Spooky Halloween Pumpkin Cookies – Double the Fun!

These Halloween Pumpkin Cookies are the perfect treat for your family or neighborhood friends. They have a cute pumpkin face and are filled with rich chocolate frosting.

I love this time of the year. Our neighborhood kids are out playing most of the time, and it is a lot of fun to treat them to fun Halloween recipes. 

There is something about the cooler temperatures here in NC that brings people outdoors after our hot and humid summer. 

Today, we’ll be celebrating fall by making some spooky pumpkin cookies in the shape of Jack O Lanterns.

Scare up a Sweet Treat with These Home Made Spooky Halloween Pumpkin Cookies.

Imagine the delight at your Halloween party when you surprise your trick or treaters to some  pumpkin Halloween cookies. Just wait for the squeals!

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Fun Halloween baking is on my agenda for today!  I just ordered a set of festive cookie cutters.  A silicone baking mat also helps when baking any cookies.

If you have not baked with a silicone mat, you don’t know what you are missing.  These ingenious things make perfect cookies every single time with no sticking and no need for oils or parchment paper.

Silicone mats can also be used in other ways around the house. Check out this post for some creative ideas.

It's double the fun with these Spooky Halloween Pumpkin cookies with a chocolate center. Find out how to make them on The Gardening Cook. 🎃🎃 Click To Tweet

Making Halloween pumpkin cookies

So what to make?  Well my options for the Halloween cookie cutters were a bat, two sizes of pumpkins (one really big) a black cat, a haunted house, a witches hat, a ghost and a crescent moon.

I know I’ll probably using all of the cookie cutters during the next two months but for today’s treat, I chose the pumpkin shape.

It’s going to end up as a double sugar Jack-O-Lantern cookie with chocolate center icing that shows through my cut outs.  Fun for the kids and fun to make too!

Start by mixing your dry ingredients and whisking them together.  By the way…don’t you love my duck canisters?  My husband and I love to go antique hunting and I found these for a steal.

He thought I had lost my mind at first but they have grown on him….

I used a stand mixer to combine my ingredients, because there are five cups of flour and it needs a deep bowl.   Add the flour slowly so it will mix well.

Then wrap the dough in saran wrap and place in the fridge for an hour or overnight.  It will handle and cut so much better if you make sure to do this, because of all the butter.

Making the pumpkin cookie shapes

Start by rolling out the dough on a floured surface to a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Then cut your dough into pumpkin shapes using the cookie cutter. But don’t stop there! Let’s give him a face.

Use a sharp knife to lightly score the dough so that it looks like a pumpkin.  Then cut decorative, spooky faces on 1/2 of the cookie shapes. 

The openings will allow the chocolate frosting to show through when assembled and will give the cookie a fun look.

I cut the top layer of cookies a bit thicker than the bottom, since I  massacred the first group I tried to cut spooky pumpkin faces on. Believe me…they cut much more easily if they are thicker.

Line your cookie sheet with the silicone baking mat and place your decorative pumpkin cookies on the silicone mat. These cookies are pretty big so I just spaced them out instead of using the circles.

Bake for approximately 6-8 minutes or until the cookies start to turn a light golden brown on the edges (bake longer if you want a crispier cookie).

Let the cookies cool for at least 15 minutes before assembling the cookies.

How to Decorate Halloween Pumpkin Cookies

While the cookies are cooling, prepare your icing. The cookies are made somewhat like whoopie pies. The frosting should be thick but spreadable.

Place 1 plain cookie shape and spread a layer of the chocolate frosting on it. 

Top it with a face cookie and press to combine.   The frosting will sort of ooze up through the face holes and it gives the pumpkin the traditional Jack-O-Lantern look.   I love the way these pumpkin face cookies came out.  You can play with the cuttings on the cookies to give each one a slightly different look.

They have a bunch of emotions, from happy to perplexed to grumpy!

How do the pumpkin cookies taste?

In a word, YUM!  The sugar cookie is crisp and tasty and that chocolate icing gives a rich finish to every bite.  They are a double dose of sweet goodness.

I guess I could eat one of these iced pumpkin cookies each day to go with whatever mood hits me, but I think I really oughta save them for the kids. Maybe.  Perhaps.  What do you think?

If you want a bit more color, purchase a tube of Wilton sparkle gel green frosting and decorate the top stem too.Looking for more fun tips for hosting a Halloween party?  Be sure to check out this article for lots of adult Halloween party ideas, recipes and spooky drink ideas.

Calories in these Halloween pumpkin cookies

Since these spooky cookies are doubled and frosted as well, they are pretty high in calories.  You can lessen the effect by treating them as a dessert rather than a snack! 

Each double cookie has 426 calories.

Pin these cute frosted pumpkin cookies for later.

Would you like a reminder of the recipe for these Halloween pumpkin cookies?  Just pin this image to one of your Pinterest Halloween boards so that you can easily find it later.

Admin Note: This post for these spooky Halloween cookies first appeared on the blog in September of 2015. I have updated it to add more cooking tips, nutritional information and a video for you to enjoy.

Yield: 18

Spooky Halloween Pumpkin Cookies

Print

These spooky Halloween pumpkin cookies have a double cookie layer and luscious filling. Make some for your party table today.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 6 minutes

Additional Time 10 minutes

Total Time 21 minutes

Ingredients

• For the cookies:
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• For the frosting:
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 3 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 2 cups confectioner's sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• optional: green Sparkle gel for the stem

Instructions

1.In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside.

2.Using the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the sugar and butter until smooth. Mix in the eggs and pure vanilla extract.

3.Add the flour mixture a bit at a time until well combined. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least one hour (or overnight).

4.Preheat oven to 400º F. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness.

5.Cut your dough into pumpkin shapes using the cookie cutter. Use a sharp knife to lightly score the dough so that it looks like a pumpkin. Cut decorative, spooky faces from 1/2 of the cookie shapes.

6.Line your cookie sheet with the silicone baking mat and place your cookie shapes on the mat. Bake for approximately 6 minutes or until the cookies start to turn a light golden brown on the edges (bake longer if you want a crispier cookie). 7.Let the cookies cool for at least 15 minutes before assembling the cookies.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare your icing.

8.Melt the butter in the microwave, then stir in the cocoa powder.

9.Add the milk and vanilla extract, and whisk until frothy. Make sure the cocoa powder is very well dissolved.

10.In a stand mixer with a beater attachment, work the powdered sugar into the liquids a little at a time until fully incorporated. The frosting should be thick but spreadable. If it is too runny, add more powdered sugar; if it is too stiff, add in a teaspoon of milk.

11.Use immediately, or store in the fridge, then whip again until fluffy when ready to use. This will keep for several days the fridge, tightly covered.

12Spread the plain bottom pumpkin with chocolate frosting. Place the decorative pumpkin face cookie on top and squeeze so the frosting comes up through the face holes.

13.If you want a bit more color, use Wilton green sparkle gel to decorate the stem area.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

18

Serving Size:

1 cookie
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 426Cholesterol: 89.7mgSodium: 203.3mgCarbohydrates: 60.9gFiber: 1.4gSugar: 35.5gProtein: 5.2g

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