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Well I have been staring at a random box of lemon cake mix in my pantry for months now. I am not a huge fan of cake mixes and for the life of me I cannot remember why I purchased it in the first place. However, I was determined to use the mix this weekend and started browsing the web for ideas. I came across a recipe from allrecipes that used boxed lemon cake mix to make cookies. The reviews were mixed; some stating they were delicious, while others complained they tasted like Froot Loops. I happen to thoroughly enjoy Froot Loops, so I decided to give these a try with a couple of minor substitutions. Here is the verdict: The texture of these cookies was amazing- nice, crisp outsides with a chewy center! The taste was really quite good, not too tart and not too sweet. This is not a cookie I would make on a weekly basis, but it was good nonetheless. So, if you have a random box of lemon cake mix, make these…I bet you could use the base of cake mix, 2 eggs and vegetable oil with other cake mixes as well. Happy Baking!

Simple Lemon Cookies Adapted from allrecipes

Ingredients
1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar for decoration

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, and lemon juice, lemon extract and lemon zest until well blended.
3.Drop teaspoonfuls of dough into a bowl of confectioners’ sugar. Roll them around until they’re lightly covered. Once sugared, put them on an ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 6 to 9 minutes in the preheated oven. The bottoms will be light brown, and the insides chewy.

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28 Comments

  1. Mayra says:

    alrighty, these look amazing!! I pinned already and want to make these asap!!!
    But I have one small question!
    So when you say pour in cake mix, do you add every ingredient the cake mix calls for and then add all other ingredients your recipe calls for? or is it just the cake mix itself and the ingredients in your recipe? i’m new to baking and I want to make sure I fool-proof myself when I want to try something new :D
    Thanks!

    1. MBA says:

      Mayra-
      In this particular recipe, you are simply using the cake mix, not the ingredients that the box calls for. Good luck and feel free to stop back and let us know how you enjoyed the recipe. Have a great day!
      -Jamie

  2. Jessica says:

    These look fabulous. A box of lemon cake mix has been sitting in the pantry for months now, and I found your recipe just in time to make it for family that’s coming tomorrow!

  3. Julie says:

    Hilarious, I could have written the introduction! I located your recipe in an effort to make something this weekend out of that lonely mysterious box of lemon cake mix in my pantry. Perfect for the event I’m attending :) Thanks!

  4. DS B says:

    I’ve never bothered to write a review before. But I have to! These are the very best cookies I have ever tasted! Look great also, and the texture is wonderful!! And so easy to make! (Who wooda’ thunk it?? from a cake mix!)
    Do use lemon cake mix–We used Duncan Hines. Also, we had no lemon extract, so I substituted Realemon for the extract.

  5. Mrsblocko says:

    I made these and wrote about them here: http://tomatoesforapples.blogspot.com/2009/12/cake-mix-cookies-take-three-lemon.html

    I was a bit bummed out with how they turned out. They had a weird aftertaste. I'm thinking that it had something to do with the brand of cake mix I used. I bet I could have solved that problem by using yellow cake mix instead of lemon, and adding lemon extract to make up the difference.

    Thank you for the recipe, they certainly made a pretty cookie. (Oh and I'd like to add that these cookies stay moist for a really long time.)

  6. Talita says:

    These looks perfect! I love recipes that ask for oil instead butter!

  7. Amy I. says:

    I just made a variation of these using white chocolate chips and without the powdered sugar. They came out great, thanks for the inspiration!