22 4th Of July Cookies Perfect For Potlucks, Picnics, & More
Throwing a BBQ, and forgot about dessert? Heading to a potluck, and don’t know what to bring? Want to wow at your picnic, but don’t want to lug around a cake or pie? We’ve got the answer for you—cookies! There’s nothing more all-American than a cookie, and these 21 recipes are the perfect sweet treats for sharing (or not, no judgment!) this 4th of July.
When it comes to sharing desserts, you want things that are easily portable and impressive enough to charm the crowd. The cookies here tick both boxes easily. We’ve got some cookie bars that are especially simple (serve ‘em right out of the pan you baked them in!), a spectacular s'mores cookie cooked in a skillet, and some stuffed cookies and cookie/other dessert mash-ups that your friends and family won’t see coming. Our s’mores stuffed cookies, our brookies, our inside-out red velvet cookies, and our monster cookies are exploding with added goodness. Watch out— they might just take the attention away from the fireworks.
We also can’t talk about 4th of July without talking about summer, and you can’t talk about summer without talking about fruit, right? We’ve got a number of recipes here that are full of our favorites, like our strawberry shortcake cookies, our cherry chocolate chip cookies, our blueberry cream cheese cookies, and our cherry Bakewell cookies. Take these recipes as inspiration, then feel free to sub in and out your fave fruits—raspberries, blackberries, and even peaches could work!
Want even more 4th of July dessert ideas? Check out our top 4th of July cakes, our best 4th of July cupcakes, and our favorite red, white, & blue desserts too.
M&M Cookie Bars
These have all the comfort of a chocolate chip cookie, with the added crunch of M&M's and the heft of a bar shape, making for a delicious treat that’s impossible to put down. Try them with red, white, & blue M&M's to switch them up for holiday too.
Get the M&M Cookie Bars recipe.
Bizcochitos
These anise and cinnamon scented cookies are the official state cookie of New Mexico! Though these cinnamon-sugar cookies vary a bit in style depending where you are in the state, typically they are cut into flower, star, or moon shapes. We like the stars for the 4th, but you do you!
Get the Bizcochitos recipe.
Strawberry Shortcake Cookies
It took many, many rounds of testing to get these cookies just right. Our biggest piece of advice is to not be afraid of mess. Covering the cream cheese with cookie dough is a messy task (especially with the fresh strawberries!), but we promise you it's worth it a million times over.
Get the Strawberry Shortcake Cookies recipe.
S'mores Skillet Cookie
Baking anything in a cast-iron skillet rules, especially cookies! It's forgiving, and gets you the best of both cookie worlds: a crispy outside and still-doughy inside. This one has a graham cracker crust and is stuffed with mini marshmallows (seriously, a whole cup) and is impressively easy to make.
Get the S'mores Skillet Cookie recipe.
Monster Cookies
The origin of the name "monster" cookies isn't clear, but it may refer to the fact that they're like Frankenstein's monster—made up of a combination of the parts of many other cookies. We love 'em because you can really throw anything into the dough.
Get the Monster Cookies recipe.
Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies
Is there anything more all-American that a classic chocolate chip cookie? We don't think so. These are the most classic, least-fussy version—exactly what you want when you’re looking for a no-frills, soft and fudgy cookie.
Get the Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.
Vegan Sugar Cookies
Soft, buttery, with crispy edges, these are the classic, quintessential sugar cookie, veganized and ready to bring to any of your holiday gatherings. Whether frosted, sprinkled, or eaten plain right out of the oven, we can't get enough of them.
Get the Vegan Sugar Cookies recipe.
Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut butter cookies are one of those desserts we're always in the mood for. They're salty, sweet, and more rich than a chocolate chip cookie ever could be. We're suckers for the classic fork crosshatch look, but you can totally skip it. (Ready for the next level? Make peanut butter STUFFED cookies.)
Get the Peanut Butter Cookies recipe.
