These two-toned pink and white Circus Animal Cookies have a sugar cookie base loaded with pieces of Circus Animal Cookies, sweet White Chocolate Chips, and Rainbow Sprinkles! They are SO easy to make, and they're perfect for any occasion, from your family movie night to a fun birthday party!
I have always loved the original Circus Animal Cookies, I could even say they were a favorite childhood cookie - and you know how I love cookies!
They're small bites of sugary rainbow joy, what's not to love?!
There are so many Copycat recipes out there, making a cut-out sugar cookie dough base to cut the cute animals out of, then submerging them in pink or white icing and covering them with rainbow sprinkles.
But, of course, I had to make my own version. And while I do LOVE Circus Animal Cookies, this two-toned cookie recipe takes the classic little cookies to the next level, and I am so ok with that!
These cookies are so fun to make with littles, they're sure to become one of your go-to family favorites.
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Made with simple ingredients, more details and full quantities can be found in the recipe card below.
Wet Ingredients. Butter, Eggs, Vanilla Extract, Cake Batter Extract
Dry Ingredients. All Purpose Flour, Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix, Granulated Sugar, Brown Sugar, Baking Soda, Salt
Candy. Circus Animal Cookies, Rainbow Sprinkles, White Chocolate Chips, Pink Food Coloring (optional)
How to Make Circus Animal Cookies
In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer or in a stand mixer, cream together the Butter, White Sugar, and Brown Sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. The mixture will be light and fluffy.
Mix in the Eggs, Vanilla Extract, and Cake Batter Extract. Then continue to cream together for an additional 2-3 minutes.
Gradually add dry ingredients of All Purpose Flour, Instant Vanilla Pudding, Baking Soda, and Salt to the butter mixture.
Separate Cookie dough into 2 equal sizes. Add Pink Food Color to one portion and mix until smooth.
Break cookies into small pieces. Reserve about half to place on top of cookie dough balls.
Divide the remaining cookie pieces in half and stir into each bowl of cookie dough along with 1 tablespoon of Rainbow Sprinkles and ½ cup of White Chocolate Chips to each bowl of cookie dough.
Scoop 1 scoop (Size #50) of each color of cookie dough and press together forming one larger cookie. Place cookie dough on the baking sheet allowing 3 inches apart.
Press additional pieces of Circus Animal Cookies on top before baking.
Bake at 350 F Degrees. Cookies Bake for 9-11 minutes. Bake until the edges are set. Do not overbake.
Allow cookies to cool for a minute before moving them to the cooling rack.
Storage & Freezing
Storage: Store cookies once they have completely cooled in an airtight container for up to a week. These cookies are best if enjoyed within 2-3 days.
Freezing: Circus Animal Cookies can be stored in a sealed container and frozen for up to 3 months. Place small sheets of parchment paper between each cookie to prevent them from sticking.
Substitutions & Variations
- Candy. You can add your favorite candies to these cookies for even MORE color and flavor. Add crushed M&Ms or Mini M&Ms, chopped pink candy melts, or milk chocolate chips.
- Drizzle. For an even fancier finish, you can drizzle these cookies with melted chocolate or icing once they have completely cooled.
- Colors. You can just make plain-colored cookies, or just pink cookies rather than the two-tone effect if you prefer. You could switch the colors around as well to have the pink on top as well.
Pro Tips
What makes a good cookie? Does it have a soft center and crispy edges, and is it chewy? Each of these makes a great quality cookie. To make perfect cookies every time here are some pro tips.
To find out more, check out my Pro Tips Guide for making the best cookies every time!
Weighing Ingredients.
Baking is a science and adding too much or too little of any of the ingredients will alter the recipe. Weighing and measuring dry ingredients properly makes a world of difference. Investing in a kitchen scale is ideal. When a kitchen scale is not available, make sure to stir and lift ingredients before scooping them into a measuring cup.
| Volume | Ounces | Grams | |
| All Purpose Flour | 1 Cup | 4½ Ounces | 120 Grams |
| Bread Flour | 1 Cup | 4½ Ounces | 120 Grams |
| Granulated Sugar | 1 Cup | 7 Ounces | 200 Grams |
| Brown Sugar | 1 Cup | 7½ Ounces | 213 Grams |
| Confectionary Sugar | 1 Cup | 4 Ounces | 113 Grams |
Preheat Oven.
