Want a way to instantly improve your day? Bake up this delicious sugar cookie cake. It is tender, chewy, and filled with loads of rainbow sprinkles for extra fun! All of that rainbow colored fun makes a perfect birthday cake too. And it can be easily customized with different colors of sprinkles and frosting to match your theme.
This easy dessert recipe doesn't even require a mixer to prepare. It's baked in a springform pan and ready in about an hour. Not only is making a cookie cake simple and fun, it's a lot easier than scooping out individual cookies.
It's no secret that I think homemade cookie cakes are the ultimate birthday treat! If you love them too, you should check out my gluten free chocolate chip cookie cake or this double chocolate heart cookie cake.
Ingredient Notes
This homemade sprinkle cookie cake is made from simple ingredients that can be found in any grocery store. I do special order gluten free rainbow sprinkles, which I've linked. The recipe is both gluten free and dairy free as written.
- Gluten Free Flour Blend - I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten free flour for this recipe. I have not tested it with any other brands of flour. If you want to use an alternate brand, I recommend choosing one with xanthan gum to prevent a crumbly cookie.
- Vegan Butter - This recipes calls for melted butter in the cookie and room temperature butter in the frosting. I've used Country Crock plant butter for both. Using melted butter in the cookie not only makes it easier to mix by hand, it also adds a bit of chewy texture to the finished cake. If you're not dairy free, use regular unsalted butter in the same measure.
- Gluten Free Rainbow Sprinkles - If you're following a gluten free diet, it's important to use gluten free sprinkles for this recipe. I normally purchase my sprinkles from Amazon. A lot of the common brands of sprinkles in your local grocery store will be manufactured on equipment shared with wheat.
- Gel Food Coloring - I used pink gel food coloring for the frosting. I recommend gel over the liquid types of food coloring as it requires much less for a bright color and it doesn't add any liquid to the frosting which can cause it to split.
See recipe card for full ingredient list and quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- Not Dairy Free - Use unsalted butter and your choice of milk in place of the dairy free ingredients. The measurements are the same.
- Change the Theme - You can easily change the theme of this sugar cookie cake to match the holiday season or party decorations. Just swap the sprinkles for your favorite color and adjust the color of the frosting.
- No Springform Pan - You can try to bake this cookie cake in a 9-0inch or 10-inch round cake pan instead. I'd recommend laying some strips of parchment paper under the cookie dough so you have handles to lift the cake out of the pan once it is cooled.
- Add White Chocolate Chips - Add up to 1 cup of white chocolate chips to amp up the birthday cake flavor.
How to Make a Funfetti Cookie Cake
This easy cookie cake recipe is made all in one bowl with a whisk and a spatula - no mixer is required. It only takes about 10 minutes of prep time to bake this cake and the rest is all hands off.
Want to save even more time? Swap my homemade buttercream frosting
for storebought vanilla buttercream frosting and just add food coloring. Many frostings are both gluten free and dairy free.
STEP 1: Combine the sugar and melted butter in a large mixing bowl. Whisk it together until it no longer looks grainy and begins to have a thick paste-like texture.
STEP 2: Add the egg and vanilla extract. Whisk again until well combined.
STEP 3: Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Stir it together with a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are incorporated.
STEP 4: Add the sprinkles to the bowl and fold them into the sugar cookie dough.
Spread the dough into a springform pan lined with parchment paper circle. Allow the cookie dough to rest for 10 minutes then you're ready to bake!
Expert Tip
With cookie cakes it's very important that you remove the cake from the oven when the center of the cake is still quite soft. If you bake it until it seems done, the cake will turn out dry and crumbly. The cookie cake will continue to slowly cook as it cools in the pan. After 30 minutes of cooling you can remove the pan and transfer it to a cooling rack.
Storage
Store leftover cookie cake in an airtight container like a cake keeper or pie keeper. It should stay fresh for about 2 days. You can extend the life a day or two more by microwaving the cookie slices before eating.
You can also freeze individual slices. Once the cake is completely cooled, cut slices and wrap with plastic wrap. Then place all the wrapped slices in a freezer safe bag or container. Store for up to 3 months.
More cookie recipes to try:
If you try this recipe, please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the comments below.
Recipe
Funfetti Sugar Cookie Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ Cup Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend I use Bob's Red Mill
- ½ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¾ Cup Sugar
- ½ Cup Vegan Butter melted
- 1 large Egg
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 6 Tablespoons Rainbow Sprinkles divided
For the frosting:
- 2 Cups Powdered Sugar sifted
- ⅓ Cup Vegan Butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 2 Tablespoons Non Dairy Milk
- 1 drop Gel Food Coloring optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (177 °C). Line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment paper.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Stir together to mix well.1 ¼ Cup Gluten Free 1-to-1 Flour Blend, ½ teaspoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Baking Soda, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Add the sugar and melted butter to a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until it no longer looks grainy and begins to have a thicker paste-like consistency.¾ Cup Sugar, ½ Cup Vegan Butter
- Add the egg and vanilla extract. Whisk again until combined.1 large Egg, 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- Add the flour mixture to the bowl with the wet ingredients. Fold together with a spatula until nearly all of the flour is incorporated.
- Add 5 tablespoons of sprinkles and fold a few times until they're evenly distributed.6 Tablespoons Rainbow Sprinkles
- Spread the cookie cake batter into the prepared pan with an offset spatula. Let it rest for about 10 minutes before baking.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes. The center of the cookie will still seem quite soft when you remove it from the oven. Let the cookie cake cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes of cooling, remove it from the pan and transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cake is cooled, prepare the frosting. Add the butter to the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat until smooth.⅓ Cup Vegan Butter
- Slowly add in the powdered sugar stirring between additions. Once all of the sugar is incorporated, add the milk and vanilla. If you want to add food coloring, add it now as well.2 Cups Powdered Sugar, 1 teaspoon Vanilla, 2 Tablespoons Non Dairy Milk, 1 drop Gel Food Coloring
- Beat the frosting on high speed for about 3-4 minutes until it's light and fluffy.
- Use a piping bag and a large star tip to decorate the cookie cake or spread the frosting over the whole cake with an offset spatula. Add the remaining sprinkles as decoration on the cake.
Notes
Tiffany is the recipe developer, stylist and food photographer behind Well Fed Baker. As a lifelong baker who had to go gluten free and dairy free in 2016, Tiffany strives to share allergen friendly recipes that never feel like they are free from anything.
Leave a Comment