Halloween Sugar Cookies
Servings: 30 cookies
Calories: 69kcal
These outrageously delicious Halloween sugar cookies are made using my signature mixing method, resulting in perfectly flat sugar cookies that don’t spread or puff up. They’re perfect for decorating with cute designs and fun toppings!
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Ingredients
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour properly measured
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) packed brown sugar Note 1
- 1 tablespoon (8 g) cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 ½ sticks (170 g) unsalted butter Note 2
- 1 (53 g) large egg at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract optional Note 3
For decorating:
- ½ batch of royal icing
- Black food coloring
- Purple food coloring
- Green food coloring
- Black sanding sugar optional
Equipment
Instructions
TO PREPARE THE DOUGH:
- In a mixing bowl with a paddle attachment, mix flour, sugars, cornstarch, baking powder and salt.3 cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ cup packed brown sugar, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon coarse kosher salt, 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Add butter and mix on low speed until the mixture is evenly moistened, 1-2 minutes. The mixture should resemble wet sand.1 ½ sticks unsalted butter
- Add egg, vanilla, and almond extracts and mix until just combined, about 30 seconds. The dough will be crumbly, but it should stick together when you squeeze it in your hand.1 large egg, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Knead it into a smooth balls. Place each dough ball between 2 parchment sheets and roll it out into 1/4-inch thick disc. (TIP: Place the dough with parchment paper on a silicone mat to roll it out, so it stays in place. And this adjustable rolling pin is perfect for rolling out even dough.)
- At this point, you can move on to shaping and baking the cookies right away. Or you can put the dough into plastic bags and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
TO SHAPE AND BAKE COOKIES:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment papers, or silicone mats.
- Using cookie cutters, cut out the cookies and arrange them on the prepared baking sheets.
- Gather the scraps of dough, roll and cut out more cookies. Repeat until all the dough is used. (TIP: If the dough is too soft, you may refrigerate the rolled out dough for 5 minutes to firm it up. This will ensure nice crisp edges on your cookies.)
- Bake the cookies for 10-13 minutes, or until the edges start to turn light golden color.
- Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
TO DECORATE THE COOKIES:
- Make half batch of this royal icing recipe. Divide the icing into 4 sections and color with gel food coloring (I made 120g black, 100g white, 50g purple, and 30g of green royal icing.) Transfer the royal icing into tipless piping bags.½ batch of royal icing, Black food coloring, Purple food coloring, Green food coloring
- First, outline the cookies with royal icing in a tipless piping bag with a small opening.
- Then, flood the cookies with more icing. I use the same consistency of royal icing for outline and flooding.
- For cat cookies, let the icing set for about 30 minutes before adding details for eyes. If desired, you can also sprinkle black sanding sugar after flooding before the icing is set.Black sanding sugar
- For witch hat cookies, first outline and flood the black portion. Let it set for 30 minutes, then add the purple ribbon part to give that separate effect. Then let the icing set again and then add the final detail on top.
- Decorated cookies store well at room temperature. Keep the iced sugar cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet until the icing is fully hardened, for up to 48 hours. The icing seals the moisture and won’t dry out the cookies.
- Once the icing is fully set, place the cookies in an airtight container with parchment paper in between the layers. Store at room temperature for up to a week.
Notes
Note 1: I love how brown sugar adds subtle flavor and softness to the cookies. I’ve made with both light and dark brown sugars. Dark brown sugar yields darker cookies, so I prefer light brown sugar.
Note 2: Use cold butter. Just bring it out on the counter 10-15 minutes. If it’s too hard, simply slice into 1 tablespoon chunks. I prefer unsalted butter. If using salted butter, omit salt called in the recipe.
Note 3: It’s hard to pinpoint the almond extract flavor in the final cookies, but it rounds up the flavor perfectly, making these sugar cookies irresistible!
Note 4: Nutrition information does not include icing or decorations. Storing:
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
- Halloween sugar cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month!
- To thaw frozen cookies, remove the container from the freezer, and leave it on the counter for 8-12 hours WITHOUT opening it. Keeping it closed will prevent condensation from forming, which causes the colors to run.
Note 4: Nutrition information does not include icing or decorations. Storing:
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
- Halloween sugar cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month!
- To thaw frozen cookies, remove the container from the freezer, and leave it on the counter for 8-12 hours WITHOUT opening it. Keeping it closed will prevent condensation from forming, which causes the colors to run.
Nutrition
Servings: 1 serving
Calories: 69kcal
Carbohydrates: 15g
Protein: 1g
Fat: 0.3g
Sugar: 5g
Sodium: 29mg