Updated May 13, 2024
This Cheryl's cookies review covers the classic buttercream-frosted sugar cookies as well as the brand's lesser-known flavors. And we don't sugarcoat anything, either—they're all just that good.
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Cookies are incredibly subjective. One of the most contentious food debates I can recall is about Lofthouse cookies. If you ask me, they’re positively delicious. But others shudder at that mere sentiment. Some people like unfrosted classics like chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin. (They’d love Levain cookies.)
Some prefer aesthetically pleasing cutouts with royal icing and a pleasant crunch. And some enjoy soft, tender sugar cookies with velvety frosting. As you might guess from my stance on Lofthouse cookies, I fall into this camp.
Cheryl’s is another leader in this category—and luckily, one whose cookies can be delivered straight to your door. I’ve been nibbling on Cheryl’s cookies since college (my aunts loved to include them in care packages), and my love for the company’s treats has continued into adulthood. Even after testing a handful of cookie delivery services, Cheryl’s remains among my favorites, so it’s about time I write a Cheryl’s cookies review.
Cheryl’s Cookies is one of the 1-800-Flowers.com brands, alongside Harry & David and 1-800-Baskets, and has been around for over 40 years. Sugar cookies and buttercream frosting are its bread and buttercream (sorry, I had to), but Cheryl’s also sells brownies and cakes. These items are created to withstand nationwide shipping but can also be found at Cheryl’s various retail locations in Ohio.
The buttercream frosting that bolstered the brand is made of four simple ingredients: butter, vanilla, evaporated milk and confectioners’ sugar. Some special flavors include additions such as cinnamon, maple or peanut butter. The famous frosting is then slathered atop buttery cutout cookies, most of which are just circles, but some come in shapes to match the season or holiday. Think trees for Christmas or flowers for spring. Although these two components are certainly enough to make a knockout cookie, some varieties also have toppers like colorful sprinkles, teensy peanut butter cups or chopped nuts.
Customers can pick and choose which flavors they want with the choose-your-own option, or they can rely on the specially curated boxes of bestsellers or those for occasions such as holidays, anniversaries and housewarmings.
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Cheryl's Cookies ship nationwide so you can nibble on the buttery, creamy goodness no matter where you live.
Pros:
Cons:
Historically, I’d only sampled the plain sugar cookie and buttercream combo, which I can’t compliment enough. Recently, I had the chance to revisit this old faithful of mine and some new-to-me flavors.
For this Cheryl’s cookies review, we purchased a box of Cheryl’s Best of Buttercream arrangement, containing a whopping 24 cookies in 11 different flavors. Yup—no typo here, and that’s not even an exhaustive account of all their buttercream offerings. Included are the original frosted buttercream flavor, key lime white chip, orange citrus, chocolate chocolate, strawberry buttercream, fudge buttercream, salted caramel, lemon burst, wedding cake, peanut butter buckeye and butter pecan. Cheryl’s also offers the same assortment in boxes of 36, 72 and 100 cookies as well, so we highly recommend snagging one for parties or as a hostess gift.
Now, I should make one thing clear. I don’t love Cheryl’s cookies for their appearance. The team does their best—the frostings feature pretty colors, the toppings serve as cute embellishments, and the cookie cutter shapes make things all the merrier, but ship happens. Because these cookies are so soft and tender (a pro!), they are susceptible to smooshing, breaking or cracking during shipping. That said, the majority of the cookies in my box looked near flawless, so your mileage may vary.
What I do love the cookies for, however, is this aforementioned softness and sweetness. And now, I love them for their flavors, too. I was so impressed by the pronounced and non-artificial flavors, especially in the key lime, butter pecan and orange citrus cookies. The wedding cake cookie was one of my favorites, boasting pretty pearlescent sprinkles and a denser, more cake-like bite. And the butter pecan cookie was reminiscent of the iconic ice cream flavor in the best way. I’d have to say this nutty cookie was my top pick. I would’ve never guessed!
Trying all the flavors was fun; the decorative tin made up for the lack of Christmasy ingredients. Another thing I love about Cheryl’s is that the packaging so thoughtfully reflects the occasion, whether it’s a birthday, game day or Thanksgiving. It’s what makes them such a great gift basket. I know this from my homesick college days when a care package would show up just in the nick of time.
If you’re looking for a cookie of the month club, Cheryl’s truly stands out for its freshness, customization, variety and packaging. These cookies are the total package—literally.
Although it’s hard to know how far in advance the cookies are baked and prepared, each one arrives individually packaged in a plastic wrapper to promote freshness. The website also recommends that the recipient enjoy (or freeze) the cookies within four days of cookie delivery. I’ve personally never experienced anything but tender, fresh cookies from the company, and I’d definitely update this Cheryl’s cookies review if that’s ever the case. But in the event that you do, Cheryl’s offers a 100%-satisfaction guarantee.
You have to be the judge of that—tough job, I know! In my opinion, Cheryl’s has such a fanbase primarily because of its buttercream and tender cookies. The luscious frosting hardens ever so slightly into somewhat of a crust, but once you bite into it, the smear melts in your mouth. And the cookies remain soft and buttery days after receipt, too. This long-lasting freshness is, in large part, thanks to the packaging. The cookies might come to your door in a cute, decorative tin box, but once you open it up, you’ll find each cookie is packed in its own clear plastic baggy. This might not make for the prettiest display, but it’s worth it to keep the cookies so good.
Cheryl’s most famous cookies are cutout sugar cookies with buttercream frosting of various flavors. Some examples: s’mores, maple, cookie dough, cinnamon roll, triple chocolate and Key lime. Cheryl’s also sells unfrosted favorites such as oatmeal raisin, red velvet, snickerdoodle and classic chocolate chip. Not to mention the non-cookie offerings, such as cupcakes, crumb bars and brownies.
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Cheryl's Cookies ship nationwide so you can nibble on the buttery, creamy goodness no matter where you live.
Grab an assortment of Cheryl’s Cookies from the brand’s website for your family, sweets-loving bestie and, of course, yourself. You can also find Cheryl’s cookies on Amazon, 1-800 Baskets or Harry & David. Boxes start at $20. There are cookies for every occasion on your calendar, but then again, we never needed an occasion to eat a cookie—hence this Cheryl’s cookies review. Enjoy!
Originally Published: November 15, 2023
