Homemade Oreos

 Homemade Oreos are made simple, thanks to some store-bought short-cuts — a cake mix and pudding mix!

Two deeply chocolate, thick, soft, and chewy cookies sandwich a creamy frosting reminiscent of the creme inside Oreo® cookies.

We love Homemade Oreos so much that we made a fun flavor variation — be sure to try these Cookie Dough Oreos next!

What to expect from Homemade Oreos

While these aren’t completely like real Oreo cookies, they’ve got similar flavors and a nearly identical creme filling. But, instead of crispy, hard chocolate cookies, these cookies are soft, chewy, and deeply chocolatey. They’re very rich and sweet!

Slightly underbaked, the cookies are very fudgy and even a bit gooey. And frosted while they’re still just a tiny bit warm, they practically melt in your mouth — yum!

If you’re looking for cookies exactly like real Oreos — more crispy and crunchy — this recipe won’t be the one you’ll want to use. These are more like an Oreo Whoopie pie. As soft and chewy cookie addicts, we prefer these to real Oreos any day! 🙂 

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In case you aren’t familiar, a whoopie pie is either a cookie, pie, sandwich, or cake — usually two round mound-shaped pieces of a flavored cake or cookies with a sweet and creamy filling sandwiched in between.

What Cake Mix To Use

These Homemade Oreos begin with a cake mix and only require four other ingredients. With so few ingredients, the cake mix is very important to the end flavor and texture of these cookies.

We’ve tried several different cake mixes, and truly none even come close to Betty Crocker’s® Super Moist Triple Chocolate Fudge Mix (pictured above). I’m not paid or affiliated by Betty Crocker; this is simply our preference for this recipe.

We love the softness, fudgy-ness, and deep rich flavor this cake mix contributes to these cookies. Use the cake mix, but don’t follow any package directions for preparing the cake; we’ll add our own ingredients!

What pudding mix to use

Beyond the cake mix, the other ingredient to pay close attention to is the pudding mix. While it would be nice if any boxed pudding worked in this recipe, this part of the recipe is very specific.

We’re looking to use chocolate instant pudding mix– not the cook-and-serve type. We also want to ensure the pudding mix is not sugar-free or reduced-calorie — those varieties won’t work the same.

The other thing to keep an eye out for is the pudding box size. There are typically two sizes — a larger and smaller one. We want to get the small 3.9-ounce (111g) box.

When using the pudding mix in these cookies, use the dry mix — don’t prepare it according to package directions.

Other Ingredients

Besides the cake mix and pudding mix, there are three other ingredients which I describe below:

• Eggs. Be sure to use large eggs in this recipe.
• Butter. It’s important the butter is at room temperature and not melted for this recipe. If the butter is too soft or melted, this Homemade Oreo cookie dough will need to be chilled before baking.
• Vanilla Extract. This adds a nice touch of flavor but is not entirely necessary. If you don’t have vanilla on hand, feel free to leave it out.

Homemade Oreo Frosting Notes

This frosting recipe is a bit unique, but we think it tastes so similar to the creme inside of packaged Oreo cookies!

• Let’s talk shortening. While I very rarely use shortening in my recipes, I find it has the most similar flavor to the creme filling in real Oreos. If you’re totally opposed to shortening, butter will work just fine, but there will be more of a buttercream flavor than Oreo creme flavor.
• Consistency. The consistency of this frosting is very thick — again, more creme-like, than frosting. To thin it out, add a bit more hot water or even milk. 
• Use immediately after making. Frost the cookies right after the frosting has been prepared. The longer the frosting sits, the more it thickens and becomes harder to spread on the cookies.
• Try a different filling. If you aren’t sure about the filling recipe, see the section below for different frosting ideas to add to the center of these Homemade Oreos.

Homemade Oreo Variations

• For some fun variations on this recipe, try a different frosting/filling instead! I’d recommend this Cream Cheese Frosting or cookie dough frosting to fill the centers. A peanut butter frosting would also be delicious! (See “quick tip” box below for my go-to peanut butter frosting.)
• Make Golden Oreos. Instead of chocolate, use a vanilla cake mix and vanilla pudding mix to make Homemade Golden Oreos. Keep the filling recipe the same.
• Dye the frosting. Celebrating a holiday or other occasion? Dye the creme filling to match the occasion! Pink for Valentine’s, Green for St. Patrick’s, Pastel for Easter, etc. To take the festivity a step further, roll the cookies in sprinkles. While the frosting is still soft, roll the edges of the frosting into a bowl of colored/decorative sprinkles (like we did for these Halloween Cookies).
• Chocolate dipped. For an even more decadent treat, dip half of these Homemade Oreos in some melted chocolate. Once dipped, allow the cookies to harden on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan.

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Peanut Butter Frosting: Ingredients: 1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature), 1 cup peanut butter (creamy, not chunky), 2 and 1/2 to 3 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1-3 tablespoons whole milk. Directions: In a large bowl, combine the peanut butter with room temperature butter and beat together in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer until smooth and creamy. Add in the powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla. Beat together and slowly add in the milk until the frosting consistency is reached.