A preheated oven is best when baking a chewy and soft cookie.
Room Temperature Ingredients.
Softened Butter and room temperature egg are a must when baking.
Cookie Sheets.
Line baking sheets with parchment paper or use baking spray.
Cookie Dough.
Chilling the dough is not necessary with this recipe.
Cookie Scoop.
Using a cookie scoop keeps each ball of cookie dough the same size, which is essential for baking. I used a size #50 cookie scoop. One scoop of pink cookie dough and one scoop of white cookie dough are pressed together to make these two-toned cookies.
- Kitchen Scale. I use this for accuracy in measuring and it's a lifesaver when it comes to consistent baking
- Wire Rack for cooling cookies. I like to have at least 2 cooling racks
- Mixing Bowls. A Large Mixing Bowl for mixing ingredients and small and medium mixing bowls for other ingredients
- Cookie Sheet. Most recipes will take 2 batches to bake. It's great to have multiple baking sheets available
- Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Mat. Line the Cookie Sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup and to prevent sticking.
- Cookie Scoop. A small #60 Cookie Scoop or a Medium Cookie Scoop #50 are great choices for uniform drops of cookie dough.
- Storage Container. An Airtight Container to store cookies or a Ziploc Bag works great too.
- Additional supplies. Measuring Cups and Measuring Spoons along with a silicone spatula are all helpful.
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Have you tried this Circus Animal Cookies recipe?
Let me know what you thought of this recipe! Tag @bestcookierecipes on social media so I can see how great your cookies turned out! I would also love to read your comments below. Let me know what you think of these cookies. It really does help!
More Fun and Colorful Cookie Recipes
- Heart Sprinkle Sugar Cookies
- Spring Flower Cookies
- Funfetti Cookie Sandwiches
- Strawberry Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Unicorn Cookies with Pink Frosting
- Pink Velvet Cookies
- Church Window Cookies
- Pistachio Pudding Cookies
- Candy Halloween Cookies
- Classic Funfetti Cookies
Circus Animal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter Softened
- ¾ cup Granulated Sugar 150g
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar 26g
- 2 Egg Large
- 1 teaspoon Cake Batter Extract
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 2¼ cups All Purpose Flour 270g
- 1 Vanilla Pudding 3.9 ounce Instant Pudding
- 9 ounces Circus Animal Cookies *Divided broken into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons Rainbow Sprinkles
- 1 cup White Chocolate Chips
- Pink Food Coloring optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl cream together Butter and Sugars. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. The mixture will be light and fluffy.
- Mix in Eggs and Vanilla Extract. Then continue to cream together for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Gradually add dry ingredients of All Purpose Flour, Instant Vanilla Pudding, Baking Soda, and Salt to the butter mixture.
- Separate Cookie dough into 2 equal sizes. Add Pink Food Color to one portion and mix until smooth.
- Break cookies into small pieces. Reserve about half to place on top of cookie dough balls. Divide the remaining cookie pieces in half and stir into each bowl of cookie dough along with 1 tablespoon of Rainbow Sprinkles and ½ cup of White Chocolate Chips to each bowl of cookie dough.
- Scoop 1 scoop (Size #50) of each color of cookie dough and press together forming one larger cookie. Place cookie dough on the baking sheet allowing 3 inches apart
- Press additional pieces of Circus Animal Cookies on top before baking.
- Bake at 350 F Degrees. Cookies Bake for 9-11 minutes. Bake until the edges are set. Do not overbake.
- Allow cookies to cool for a minute before moving them to the cooling rack.
Notes
- Storage: Store cookies once they have completely cooled in an airtight container for up to a week. These cookies are best if enjoyed within 2-3 days.
- Freezing: Circus Animal Cookies can be stored in a sealed container and frozen for up to 3 months. Place a piece of parchment paper between each cookie to prevent them from sticking.
Nutrition Disclaimer
All nutrition values are approximate and calculated by a plugin and are provided as a courtesy. Adding or subtracting ingredients will change the nutritional value.
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