Checkerboard Cookies
Checkerboard cookies are a classic vanilla and chocolate sugar cookie that look far more complicated to make than they actually are. Feel free to add in a little food coloring to the doughs instead and make the checkerboard pattern any color you desire—red and white like a picnic blanket, perhaps?
Get the Checkerboard Cookies recipe.
S'mores Stuffed Cookies
Are you ready for a sticky, gooey, unabashedly messy challenge? If you're up for it, here's the deal: you're about to stuff an entire s'more into a chocolate chip cookie. Some say it can't be done, but with enough focus, patience, and perseverance, you can succeed in making this extremely indulgent dessert. Give us s'more, please!
Get the S'mores Stuffed Cookies recipe.
Cherry Bakewell Cookies
These cookies have a light yet chewy almond-flavored base and are stuffed with tart cherry jam to mimic the flavor combination in a Bakewell tart. Decorated with sliced almonds and icing, these are the epitome of style AND substance, perfect for a more upscale 4th of July celebration.
Get the Cherry Bakewell Cookies recipe.
Lemon Shortbread Cookies
It doesn't get more classic and understated than shortbread, and here they have a hint of lemon to brighten up the classic melt-in-your-mouth buttery cookie. Though it might not seem like much, just a tablespoon of lemon zest infuses these cookies with lemon punch since all the fragrant oils of a lemon live in the peel.
Get the Lemon Shortbread Cookies recipe.
Brookies
Half fudgy brownie, half chocolate chip cookie? Yes please! All your 4th of July guests will love 'em.
Get the Brookies recipe.
Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
We're saying it: these might be our FAVORITE version of the classic chocolate chip cookie. The cherries add a bit more sweetness with a pop of tartness that makes them unforgettable!
Get the Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.
Chocolate Cool Whip Cookies
This crazy boxed-cake-mix hack makes super-fudgy crinkle cookies—with a third of the typical ingredients. All you need is cake mix, whipped topping (aka Cool Whip), an egg, and powdered sugar. If you're not a chocolate person (😱!!!), you can use any type of boxed cake mix—vanilla, Funfetti, even red velvet.
Get the Chocolate Cool Whip Cookies recipe.
Blueberry Cream Cheese Cookies
These cookies taste like a cheesecake in cookie form. The lemon juice adds the acid necessary to balance out the sweetness of the blueberries, and the zest imparts extra lemon flavor. Yum!
Get the Blueberry Cream Cheese Cookies recipe.
Brownie Cookies
Is it a cookie? Is it a brownie? It's... well... both! These fudgy, SUPER chocolatey cookies are truly the best of both worlds.
Get the Brownie Cookies recipe.
Inside Out Red Velvet Cookies
Red velvet stuffed with a cream cheese filling that tastes like cheesecake? We're obsessed.
Get the Inside Out Red Velvet Cookies recipe.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
If you're looking for an easy treat with a nostalgic taste, how about everyone’s all-time favorite cookie but in bar form? No rolling or scooping little balls, no multiple sheet pans, AND you can store them right in the pan you baked them in. 😍
Get the Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars recipe.
Lofthouse Cookies
You know those thick, soft sugar cookies from the grocery store that have an even thicker layer of frosting on top? This homemade version is just as good! The cream cheese and cornstarch really help give it that soft texture that sticks to the roof of your mouth. Dye the frosting any color you like—red, white, blue... whatever!
Get the Lofthouse Cookies recipe.
Pinwheel Cookies
These easy pinwheel cookies are beyond mesmerizing but also so easy to make. Make a batch of our easy sugar cookie dough, then dye one half red. Then simply roll them together to create the swirl. The sprinkles are optional but they add so much extra fun, especially if you go red, white, and blue for the 4th!
Get the Pinwheel Cookies recipe.
Lemon Cookies
This recipe yields cookies that are soft and citrusy sweet with a perfect chewy center. They take very minimal effort and the hardest part will be letting them chill in the fridge. Be patient! That rest time will be worth it for the crinkly texture it provides.
Get the Lemon Cookies recipe.
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