Homemade Oreo Tips

• Use room-temperature butter. With butter that is at room temperature, the batter beats up nice and smoothly. If the butter is too soft or melted, the cookie dough will need to be chilled before being baked so the cookies don’t spread too much.
• Bake on a Silpat® liner or parchment paper. This helps bake the cookies evenly without burning or browning too much on the bottoms. Plus, the clean-up is effortless!
• Ever so slightly underbake. If you overbake these cookies, the taste and texture will be off. Slightly underbaking these cookies keeps them soft, chewy, and rich tasting. Remember, the residual heat on the pan continues to bake the cookies for a couple of minutes even after they are pulled out of the oven.
• Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They’re best enjoyed within 2-3 days. Unfortunately, these cookies become harder, and firmer every day they aren’t eaten. If they won’t be consumed that quickly, bake up a few and freeze the rest of the cookie dough for later! (See “quick tip” bow below.)

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To freeze cookie dough: Drop the cookie dough balls on a large sheet pan and freeze until solid. Once solid, transfer the frozen cookie dough balls to an airtight container or bag and freeze for up to three months. To bake: You can bake these Homemade Oreo Cookies straight from the freezer. There is no need to thaw, but you may need to add a minute or 2 to the baking time.

More Delicious Cookies:

• Funfetti Cookies loaded with sprinkles
• Maple Cookies with a maple glaze (tastes like a maple donut!)
• Salted Caramel Cookies with cream cheese frosting and caramel drizzle
• Avalanche Cookies no-bake peanut butter cookies
• No-Bake Oreo Cookies dipped in milk chocolate

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Homemade Oreos

5 from 5 votes

- Review this recipe

Homemade Oreos are made simple, thanks to some store-bought short-cuts -- a cake mix and pudding mix! Two deeply chocolate, thick, soft, and chewy cookies sandwich a creamy frosting reminiscent of the creme inside Oreo cookies.

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Print Recipe

Homemade Oreos

5 from 5 votes

- Review this recipe

SAVE TO RECIPE BOX

Print Recipe

Homemade Oreos are made simple, thanks to some store-bought short-cuts -- a cake mix and pudding mix! Two deeply chocolate, thick, soft, and chewy cookies sandwich a creamy frosting reminiscent of the creme inside Oreo cookies.

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American, Vegetarian

Keyword Homemade Oreos

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes

Total Time 38 minutes

Servings 18 Homemade Oreos

Calories 315kcal

Author Chelsea Lords

Cost $5.84

Ingredients

Cookies:

• 1 package (15.25 oz.; 432) Super Moist Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix (Betty Crocker brand) (don't prepare according to package directions)
• 1 package (3.9 oz. 111g) instant chocolate pudding mix  (dry, do not prepare) 4-serving size package
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup (8 tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting

• 2 cups (221g) powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons white, granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (42g) plain shortening
• 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 and 1/2 to 2 tablespoons hot water

Instructions

Cookies

• PREP: About an hour before starting, pull out 1 stick of butter to get to room temperature for these cookies (See Note 1). Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking liner and set aside.
• COOKIES: In a very large bowl, add the cake mix, pudding mix, room temperature butter, eggs, and vanilla. Using a hand mixer, beat until just combined. It may seem crumbly at first, but it will come together. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl as needed. Stop mixing as soon as a thick dough is formed.
  
• BAKE: Using a tablespoon measuring spoon, measure out dough balls. Each ball of dough should be exactly 1 full tablespoon (20 grams). (You'll get around 34-36 cookies.) (If the dough balls are at all soft, pop them in the freezer to chill for about 15 minutes so they stay nice and thick while being baked.) Place the cookie dough balls 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheet and bake for 7-10 minutes (we like them best at 8 minutes). You want to slightly underbake these cookies to keep them soft, fudgy, and flavorful! Remove from the oven and let stand on the cookie sheet for 3 minutes before using a spatula to transfer to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. Repeat to bake all the rest of the cookies.
  

Frosting

• COMBINE: Combine the powdered sugar, white sugar, shortening, salt, and vanilla. Beat until well mixed (it will likely still be crumbly.) Add in the hot water, starting with 1-1/2 tablespoons and beat until you have a thick frosting. Add an additional 1/2 tablespoon if needed. (This is supposed to be a very thick Oreo-like creme filling -- almost dough-like). Frost the cookies right after the frosting has been prepared. The longer the frosting sits, the more it thickens and becomes harder to spread on the cookies.

Putting it together

• PUT 'EM TOGETHER: Once cookies are cooled (it's okay if they're ever-so-slightly warm), divide the frosting evenly among the 17-18 cookies. Frost generously and then sandwich with the remaining 17-18 cookies.
• STORAGE: These are best enjoyed the same day they're made! These cookies are the softest on day 1 and get harder every day after that.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: If the butter is at all melted, you'll need to chill the cookie dough. I recommend setting it out for about an hour before making these cookies.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 311mg | Potassium: 104mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 40g | Vitamin A: 195IU | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 1mg

We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed.

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