Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ teaspoon red food coloring gel
- 2 ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon cornstarch
Cream Cheese Frosting*
- 6 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- 6 cup powdered sugar**
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and spray two cookie sheets with cooking spray.
- In standing mixer, mix butter, brown and white sugar on high for 2-3 minutes until creamy and slightly lighter in color. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure it is thoroughly mixed. Add eggs, vanilla extract, and red food coloring and mix on medium speed until it is well mixed and the food coloring is evenly distributed. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and cornstarch. Then add to the standing mixer and mix on lowest setting until there are no pockets of flour. Don't overmix.
- Roll dough into balls and place on cookie sheets at least 2 inches apart. Bake for about 9-10 minutes, but make sure not to overbake. Once the edges start to crack, they should be done. Leave on the tray until cooled completely.
- For the frosting, whip together the butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and whipping cream in a standing mixer on high. Once well mixed, gradually add in the powdered sugar. Gradually increase the speed, and allow to mix on high for 3-4 minutes. Either spread on cookies with a knife, or pipe frosting after the cookies are completely cooled. Enjoy!
Notes
*This frosting should be stored in the fridge if not eaten within a few hours after being made, due to the cream cheese and cream. If you aren't planning on eating the cookies immediately after making them, you can either wait to frost them or frost and store them in the fridge. This recipe also makes quite a bit of frosting, more than you should need for these cookies. If you are just spreading the frosting with a knife, feel free to halve the frosting recipe. But if you are piping the frosting, I recommend making all of it just in case you run out.
**This recipe calls for a lot of powdered sugar because I prefer a lighter texture and cream cheese flavor. If you like a more dense cream cheese flavor and texture, leave out some of the powdered sugar and/or the heavy cream.