Red Velvet Cheesecake Cookies
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These red velvet cheesecake cookies are the perfect addition to your Christmas cookie platter! Soft, chewy red velvet cookies have a secret cheesecake filling, and rolled in granulated sugar before baking.
There’s something magical about red velvet season, isn’t there? Around the holidays, I find myself craving anything with that rich cocoa flavor and festive red hue — especially when cream cheese is involved.
Red velvet is classic for the holidays isn’t it? It’s absolute magic. I’ve always loved making red velvet desserts around the holidays — like my red velvet bars, red velvet cake, my red velvet crinkle cookies or my red velvet cupcakes – the deep red, the hint of cocoa, and of course, the festive feel.
Enter: Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cookies — soft, vibrant cookies wrapped around a creamy, tangy cheesecake center. They look bakery-special, but they’re totally doable in your kitchen.
These cookies are a showstopper for cookie exchanges, dessert trays, or whenever you want something that feels extra without requiring piping bags or fancy skills. Let’s bake them together!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Cheesecake Center
- Cream cheese, softened – Make sure your cream cheese is really soft — it helps the center beat smooth and creamy without lumps.
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
Red Velvet Cookies
- All-purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – Or Dutch cocoa.
- Baking soda
- Cornstarch
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Unsalted butter, softened
- Brown sugar
- Granulated sugar (plus extra for rolling)
- Egg
- Buttermilk (or regular milk works great too!) – Buttermilk adds a subtle tang and tenderness, but milk works in a pinch — don’t skip it!
- Vanilla extract
- Red food coloring
How to Make Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cookies
1. Start with the cheesecake filling
Mix softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until silky smooth. It should resemble frosting.
Scoop little teaspoons onto a parchment-lined plate and pop them into the freezer. Freezing helps them keep their shape when stuffing the cookies — much easier than trying to wrap dough around something soft!
2. Mix the dry ingredients
Whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, and salt. That cornstarch helps create soft, thick, bakery-style cookies.
3. Cream the butter and sugars
Beat your butter until it’s fluffy, then blend in both sugars until creamy. This adds air to the dough so your cookies bake thick, not dense.
4. Add the wet ingredients
Mix in the egg until blended, then the vanilla, milk, and food coloring. A tablespoon of food coloring gives a bold red — add more or less depending on your shade preference.
5. Add the dry ingredients
Add the flour mixture gradually on low speed until just combined. Don’t overmix — that can make cookies tough. Then it’s time to chill the cookie dough!
You can chill the whole bowl of cookie dough or scoop dough now before chilling. Just make sure the cookie dough balls are well covered so they don’t dryout. Chill at least 1 hour — chilled dough = thick cookies.
6. Assemble and shape
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line baking pans. Working with chilled dough, flatten a scoop in your hands. Grab a frozen cheesecake bite and wrap the dough around it, sealing all edges so nothing peeks out. If dough sticks to your hands, just dust your palms with a touch of flour. Roll in sugar for sparkle and crunch.
7. Bake
Bake until the edges are set and the tops look puffy — about 12–14 minutes. Let them cool on the pan for a few minutes to finish setting before moving to a rack. The filling firms up beautifully as they cool.
How to Store Them
I like to store these cookies in the refrigerator because of the cheesecake center. They should keep for up to a week.
Or you can freeze for 2–3 months. If freezing, let them thaw at room temperature before serving.
More Recipes To Try
If you’re craving more Christmas cookies be sure to try my Russian Tea Cakes – a holiday favorite my grandmother made when I was a kid! Another favorite is my lemon cookies with lemon icing – a crowd favorite around here.
I also love my coconut macaroons. I like dipping in chocolate after they are baked. And when it’s Fall time I love whipping up a batch of my apple cider cookies with fresh apples and cider glaze.
Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cookies
Ingredients
For the cheesecake center:
- 8 ounces (226 g) cream cheese softened
- 1 cup (113 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the cookie:
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (1 stick, 113 g) unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup 160 g packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup 50 g granulated white sugar, plus more for rolling in
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 ½ tablespoons buttermilk or regular milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon red food coloring
Instructions
- Make cheesecake filling. Line a small cookie sheet or plate with parchment paper. In a mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla together until smooth, about 2 to 3 minutes. Spoon teaspoons of the filling onto the prepared cookie sheet and freeze while you prepare the cookie dough. 8 ounces (226 g) cream cheese 1 cup (113 g) powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Combine dry ingredients. Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch and salt together in a bowl. 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour ¼ cup (21 g) unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt
- Cream butter and sugar. Beat butter with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes; beat in brown sugar and white sugar until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. ½ cup (1 stick, 113 g) unsalted butter ¾ cup 160 g packed light brown sugar ¼ cup 50 g granulated white sugar, plus more for rolling in
- Add remaining wet ingredients. Beat egg, in egg until incorporated. Add the vanilla extract into butter mixture and beat to combine. Add milk and food coloring and beat intil until uniformly colored. 1 large egg 1 ½ tablespoons buttermilk 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 tablespoon red food coloring
- Add dry ingredients. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture gradually with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Scoop using a medium scoop (about 3 tablespoons) and place onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover and Chill the dough for at least one hour before assembling. I like to scoop first as it can be very difficult to scoop after it’s chilled.
- Preheat and prepare pans. Preheat the oven to 350oF (160oC). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Assemble the cookies. Flatten cookie ball with your hands. Scoop one cheesecake center and place in the center of the cookie dough and fold around cheesecake mixture making sure none of the cheesecake filling shows. Using your hands, roll into a ball and roll into granulated sugar. Place onto prepared cookie sheets about 2 inches apart.
- Bake and cool cookies. Bake in a preheated oven until edges are edges are set and tops are puffy, about 12-14 minutes. Cool cookies on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to continue cooling.
Notes
- Storage: I like to store these in the fridge because of the cheesecake center. They should keep for up to a week (they stay fudgy!) or freeze for 2–3 months. If freezing, let them thaw at room temperature before serving.
