Bear Paw Cookies Made with Cake Mix
Bear Paw Cookies Made with Cake Mix
Preparing cute treats for your kids can be so much fun! But there's no reason to spend hours whipping up themed snacks in the kitchen. With the help of some premade ingredients, like cake mix, you can cut down on your prep work and still create some adorable, sweet treats for your kids. Combine chocolate cookies with a caramel topping, then decorate with chocolate candy to create these cute bear paw cookies with just a few minutes of work in the kitchen!
*This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn a commission on qualifying purchases.
What Do I Need to Make Bear Paw Cookies?
With the help of cake mix, these adorable cookies are easy to make! But no one will guess they're made with a boxed mix because they taste amazing. To prepare your own chocolate bear paw cookies, you'll need:
- Chocolate fudge cake mix
- Baking powder
- Eggs
- Unsalted butter
- Walnuts
- Werther's chewy caramels
- Heavy whipping cream
- Chocolate candy melts
- Semisweet chocolate chips
Looking for more yummy cookie recipes? Give these reader favorites a try!
Apple Pie Filled Cookies with Cinnamon Topping | Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies | Rhubarb Cookies | Banana Pudding Cookies
How Do I Make Bear Paw Cookies?
Whether you're hosting a kid's birthday party or just looking for a fun snack for your little ones, these adorable chocolate caramel cookies will surely be a hit! And since they're so easy to prepare, your kids can even enjoy the baking fun. Just follow these simple instructions for making and decorating your own cookies at home.
Step One: Prepare the Cookie Dough
Combine the chocolate cake mix and the baking powder in a large bowl. Add the melted butter and eggs to the bowl and use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the ingredients together until a thick dough forms. Fold in the chopped walnuts, then cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes to keep the cookies from spreading too much.
Step Two: Bake the Cookies
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, then use a small cookie scoop to drop chilled dough balls onto each sheet. Leave a few inches of space between each cookie to give them room to spread as they bake. Cook at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes until the tops of the cookies are set.
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Step Three: Cool the Cookies
When the cookies are finished baking, remove the pan from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for three minutes. Afterward, you can transfer the baked cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Step Four: Decorate the Bear Paw Cookies
After the cookies have had enough time to cool, place the unwrapped caramels in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat the candy on high in 30-second increments, stirring between each increment, until they're smooth and lump-free. Allow the melted caramel to cool and thicken slightly, then drop ½ tablespoon onto the top of each cookie. Immediately place one chocolate candy melt in the center of the cookie and top with three chocolate chips to make a bear paw.
Bear Paw Cookie Recipe Ideas
These fun cookies might look adorable, but that doesn't mean they're difficult to make. Since you can prepare these cute treats with cake mix, they're simple to bake. And they're also easy to customize! Try these recipe ideas as you're baking to create some sweet snacks for your kids today.
Use different cake mix flavors. Chocolate is a great option for your bear cookies, but you can use other flavor combinations to prepare these fun kid-friendly treats. Use any variety of chocolate cake mix to prepare chocolate cookies. Or make polar bear paw cookies with a white cake mix.
Make your favorite cookie dough recipe. Skip the cake mix and make your cookies from scratch! You can use any cookie to prepare the base for these treats, then decorate them with caramel and chocolate pieces on top.
Leave out the nuts. If you're worried about serving these cookies to someone with a nut allergy, simply leave the walnuts out of the recipe. The cookies will still taste great with the caramel and chocolate topping.
Can I Make Bear Paw Cookies Ahead of Time?
When planning a party, the more you can do in advance, the better! This recipe is perfect for party planning because you can make the cookie dough up to two days in advance.
After making the dough, cover the bowl and keep it refrigerated until you're ready to start baking. When you preheat the oven, take the dough out of the fridge to allow it to soften slightly if the dough seems too hard to scoop.
How Do I Store These Bear Paw Cookies?
These cute bear paw cookies taste best when fresh, so enjoy them right after decorating! If you have leftover cookies after the party, simply store them in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Transfer the cookies to an airtight container to keep them from drying out. If you need to stack the cookies in layers inside the container, place a piece of waxed paper between each layer to keep the cookies from sticking together.
Bear Paw Cookies Made with Cake Mix
Equipment
- Hand Mixer
- Two baking sheets
- 1 ½ tablespoon cookie dough scoop
Ingredients
- 15- ounce box chocolate fudge cake mix I used Betty Crocker
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 2 eggs room temperature
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup walnuts roughly chopped
Topping
- 10.8 oz bag Werther’s Originals chewy caramels ***Make sure to get the chewy caramels NOT the hard caramels.
- 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 22 milk chocolate candy melts
- 66 semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉, line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats, and set aside for later.
- Combine the chocolate cake mix and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Then using a hand mixer, add the melted butter and eggs to the bowl and beat on low until fully incorporated. You can mix everything with a rubber spatula if you do not have a mixer.
- Fold in the chopped walnuts.
- Chill for 30 minutes to reduce spreading. (Optional step for a slightly thicker cookie. The baking powder will also help to give it some rise.)
- Use a small cookie scoop or a spoon to drop 1 ½ tablespoon-sized balls onto the baking sheets. Space them a few inches apart to leave room for the cookies to spread.
- Bake at 350℉ for 8-10 minutes, or until the tops are set, and it reaches desired doneness.
- Allow the cookies to cool in the pan for 3 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once the cookies have cooled, melt the unwrapped caramels in a microwave-safe bowl on high for 30-second increments. Stir frequently until it is silky smooth and there are no lumps. Let it cool for a few minutes before dropping half a tablespoon amount on top of each cookie.
- Add a chocolate candy melt and 3 semisweet chocolate chips to make bear paws on top of each cookie.
