Description
These Halloween Chocolate Cookies are rich, chewy, and perfect for spooky celebrations. Made with unsweetened cocoa powder and soft butter, they have a deep chocolate flavor and a tender crumb. Decorated with colorful royal or easy cookie icing, these festive cookies are ideal for Halloween parties or gifting. The recipe includes detailed steps to roll, chill, cut out fun shapes, bake, and decorate your cookies to perfection.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 3/4 cup (62g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder (or Dutch process cocoa powder), plus more as needed for rolling and work surface
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Decoration
- Royal icing or easy cookie icing (see recipe for options)
- Optional: gel food coloring for tinting icings (orange, black, green, etc.)
Instructions
- Make the cookie dough: Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar on high speed until creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined. If the dough feels too sticky to roll, add an additional tablespoon of flour.
- Roll the dough: Divide the dough into two equal parts. Dust two large pieces of parchment paper or silicone mats with cocoa powder or flour. Place one portion of dough between the papers and roll to about 1/4-inch thickness. Repeat with second portion. Lightly dust the dough with cocoa powder or flour to prevent sticking.
- Chill the dough: Stack the two rolled-out doughs, separating them with parchment paper, and cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil. Refrigerate for at least 1 to 2 hours or up to 2 days to firm up the dough and make it easier to cut.
- Preheat oven and shape cookies: Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Remove chilled dough from refrigerator and carefully separate the layers. Use cookie cutters to cut out Halloween-themed shapes. Re-roll scraps to maximize yield. Work quickly to prevent dough from warming; refrigerate scraps if needed.
- Bake and cool: Arrange cut cookies at least 3 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 11-12 minutes until edges are set but not overbaked. Rotate trays halfway if oven has uneven heat. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely before decorating.
- Prepare icing: Make royal icing or easy cookie icing as preferred. Divide into bowls to tint with gel food coloring, using 1-2 drops at a time until desired colors are achieved. Use piping bags fitted with appropriate tips for decorating.
- Decorate cookies: Outline and fill cookies with thin layers of icing to allow for faster drying. Add sprinkles or extra details as desired. For layered and fine detail decorations, royal icing is recommended. Let each layer set before adding additional details to prevent colors blending.
- Let icing dry and set: Allow royal icing to dry fully for about 2 hours or easy glaze icing for up to 24 hours. No need to cover cookies while drying. Optionally place in refrigerator to speed drying. Store cookies at room temperature covered tightly for up to 5 days or in refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Plain or decorated cookies freeze well for up to 3 months once icing is fully set. Layer cookies with parchment paper and store in airtight container. Thaw in refrigerator or at room temperature.
- You can freeze dough after step 3 by dividing into disks wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. Freeze up to 3 months. Thaw in refrigerator before rolling and chilling again before baking.
- Decorating tools: Use piping bags, Wilton Piping Tips #4 for outlining and flooding, #2 for fine detail, disposable or reusable bags, couplers, squeeze bottles, toothpicks or needle scribers, and optionally eyeball candies for decoration.
- Ideal icing choice: Royal icing is best for detailed work and layering. Easy cookie icing works for faster coating with less detail.
- Work quickly when cutting cookies to prevent dough softening. Refrigerate scraps if dough becomes too warm.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie (approx. 35g)
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 70mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 4.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 20g
- Fiber: 1.5g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 30mg
