. I’m definitely making them again. I was also thinking about making some without the red velvet/cocoa and with almond extract instead. Hopefully next time I’ll have the energy to make them as pretty as the ones in the picture.
Would this recipe work as make ahead and freeze fully baked cookies? Just trying to get some baking done early if possible 🙂
I don’t honestly know the answer to this. But I think you could refrigerate them without a problem! I’m not positive about freezing– cream cheese doesn’t typically do well in the freezer.
I made these today and ended up drizzling some white chocolate almond bark over the top! Every good!!!! I think next time I will put an extra teaspoon of coco powder. It tastes very floury to me, but still very good!! Thanks for sharing recipe!!
*update Cheesecake freezes well (which is the filling for these cookies essentially) so I went ahead and froze fully baked & filled cookies (single layers with parchment paper between each layer of cookies). It worked perfectly! Thanks for a great new recipe addition to my Holiday baking 🙂
I made these today and the came out horrible. they spread on the pan while baking and dont have a nice shape. also my sugar just melted into the cookie so you cant even tell its on there. i even used less food coloring than specified and followed the recipe exactly so i cant imagine the dough was too wet. hopefully they taste better than they look!
These look delish & would be perfect for Valentine’s Day! I shared them on https://www.facebook.com/SweetStackers
