Circus Animal Cookies Recipe

Each delicious bite is bursting with chopped animal cookies, white chocolate chips, and rainbow sprinkles. Perfectly sweet with little pops of crunch make these great for parties and playdates.

Using refrigerated dough allows these to come together quickly, but you could easily use a homemade version instead.

While you’re here, check out my trailmix cookie recipe. It has four simple ingredients, just like this circus animal cookies recipe, and the treats come out just as colorful!

Circus Animal Cookies – Tips and Tricks

• Soften the dough. It can be hard to mix ingredients into refrigerated dough while it’s still chilled, so I recommend letting it sit for 10 to 15 minutes first. Then, pop the bowl back in the refrigerator for a few minutes before scooping to avoid overspreading.
• White chocolate chip substitute: If these are hard to find, coarsely chop up a white chocolate bar instead.
• Choose the right sprinkles. You’ll want nonpareils for this recipe, which are the teeny tiny ball-shaped variety that also dot the circus animal cookies. Avoid jimmies (the long tube-shaped ones) since they are more likely to bleed color into the dough.
• Don’t overbake! Pull the trays as soon as the edges start to brown. The centers will continue to set as the treats cool on the baking sheet.
• Want a bigger batch? Easily double or triple the amounts, depending on how many you need.
• Storage: Keep these in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 4 days or freeze for up to 1 month.

Make a cookie sandwich!

Swirl some vanilla frosting or whipped cream between two cookies for an extra indulgent dessert. Add extra sprinkles or color the frosting pink for an extra pop of color.

You could even use ice cream in the middle instead! Make each cookie a bit larger so there’s plenty of surface area for whichever flavor you choose.

FAQ – Common Recipe Questions

What’s the best way to chop the frosted animal cookies?

For consistency, it’s best to do it by hand with a large, sharp knife. If you use a food processor, you will end up with a mixture of large chunks, crumbs, and powder instead.

That said, feel free to do whatever works for you – these treats will taste delicious either way!

Should I chill the dough between batches?

Yes! If you can only bake one tray at a time, keep the remaining dough in the refrigerator until the first batch is cooling.

You could also scoop all of the rounds out onto a plate at once, then transfer them to the baking sheet when it’s time.

How many mix ins can I add to this circus animal cookies recipe?

You can play with the ratios of cookie bits, chocolate chips, and sprinkles but don’t exceed 1 ½ cups total.

Otherwise, there won’t be enough dough to surround everything, and the baked goods won’t rise.

Enjoy!

With love from our simple kitchen to yours. 

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Other Cookie Recipes

Circus Animal Cookies Recipe

Donna Elick

These circus animal cookies combine refrigerated dough with a variety of mix-ins for an easy, colorful treat. Make some in just 20 minutes!

5 stars from 3 reviews

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Total Time 22 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Method Oven

Servings 24 cookies

Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 16 ounces refrigerated sugar cookie dough
• ▢ 2/3 cup chopped circus animal cookies
• ▢ 1/3 cup white chocolate chips
• ▢ 2 teaspoons Rainbow nonpareils

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and mix until fully combined.
• Using a medium cookie scoop to portion out the dough and place on the prepared baking sheet 2-inches apart.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges are just golden brown
• Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 96cal | Carbohydrates: 13g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 57mg | Sugar: 8g | Fiber: 1g | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 1mg

All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Originally published September 2021

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