These Lazy Cake Cookies Are Really Cookie Bars, and That’s the Whole Point

These are called cookies, but let’s be honest: they are cake-mix cookie bars wearing a very casual disguise. You mix five ingredients in one bowl, press the stubborn dough into a 9-by-13-inch pan, and cut the whole thing into squares.

That is exactly the appeal. There is no scooping twelve identical dough balls while the oven is already hot and everybody keeps asking when the cookies will be done.

What are lazy cake cookies?

Lazy cake cookies are soft cookie bars made with boxed cake mix instead of a from-scratch flour mixture. This version uses white cake mix, eggs, vanilla, melted butter and candy-coated chocolate pieces or chocolate chips.

The dough is much thicker than cake batter. That is normal. Even Betty Crocker’s cake-mix chocolate chip cookie recipe warns that cake-mix cookie dough will be stiff. Their drop-cookie recipe uses a different ingredient ratio and bake time, so follow the TTB recipe below for this bar-style version.

The five ingredients

• 1 box white cake mix
• 2 eggs
• 5 tablespoons melted butter
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• About 1 1/2 cups M&M’s or chocolate chips

Chopped pecans or walnuts are good here too, but they turn this into a six-ingredient recipe. I respect the truth in advertising.

How to make lazy cake cookies

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan with cooking spray or butter.
2. Put the dry cake mix in a large bowl. Add the eggs, vanilla and melted butter.
3. Stir until a thick dough forms, then fold in the M&M’s or chocolate chips.
4. Press the dough into a thin, even layer in the prepared pan. Clean hands are honestly the easiest tool for this job.
5. Bake on the middle rack for 20 minutes.
6. Cool for about 5 minutes, then cut into 12 squares.

A few things that make this easier

• White cake mix keeps the vanilla flavor simple, but yellow cake mix works for a richer result.
• Use M&M’s when you want color. Use chocolate chips when you want to raid the pantry and be done.
• The dough will fight the spoon. Pressing it into the pan with clean hands is faster.
• Keep the layer even so the thin edges do not finish before the center.

Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature. The real challenge is having leftovers after everyone realizes the “lazy” cookies are basically a pan of soft chocolate-chip-cookie corners.

If the pantry is looking especially bleak, these recipes for baking without eggs, milk or butter can save dessert another night.

The printable recipe is below. Five ingredients, one pan, and no tiny cookie scoop required. That is a perfectly reasonable amount of effort for something covered in M&M’s.

Amanda

5-Ingredient Lazy Cake Chocolate Chip Cookies

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Servings: 12 Sliced Cookies or 1 Cookie Cake

Cuisine: Cookies

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• White Box Cake Mix
• 2 Eggs
• 5 Tablespoons Butter
• ¼ teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
• M&M’s

Equipment

• White Cake Mix
• McCormick All Natural Pure Vanilla Extract
• M&M’S Milk Chocolate Candy
• Knife Set
• 13 X 9 X 2-Inch Cake Pan

Method

 

1. Preheat oven to 350º
2. Spray a 9X13 cake pan with cooking spray
3. Dump cake mix into mixing bowl
4. Add eggs, vanilla, and M&M's to mixing bowl.
5. Melt butter and add to mixing bowl.
6. Mix (hands work better)
7. Spread dough in 9X13 cake pan.
8. Bake for 20 minutes at 350º.
9. Slice into cookie squares.
10. Enjoy!!

Notes

Add pecans or walnuts to add a nutty flavor.