Firecracker Cookies

Happy 4th of July! It's been another crazy week, with repeat recipes and dining at restaurants, so the blog's been a bit quiet.  After returning home from the beach, KK and I had back-to-back-to-back repeat recipes for dinner - Chicken Enchilada Skillet, Cheesy Chili Mac, and Creamy Italian Chicken Skillet.  These recipes set KK up for leftovers on Tuesday and Wednesday.  On Tuesday, I took my good friend Karen out to dinner for her (belated) birthday.  We opted for an old favorite - Dos Caminos.  Their guacamole, trio of salsas, prickly pear margaritas, and red sangria are all not to be missed!  Wednesday was action packed as well.  I left work a little early, met my friend Jess for a quick drink at Fig & Olive before her bridal gown fitting at Pronovias.  Jess and I bought our wedding dresses on the same day, despite the fact that her wedding is a year after mine, so it'd been awhile since she last saw her gown.  Luckily, she fell in love with the dress all over again and she looked stunning!! After the fitting, we went to Teak for another friend's birthday happy hour.

The fun-filled weekend did not stop last night.  Today we're BBQing and watching the Macy's Fireworks from Weehawken.  I debated between making a festive cake or cookies for the party, but ultimately decided on cookies because they're easier to manage at a BBQ.  Also, I made a variation of these cookies in December for New Year's Eve, so I already knew they'd be a hit! Make sure you use 18.25 ounces of cake mix.  I almost used a 15.25 ounce box, and then the measurements and consistency would've been all wrong.  I went a little light on the sprinkles this time because I did not have enough patriotic colored sprinkles.  If you use rainbow colored sprinkles or have an abundance of red, white, and blue sprinkles, don't hold back! My cookies baked for 9 minutes, but I mistakenly set my oven to 325 degrees.  Make sure to taste test a cookie because these treats are sure to disappear as soon as they're served!

Firecracker Cookies
Adapted from Cookin' Cowgirl
Makes 27-32 cookies

Ingredients
18.25 oz. box french vanilla cake mix
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup red sprinkles
1/2 cup blue sprinkles

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, combine cake mix and baking powder.  In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil and vanilla.  Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture; stir to combine.

3. Fold in the sprinkles.  Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet or silicone baking mat.

4. Bake 8-10 minutes.  Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to wire cooling rack.  Allow cookies to cool completely before serving or storing.  Cookies will flatten as they cool.