Halloween Cookie Ideas

Halloween is my favorite holiday and every year, my husband and I host a scary good Halloween party in our haunted house. And every year, we try to come up with some creative new treats to present to our guests. Normally, we do Halloween cupcakes or cake, but I'm thinking this year, we might give cookies a try. So here are a few of my favorites that I've found during my search.

When it comes to baking for parties, I'm pretty lazy and almost always running short on time so baking and decorating fancy iced cookies is usually out. That said, we do have a great local bakery that makes fun Halloween cookies or I just go online and purchase a cookie bouquet to use as the buffet centerpiece from an online shop like Gourmet Cookie Bouquets.

So in this hub, you'll only find recipes for really easy cookies that you can make using store-bought materials. You'll still need baking tools like a mixer, cookie cutters, baking sheets and decorating sugars, but at least you won't need to make all the dough from scratch. I have included ideas for more time-consuming cookies that you can use for inspiration if you are looking to go the extra mile for your Halloween party guests!

If you are looking for some Halloween cookie inspiration, look no further than this Halloween Cookie Collage from Flickr.  DessertLover2010 has chosen to feature some truly amazing decorated Halloween cookies that include all kinds of shapes and motifs such as candy corn, spider webs, skeletons, mummies, jack o' lanterns, witch fingers, monsters and so much more.  Check out the haunted cookie house in the lower right corner of the collage....it is simply amazing!

Both of these recipes are courtesy of Betty Crocker. They are both super easy to create because they use store bought cookie mix and are quick to decorate. Be sure to checkout the step-by-step video below for detailed visual instructions as well.

Chocolate Mummy Cookies

1 pouch Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix

2 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 egg

1 tub of vanilla frosting

12 small jelly beans, cut in half

Betty Crocker® black decorating gel

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°F. In medium bowl, stir together cookie mix and cocoa. Add butter and egg; stir until soft dough forms. On floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with 5-inch gingerbread man cutter. On ungreased cookie sheet, place 1 inch apart. Gather dough scraps; reroll until all dough is used. Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just puffed and tops are dry. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 15 minutes. Spoon frosting into reasealable freezer plastic bag; partially seal bag and cut 1/4-inch hole in 1 bottom corner. Or use decorating bag with flat tip with 1/4-inch-wide opening (#44). Gently squeeze bag to pipe frosting on cookies for bandages. Attach jelly beans for eyes; use black gel to make pupils in eyes. Store cookies in airtight container.

Peanut Butter Spider Cookies

1 pouch Betty Crocker® peanut butter cookie mix

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon water

1 egg

36 chewy caramels in milk chocolate

Black or red string licorice

1/3 cup (72) miniature candy-coated chocolate baking bits

Betty Crocker® black decorating gel (from 0.68-oz tube)

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°F. In medium bowl, stir cookie mix, oil, water and egg until dough forms. Shape dough into 36 (1-inch) balls. On ungreased cookie sheets, place 2 inches apart. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Immediately press 1 chewy caramel in center of each cookie. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cut licorice into 8 (2-inch) pieces for each spider. Attach legs by sticking into chewy caramel. Use baking bits for eyes and black gel to make pupils in eyes.

Recipe and photo from Denise Smith.

Ingredients

• 1 lb white candy coating
• 1 package Nutter Butter cookies
• mini semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

• Coarsely chop the white candy coating. Then place in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave to melt candy coating, stirring occasionally. Remove from microwave stirring until completely smooth. Dip each cookie into coating, covering completely. Place candy-coated cookies on waxed paper.
• Brush ends with a pastry brush dipped in coating where fingers touched cookies (or use dipping forks for the entire process). While coating is still warm, place two chips on each cookie for eyes. Let stand until set. Alternatively, you could use black piping gel to create the eyes and a mouth once the white candy coating has cooled and completely set. Store ghost cookies in an airtight container. Makes about 3 dozen.

Get all the fun without all the work by purchasing your decorated cookies online. You can get the Halloween cookie bouquet shown to the right at Gourmet Cookie Bouquets. The bouquet features witch, ghost, and pumpkin shaped cookies that are all decked out for Halloween. The center cookie can be personalized with whatever saying you want. It is available with 3, 5, 7, 9, or 12 cookies. They make a great Halloween gift to send to a friend or family member or a delicious centerpiece at Halloween parties. You can also find monster, boo, and other cookie designs in their online shop too.