Fireworks Cookies & Cream Cookies

A few years ago I had a temp job gave employees a 4-day weekend because the 4th of July was on a Thursday that year. They probably did the same this year since the holiday was on a Tuesday. My current job isn't that generous (government/federal jobs must be like this in general since I had to work the day after Thanksgiving when I had a temp job at a bank one year). So to make up for it I decided to make some patriotic cookies to take into work on Monday. After looking at my patriotic treats Pinterest board (because really, where else do I have to look? 😏) I decided on Fireworks Cookies & Cream Cookies from Inside Bru Crew Life.

Fireworks Cookies & Cream Cookies (source)

Ingredients

• 1 box vanilla cake mix (I could mainly find white cake mix which probably worked just as well)
• 8 Tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups Oreo cookie chunks (14 chocolate cream-filled) (I decided to take the theme a step further and use the Fireworks Oreos flavor - made with Pop Rocks - that was released this summer. They baked just fine)*
• 3/4 cup red, white, & blue M&M's, divided*
• 1/2 cup red, white, & blue sprinkles, divided*

*I had a thought the other night: these could be made year-round using holiday-appropriate Oreos, M&Ms, and sprinkles. For example, for Halloween Cookies & Cream cookies, use the Halloween Oreos that they release every year and black and orange (and purple?) M&Ms and sprinkles.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉. Set out cookie sheets.
2. Mix together the cake mix, butter, egg, and vanilla until soft dough forms.
3. Add the cream cheese and mix again.
4. Stir in the cookie chunks, 1/2 cup M&M's, and 1/4 cup of the sprinkles gently. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes to an hour.
5. Roll into 24 even dough balls (I just scooped the dough out with a cookie scoop). Press the remaining M&M's into the tops of the dough balls. Add extra sprinkles to the tops of the the dough balls, if desired.
6. Place the dough balls on the cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on the cookie sheets for 2 minutes, before moving them to a piece of parchment paper on the counter. Let the cookies cool completely, and then store in a tightly sealed container. Makes 24 cookies (Because of the size of my cookie scoop, I ended up with 30 cookies).

I put them out in the morning (about 7:15) and they were almost gone by lunch (11:45). I brought the remaining cookie home for my mom, who had seen them on Facebook and expressed interest. She wasn't that much of a fan (she couldn't even taste the Pop Rocks in the Oreos. However, we figured this might've been because as soon as I brought the cookie home, I stuck it in the freezer and she didn't get it until Friday. So the cold might've done something to the cookie and specifically the Pop Rocks).