Description
Celebrate Halloween with these festive, soft sugar cookies that are perfect for decorating. Featuring classic flavors of vanilla and almond extract, these cookies can be tinted in spooky colors and adorned with royal icing, sprinkles, or candy eyes to create fun pumpkin, ghost, and bat shapes. Whether for a party or a family activity, these Halloween cookies are a delightful treat that combines fun decorating with a delicious buttery base.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Decorations
- Orange and black food coloring
- Halloween-themed sprinkles or candy eyes (optional)
- Royal icing or colored frosting for decorating
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare baking sheets: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking and ensure even baking.
- Mix dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. This ensures the leavening agents and salt are evenly distributed throughout the flour.
- Cream butter and sugar: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. This step helps create a tender texture in the cookies.
- Add eggs and extracts: Incorporate the egg, vanilla extract, and optional almond extract into the butter-sugar mix, blending until fully combined for rich flavor.
- Combine wet and dry: Gradually add the dry flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing until a soft dough forms. Avoid over-mixing to keep the cookies tender.
- Color the dough: Divide the dough if desired and knead in orange or black food coloring to create vibrant Halloween colors for your cookies.
- Shape the cookies: Roll the dough into tablespoon-sized balls or use cookie cutters to cut out festive shapes like pumpkins, ghosts, and bats. Place them about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets to allow space for spreading.
- Bake: Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are just set and beginning to turn golden. Be careful not to overbake to maintain softness.
- Cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to firm up, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
- Decorate: Once cooled, use royal icing, colored frosting, sprinkles, or candy eyes to decorate your Halloween cookies with spooky and festive designs.
Notes
- These cookies are perfect for decorating with kids, adding a fun family activity to your Halloween celebration.
- The dough can be prepared a day in advance and stored refrigerated, allowing flavors to meld and making baking easier on the day of serving.
- For a chocolate twist, add cocoa powder to part of the dough and mix thoroughly before shaping.
