Halloween Cookies

 Halloween Cookies

I hope you all have a great and safe Halloween! With COVID-19 all over the world, I know many plans have changed. How you trick or treat with your kids will be different this year if you are even doing it. Many families are just staying home. It is important to still have a fun time while taking precautions. Just be mindful of what you are doing.

Halloween Cookies

Halloween Cookies

This month Allen and I watched Monsterland, and that was a bit of a disappointment, while The Haunting of Bly Manor was great. As for movies, we thought Hubie Halloween with Adam Sandler was so funny, and we really liked Books of Blood though it was a bit gory for me. Last night, we saw Mortuary Collection and that was really good.  

Halloween Cookies

Halloween Cookies

This year, I did not put up my Halloween decor like I usually do, and decided to keep my fall decorations up throughout Thanksgiving. I took a day off from work to rest and bake, and made these cookies and the previous post last weekend. I cherish time off to bake! It was not easy for me to find time to decorate my fall and Halloween cookies this month, since my Mom was in the hospital recently for four days. I worry about her so much due to her dementia and age (90), and it puts a damper on things for me. Thankfully, she is well and doing physical therapy every week. The entire situation with my Mom has taken a toll on me, but baking keeps me grounded and takes my mind off these things at least for a little while. 

Halloween Cookies

Halloween Cookies

The cookie recipe is from my post, Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies. I made the following cookies for Halloween: skull, Jack Skellington, haunted house, candy bucket, candy corn, witch hat, cat, bat,  mummy, Frankenstein, bride of Frankenstein, ghosts, eyeball monster, tombstone, coffin, jack-o-lantern, pumpkin with hat, raven, bubbling cauldron, and witch broom. 

Halloween Cookies

Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein (Allen and me-hee hee)

Royal Icing with Meringue Powder

Yield: 8 cups

Ingredients

2 pounds Powdered Sugar 

1/3 cup Meringue Powder

1/2 cup Room Temperature Water (plus extra if you need to thin the icing)

1 teaspoon Clear Vanilla Extract

1 tablespoon Light Corn Syrup

Halloween Cookies

Halloween Cookies

Directions

(If lumpy) In a large bowl, sift the powdered sugar; set aside.

Add meringue powder and room temperature water in mixer with paddle attachment and mix on high for 1-2 minutes.

Add the vanilla extract and mix for 5-10 seconds.

Halloween Cookies

Halloween Cookies

Turn off mixer. Add half (1 pound) of the powdered sugar, cover the mixer with a kitchen towel, and turn the mixer to low speed and beat until smooth. 

Add light corn syrup and incorporate for 20-25 seconds.

Add remaining (1 pound) of powdered sugar and mix on high for 2-3 minutes.

The consistency using this recipe is thick and great for borders, stenciling, writing on cookies, and detail work.

2 skulls, mummy, Jack Skellington

If you need a both a border and flood-like consistency keep reading below.

If you only need flood consistency icing, add 1/2 teaspoon of water and mix for 5-10 seconds, and repeat until you reach the right consistency. Be careful that your icing does not become too runny or you may have to start over.

Keep the containers or Tupperware/Pyrex covered until you are ready to color. Royal Icing hardens fast.

Frankie and Bride of Frankenstein

Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein, eyeball monster but he is friendly and yummy

I use Wilton, AmeriColor and Chefmaster Soft Gel Paste Food Color in various colors.

Use 1-2 drops at a time until you reach the desired color.

Once you have the colors completed in each container, take the amount you need of the border icing consistency and place into icing bottles, tipless bags, or pastry bags fitted with tips.

Ghosts - Boo!

Bat, cat, raven

Then with the remainder of the icing, add room temperature water using 1/8 teaspoon to make flood consistency icing. Stir together with a small spatula and repeat until you have the consistency you need. A little water goes a long way. This works for me and I get the flood consistency I need. This part takes some practice. Then transfer the flood icing into icing bottles, tipless bags, or bags fitted with tips.

I find doing it this way is easiest as you end up with the same color for both the border/detail work and flood consistency.

Decorate your cookies.

Tombstone, coffin

Witch hat, haunted house, candy corn, and bubbling cauldron

Do a border and then fill it immediately. If you are adding layers let the first layer dry completely overnight to prevent the color bleed. 

I use a cookie stick to reach edges, and the tip to pop any air bubbles. 

I let the cookies dry overnight.

Please keep in mind if you are baking and it is humid, you may need more time for the cookies to dry. It was raining for day here so the cookies needed two days for the icing to dry.

