Spooky Sweet: Baking Pumpkin and Spider Sugar Cookies for Halloween
Halloween Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and icing sugar with a spatula or whisk until smooth and well combined.
- Gradually add the beaten egg in thirds, mixing for 40 seconds before each addition.
- Sift half the almond flour and all-purpose flour into the butter mixture and mix until combined.
- Add the remaining almond flour and all-purpose flour, mixing until fully combined.
- Divide the dough into three portions.
- In one portion, add charcoal powder and mix to create black dough.
- In the second portion, add orange food colouring to create a pumpkin-coloured dough.
- For the third portion, roll it between two sheets of parchment paper to 5 mm thickness and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- To make pumpkin shapes, roll 1-1.5 tsp of orange dough into a ball, cut lines around it to form a pumpkin shape, and place a sunflower seed on top as the stem.
- To make spider shapes, roll 2 tsp of black dough into a ball for the body, 1/2 tsp for the head, and roll small dough pieces into strips for legs. Attach the head and legs to the body to form a spider shape.
- Refrigerate both the pumpkin and spider shapes.
- Preheat oven to 340°F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Remove the plain dough from the fridge and use a circle cookie cutter to cut out the dough. Place the pumpkin or spider dough shapes on top of the circle cookies.
- If the dough softens, freeze for 20-30 minutes.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- Cool the cookies on the baking tray for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
In the heart of October, the baker decided to create something festive for the upcoming Halloween celebrations. With visions of pumpkins and spiders in mind, they gathered the ingredients for Pumpkin and Spider Sugar Cookies. The buttery dough would serve as the perfect base for these playful designs, and the subtle almond flavour would bring a delightful twist to the usual sugar cookie.
As the butter and icing sugar blended smoothly in the mixing bowl, the kitchen began to fill with the comforting scent of sweetness. The baker cracked the egg, adding it to the dough bit by bit, allowing it to mix in fully before continuing. With each turn of the spatula, the dough became lighter, a promising start to these Halloween treats.
Dividing the dough into portions, the baker added a few drops of orange food colouring to one, stirring until it transformed into the perfect shade of pumpkin. Another portion received a touch of charcoal powder, becoming an inky black, perfect for spider cookies. The final portion remained plain, ready to be rolled out for the base of each cookie.
Shaping the pumpkins was a satisfying process. Rolling the orange dough into small balls, the baker used a knife to carve deep lines, giving each one a realistic pumpkin look. A sunflower seed was placed at the top of each to serve as the stem, completing the look. The spiders were equally fun to craft, with their round bodies and thin legs, formed from strips of black dough.
Once all the shapes were ready, they went into the fridge to firm up. The anticipation built as the oven preheated, the temperature rising to 340°F. The baker knew that chilling the dough would help the cookies hold their shape, ensuring that the pumpkins and spiders looked perfect once baked.
With the dough chilled and firm, the baker cut circles from the plain dough and placed the pumpkin and spider shapes on top. The cookies were then placed into the oven, and the kitchen was soon filled with the rich, buttery aroma of baking cookies. As they baked, the edges turned golden, while the pumpkin and spider designs remained vibrant.
After 20 minutes, the cookies emerged from the oven, each one a whimsical mix of Halloween fun and delicious sugar cookie flavour. The pumpkin shapes were especially adorable, with their orange hue and sunflower seed stems, while the spiders looked both spooky and cute with their charcoal-black bodies and legs.
The hardest part was waiting for the cookies to cool before tasting. Once cooled, the baker took a bite, savouring the rich, buttery texture and the slight crunch from the sunflower seed. The almond flavour added a subtle depth, making these cookies not only festive but also irresistibly tasty.
As the baker shared the Pumpkin and Spider Sugar Cookies with family and friends, smiles spread all around. The cookies were a hit, both for their fun designs and their delicious flavour. Halloween had been made just a little sweeter, and the baker couldn’t help but feel proud of the spooky treats they had created.
