High Altitude Soft White Chocolate Chip Sprinkle Cookies

These fun and festive sprinkle cookies are so soft, thick and chewy, full of colorful rainbow sprinkles and sweet white chocolate chips. This is a very easy high altitude recipe, with no mixer needed! Simply mix up the dough with a bowl and spoon, and after a short chill time, the dough will be ready to bake. Start to finish, you’ll have warm cookies to enjoy in about an hour, making this a great recipe to have your kids help with.

Looking for more recipes like this one? You’ll love my Funfetti cake, sprinkle topped frosted sugar cookie bars, and birthday cake ice cream.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Easy to Make. With no mixer needed, and very little prep time, this is such an easy recipe that everyone can help with. The kids will love helping measure ingredients and scatter sprinkles onto the cookie dough.

Simple Pantry Ingredients. You don’t need any fancy ingredients for these sprinkle cookies, just standard pantry staples that most bakers will have on hand.

Versatile for Holidays. One of the things I love about sprinkles is how many colors they come in. Use a mix of red, white and blue sprinkles for the 4th of July, pastel colors for Easter, orange, yellow and brown for Halloween, and of course, red and green for Christmas.

High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

• Butter. I use unsalted butter for all my baking, but if you use salted butter, be sure to omit or reduce the extra salt in the recipe.
• Sugar. Granulated sugar adds sweetness and tenderness to the cookies.
• Vanilla. Use a good-quality vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract for the best flavor.
• Almond Extract. Almond extract adds a wonderful flavor to these cookies, but you can leave it out of you prefer.
• Egg + Egg Yolk. Eggs add structure and richness, and the extra yolk gives the cookies moisture and a soft, chewy texture.
• Flour. All-purpose flour gives the cookies strength and structure.
• Corn Starch. Tenderizes the dough for a soft, chewy cookie.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness.
• Baking Soda. Leavens the dough so the cookies puff up as they bake.
• Cardamom. Just a tiny pinch is all you need to add more complex flavor.
• White Chocolate Chips. Sweetness, texture and a buttery flavor.
• Rainbow Sprinkles. Use confetti/quins and jimmies (not nonpareils).

Instructions

• In a bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar until smooth. Add the vanilla, egg and egg yolk, and stir until smooth.
• Separately, combine the flour, corn starch, salt, baking soda and cardamom. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until the flour is incorporated into the dough. Let cool for 10 minutes.
• Fold in the white chocolate chips and the sprinkles (reserving 1 tablespoon sprinkles for later); the dough will be thicker now than before it cooled.
• Portion the dough into 20 equal portions. Roll into balls, and slightly flatten each ball. Sprinkle the top of the dough balls with the reserved sprinkles.
• Cover the dough balls with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place the chilled dough 3 inches apart on the baking sheet. Refrigerate the unbaked dough while you bake each batch of cookies.
• Bake the cookies for about 9 minutes, until a pale golden brown, and the centers are nearly set, but ever so slightly underdone. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
• Bake the remaining dough. You may need to bake the last batch for about 30 seconds longer, since it had a longer chill time.
• Store the cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3-6 months.

Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make the dough ahead of time and freeze it?

Yes, cookie dough freezes very well. You should portion the dough into balls, and freeze them in an airtight container or zip top bag. You can bake the cookie dough frozen, just adding a few extra minutes of bake time.

What kind of sprinkles should I use?

I’d advise using confetti sprinkles (quins) or jimmies, as both hold their shape well during baking. Nonpareils tend to melt and bleed into dough and batter, since they’re so small.

Will the sprinkles melt in the oven?

No, with the short bake time, the sprinkles on top of the cookies will hold their shape.

How long do the cookies stay fresh?

Store the sprinkle cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or freeze them for up to 3-6 months. If you place a slice of sandwich bread in your cookie jar, it helps keep cookies soft for several days longer.

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