These bunny butt sugar cookies are so festive for Easter! Made with sugar cookies, buttercream, and donut holes.
You might also like our bunny treat cups, homemade Reese's peanut butter eggs, or cinnamon bunny rolls!
What are bunny butt cookies? They sound silly, but bunny butt treats have been around for a long time! You can find bunny butt cookies, pudding cups, cupcakes, cake---you name it, there's a bunny butt version of it. I made mine with donut holes and buttercream. When you place them on top of a frosted sugar cookie, it looks like a bunny hiding in the grass with its fluffy tail sticking out.
Why I Like This Recipe
- The sugar cookie dough is a no-chill recipe, making these quick and easy to make. My bakery-style sugar cookie recipe is very popular and has great reviews! You can use whatever sugar cookie recipe you'd like, or use store-bought sugar cookie dough. It's up to you! I'll share a copy of the recipe at the end of the post. I made a half batch of cookie dough this time, which yielded 18 cookies. If you want more, just double the recipe.
- You only need two frosting tips and they are basic ones! A large open star (to swirl the green and pink frosting onto the cookies) and a small round tip (for the bunny feet and tail).
- Made with basic ingredients. Most are probably already in your pantry--- you just need to buy a package of donut holes and sprinkles!
- Fun for kids to make. Kids can easily help frost the cookies with a butter knife if they aren't ready to try frosting tips. They'll love adding the cute little bunny donut hole and adding sprinkles!
What Others Are Saying
Ok these are too cute! ---Tamara on Pinterest
I like how you used donuts. Frosting could work too, but the little cake donuts are perfect texture.---Christy on FB
Jump to:
Tips and Tricks
- Cookie shape. If you don't have an egg-shaped cookie cutter, just use what you have. You can make flowers, circles, anything you'd like. My cookie cutter was 3", which was the perfect size.
- Donut holes. The darling bunny's backside is created by using donut holes. No need to use an entire donut, simply cut it in half!
- Stacking cookies. The frosting will set up enough (after an hour or two) to allow you to stack the cookies 2 cookies tall for storage. I don't recommend stacking them any taller.
Ingredients and Supplies
Cookie Ingredients
- Butter and Shortening: the combination gives the cookies great texture and they hold their shape.
- Sugar: white granulated sugar.
- Egg: for richness and texture.
- Vanilla and Almond Extract: you can use your favorite extract, I always use almond. Have you tried making your own vanilla extract before?
- Baking Powder: for leavening and texture.
- Cornstarch: the combination of flour and cornstarch gives the cookies a soft and chewy texture.
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour, but you can use bread flour as well.
Frosting Ingredients
- Butter: I always bake with salted butter, but you can use unsalted butter if you'd like.
- Powdered Sugar (confectioners' sugar)
- Milk
- Vanilla extract (or your favorite flavoring)
- Food coloring (I like these ones)
Cookie Decorating Supplies
- Disposable frosting bags
- Large open star tip (1M)
- Roud tip (I used a Wilton 7, but you can use one slightly larger too)
- Easter Sprinkles (these are similar to the ones I have)
- 10 Donut Holes
- Egg Cookie Cutter
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How To Make Donut Hole Bunny Cookies
Step 1: In a large mixing bowl (or bowl of a stand mixer), combine butter, shortening, and sugar. Beat until fluffy.
Step 2: Turn the electric mixer to a low speed and add the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Add baking powder. Stir in the flour and cornstarch, and mix until a soft dough forms.
Step 3: Lightly flour your working surface and shape dough into a large ball.
Step 4: Roll the dough out to the desired thickness using a rolling pin (I usually do ¼- ⅜"). Cut into shapes and bake sugar cookies. Let cookies cool completely.
Step 5: Beat frosting ingredients together until smooth and creamy. Scoop out about ⅓ cup of frosting (I just eye-balled it) and set aside (this will be the white frosting for the bunny feet and tail). Tint the remaining frosting green (or any color you'd like).
Step 6: Fit a disposable bag with a large open star tip and fill it with green frosting. Pipe the frosting onto each cookie.
Step 7: Cut each donut hole in half with a sharp knife.
Step 8: Press the donut hole halves onto the cookies, cut-side down.
Step 9: Fit another disposable piping bag with a small round tip and fill it with white frosting.
Step 10: Squeeze to apply pressure and keep squeezing until you get a pea-sized ball. Repeat for the other bunny foot.
Tip: Watch my video to see how I frost the cookies!
Step 11: Pipe on a bunny tail and add sprinkles, if desired.
Store bunny cookies in an airtight container or cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap to keep the cookies fresh for up to 3 days.
Bunny Butt Cookie FAQs
Some recipes call for refrigeration, but this one doesn't. If you'd like to make it ahead of time, you can wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and then use it later, but this is a great last-minute recipe because refrigeration is not necessary.
Corn starch softens the dough, making it feel like a cloud. It also makes for a softer sugar cookie.
The frosting will set up enough (after an hour or two) to allow you to stack the cookies 2 cookies tall for storage. I don't recommend stacking them any taller.
More Easter Sugar Cookies To Make
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Bunny Butt Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter softened
- ¼ cup shortening
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup corn starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
Frosting
- 1 cup butter softened
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 6-8 Tablespoons milk
- food coloring
Decorations
- 10 donut holes
- sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl cream softened butter, shortening, and sugar. Beat until fluffy with an electric mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment. Turn the mixer down and add egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Add baking powder. Add flour and cornstarch and mix thoroughly until soft dough forms.
- Lightly flour your work surface and shape dough into a large ball.
- No refrigeration necessary.
- Press ball of dough into a disk shape and roll dough out to desired thickness using a rolling pin (I usually do ¼-1/2") and cut into shapes. Add flour to dough if it feels too sticky but a nice soft dough is what you want. Carefully transfer cut out cookie shapes with a spatula to a baking sheet.
- Bake on parchment paper-lined baking sheets for 10-12 minutes. Cookies will be soft. Let sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before carefully moving to a wire cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.
Frosting
- Beat frosting ingredients together. Add more/less milk until the desired consistency is achieved. Spoon out about ⅓ cup of white frosting and set aside to use for the bunny feet and tails.Tint the remaining frosting green.
Decorating Cookies
- Fill a decorator (we like disposable) bag with green frosting and a 1A tip. Pipe the green frosting onto the cookies in a swirl pattern.
- Cut each donut hole in half and place them onto the frosted cookies.
- Fill a decorator bag with white frosting and a small round tip (Wilton size 7 or larger). Pipe bunny feet and tail onto the donut holes.
- Add sprinkles, if desired.
Notes
- No salt is necessary in this recipe if you use salted butter. If using unsalted butter, add ½ teaspoon of salt to the recipe.
- You may have extra frosting left over. We like making extra so that we can make as many colors as we'd like.
- If you don't care for almond extract you can omit it and use your favorite flavoring (lemon, coconut, etc.)
- I bake all of my cookies on light metal baking sheets (ungreased or with parchment paper. If you use dark metal baking sheets you may need to adjust the baking time. You can also use a silicone mat on your baking sheet, but my preference is parchment paper.
- Cookies can be made ahead and stored in the freezer until ready to decorate.
- Store frosted cookies in an airtight container (or cookie sheet covered with plastic wrap) at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
- Cookies can be stacked once the frosting has had a chance to set up. I wouldn't stack them more than 2 cookies tall.
Nutrition
Brandy says
These cookies are so fun to make, and I like that you can use basically any flavor of donut hole for the bunnies!