Cookie cakes are a great way to celebrate any occasion. And when you make them yourself, they’re even better. Any cookie recipe you have that makes a good bar cookie works well for a cookie cake. For the one above, I used one full chocolate chip recipe in a 14-inch circle pan, greased and lined with parchment paper.

Don’t have a 14-inch circle pan? Try a 9 X 13 or whatever size circles you have, and use enough cookie dough so it’s about 1/2 inch thick before baking. And speaking of baking, I lowered the temperature slightly, from 375 to 350, so the edges didn’t bake too quickly and leave the middle underdone. My 14-inch pan version took 25 minutes to bake.

There’s nothing wrong with going to your local bakery for a premade cookie cake, but when you make it yourself, you can customize the dough with all sorts of add-ins: chopped nuts, M&Ms, sprinkles, dark chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, etc. You can also use different doughs, like the Triple Chocolate Chunk Cookie version pictured below. (Recipe is at https://bakingwithjulie.com/triple-chocolate-cookies-recipe/)

Below you’ll find recipes for a basic decorating icing and an easy chocolate buttercream. Sprinkles add a splash of color kids love. If you need some guidance on lettering, here are a few tips. Capital letters are the easiest ones to pipe. For spacing, I use Word on my computer, type out what I want to pipe, and use the center justification to see where to place them. Print it out and find the center line by folding the paper in half and that’s where you start. For instance, for the word “HAPPY” the center is the straight line in the first P. So you pipe the first “P”, then work out from there. When you start the next line, you repeat and notice where the second line letters fall under the first.

When it’s time to serve, you can cut the cookie cake into squares, which if it’s a circle, results in different size pieces. But that works great for a large group, where some people only want a small piece and the kids want the ones with all the frosting.

Don’t stress if your cookie cake isn’t perfect. Your kids and loved ones won’t care one bit. When it’s made with love, that’s what they’ll see. And taste!

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

yields one 14-inch cookie cake, or 5 dozen small cookies

Preheat oven to 350 F for a cookie cake, 375 F for individual cookies. For a cookie cake, grease and line a 14-inch circle pan with parchment paper. In a bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together then set aside:

2 1/4 cup AP flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

In a mixer, cream together

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 white sugar

To the mixer, add

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs, one at a time

Beat until fluffy. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Add in:

2 cups chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

You can customize with M&Ms, raisins, various chips, etc.

Spread dough evenly into the pan using an offset spatula. Bake at 350F for 25 minutes, or until the edge is golden brown and the middle is set. Let cool for at least 15 minutes, loosen the sides, and carefully turn out. Let cool on a rack completely before decorating.

Easy Chocolate Buttercream

In a mixer bowl, mix together well, until very creamy:

1 ½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa (sift it in if it’s lumpy)

Add in and mix:

3 ½ cups powdered sugar

Add in and mix:

3 tbsp. milk or cream

2 tsp vanilla extract

For a thinner consistency, add in more milk or cream, a teaspoon or so at a time, and remix. Store covered until ready to use.

Decorator’s Quick Buttercream

In a mixer bowl, cream together

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/3 cup shortening

Once well combined, slowly add

2 lbs of powdered sugar (one regular-sized bag)

Mix in

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

Mix in one teaspoon of milk at a time until you have the consistency you want. For piping that holds its shape well, like for roses, keep the icing stiff. To easily frost a cake, make it thinner. Gel color works best for tinting. The color of this icing will intensify slightly as it dries.