Enjoy!

-Sophia/Two Frys

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies taste just like the coffee in cookie form. For this set, I made heirloom pumpkins in different sizes, top view heirloom pumpkin, gourd, squash, haystack, pumpkin on wheelbarrow, and 2 trucks with pumpkins. These cookies are chewy and have a wonderful pumpkin spice latte taste. 

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

The vanilla sugar, vanilla bean paste, and cream are the latte part of this recipe and the vanilla balance the pumpkin spice splendidly. I love heirloom pumpkins with their bumpy look and lovely colors. I tried to replicate that with the cookies. I also love gourds and squash and they come in so many shapes, textures, and colors. I hope you make this recipe. For the Royal Icing with Meringue go to Halloween Cookies. Enjoy the fall season and stay safe!

Heirloom pumpkins, gourd, squash

Heirloom pumpkins, truck with pumpkin, gourd, squash

Haystack, heirloom pumpkins, both trucks with pumpkins, gourd, squash

Yield: 3 1/2-4 Dozen Cookies (Depending on cutter size and thickness of cookie)

Ingredients

5 cups All Purpose Flour

2 cups Vanilla Sugar

3 1/2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 teaspoon Coarse Salt

1/4 cup Pumpkin Puree

2 cups (4 sticks) Unsalted Butter, softened

2 Large Eggs

1 tablespoon Vanilla Bean Paste

1 tablespoon Cream

Use crushed shredded wheat cereal to make the haystack

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

Directions

In a large bowl whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice and salt; set aside.

Cream butter and sugar in a hand held mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment on low; 1-2 minutes. Do not overmix.

Scrape sides of bowl with spatula and mix for 10 seconds.

I really love the color combination

A sunflower on a cookie makes me happy!

Top view heirloom pumpkin, heirloom pumpkins squash, gourd

Add pumpkin puree, eggs, vanilla bean paste, cream and mix until incorporated; about 1 minute. 

Scrape sides of bowl and mix for 5 seconds.

Turn off mixer and add the flour mixture and cover mixer with kitchen towel, and turn mixer on low speed and incorporate. 

Pumpkin Spice Latte Cookies

Trucks with pumpkins, pumpkin on wheelbarrow, haystack

Pumpkin on wheelbarrow, truck with pumpkin

The dough is ready when it begins to clump around paddle attachment.

Form into a disk shape and cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for 1-3 hours or overnight. I chilled the dough for 2 hours.

Heat oven to 350°F.

Truck with pumpkin

Haystack

Truck with pumpkin

Use two sheets of parchment paper with dough in between and roll with rolling pin until desired thickness is reached.

Cut out shapes.

Place onto cookies sheets lined with parchment paper, and put in freezer for 20 minutes. The cookies hold their shape when you do this.

For the gourd first make funky bumps and let dry overnight and then cover

Sprinkles, and sugar decorations

Royal Icing with Meringue, Ateco Food Coloring Markers

Bake 8-13 minutes or until the edges have slightly browned. My cookies baked in 13 minutes. 

Oven temps vary so check the cookies at the 8 minute mark.

Make sure cookie sheets cool in between baking. I place them in the freezer for a few minutes, and repeat until all the dough is used.

Do not use hot cookie sheets or the cookies will spread and lose their shape.

Love these Heirloom Pumpkins

Heirloom Pumpkins from my local Stop & Shop

Wait 5 minutes before transferring cookies with cookie spatula to wire racks to complete cooling; about 1 hour.

Decorate once the cookies are cool to the touch.

Enjoy!

-Sophia/Two Frys

Woodland Mini Cookies

 Woodland Mini Cookies

I love making Woodland Cookies and making mini cookies are so much fun. I bought these Wilton Mini Cutters set online from Joann. The set features a squirrel, bear, fox, owl, deer, and hedgehog. This set is adorbs! I also made a tree to go with the animals. The recipe is from my Pumpkin Maple Fall Theme Cookies. 

These are a great cookie set to make with kids if you have any. They are bite size and also make great gifts. I hope you are all staying safe while spending quality time with your family. 

The minute I found the cutters online, I ordered them. Who could resist these cuties!

I love that the squirrel is holding an acorn, and the hedgehog is adorned with a rosette. I also added a little watermelon luster dust on her cheek. I used edible markers as well for eyes, noses, and small details.

I also added some blush on the fox face. I added a tree for these animals to give it a more woodland feel. I hope you can find these cutters and make some cookies soon.

Enjoy!

-Sophia/Two Frys