55 Halloween Cookies to Bake This Spooky Season
Hustling to come up with the perfect Halloween costume, plan a party for the kids and dream up all the spooky treats you want to bake by the 31st? Same here. But not to worry—we’re here to help, girls and ghouls. We found 55 Halloween cookies to tackle this fall that are equal parts festive and delicious. There’s a sweet for everyone in your coven, whether you’re looking for something spooky-chic or covered in googly eyes.
RELATED: 54 Halloween Snacks That’ll Get Any Grown-Up in the Spirit
1. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies
And you thought Oreos were good. These soft-baked beauties are bursting with cheesecake.
2. Maple-Pecan Icebox Cookies
Don’t want to be stressed come the night of the party? Make the eight-ingredient dough ahead of time and bake it just in time for your guests’ arrival.
3. Milk Chocolate Stuffed Jack-O’-Lantern Cookies
Could these spiced brown sugar cookies be any cuter? We think not.
4. Halloween Sugar Cookies
Turn on a scary movie, bundle up on the couch and get ready to eat way too many monster eyes.
5. Monster Cookies
Alexa, add five-pound bag of candy corn to my shopping cart.
6. Giant Brown-Sugar Snickerdoodle Cookies
Because you can only have so many cinnamon-sugar cider doughnuts. (Just kidding, we’ll never get sick of them or snickerdoodles.)
7. Caramel-Stuffed Chocolate-Chip Cookies
Nothing says Halloween like candy-packed cookie dough, right?
8. Spiced Palmiers
A French treat with an autumnal spin that's perfect for a fancy dinner party, thanks to cinnamon, cardamom and cloves.
9. Sweet Potato Sugar Cookies with Marshmallow Topping
Sweet potato casserole always felt like dessert to us anyway.
10. Oatmeal Cookie Cream Pies
Your kids will forget all about their trick-or-treat candy when they find these goodies in their lunchboxes.
11. Pecan Brittle Bark Cookies
Melted chocolate anchors the homemade, crackly brittle to the dough so it doesn’t totally liquefy in the oven. Science, y’all.
12. Itty-Bitty Sandwich Cookies
Way better than storing that extra candy in the freezer. Trust.
13. Caramel-Stuffed Gingerbread Crinkle Cookies
A blustery fall day is no match for warm spices, molasses, dark brown sugar and soft caramel.
14. Brown Sugar Cookies with Dulce de Leche
We usually whip these stunners up for Christmas, but all it takes for a fall remix is using a pumpkin-shaped or leaf-shaped cookie cutter.
15. 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
For when you realize you forgot to pick up dessert at the supermarket and your guests are arriving in ten.
16. Flying Bat Halloween Cookie Pops
Psst: The googly eyes are vegan, since they're made from powdered sugar, corn syrup and cornstarch.
17. Brownie Brittle Peanut Butter Cookie Ghost Cups
The only spirits we want to be haunted by are the ones made of cream cheese frosting.
18. Paleo Witch Finger Cookies
Coconut flour cookies stuffed with homemade jelly? And they’re vegan? That’s some strange magic.
19. Monster Mash Cookies
Bake the easy sugar cookies, then let the kids at the party decorate with everything from Oreos to candy eyes to sanding sugar.
20. Mummy Cookie Bites
You only need three ingredients and a refrigerator to pull these ghoulish poppables off.
21. Halloween M&M’s Chocolate Chip Cookies
Eleven-minute brown butter cookies with a touch of autumn.
22. Monster Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
Think Reese’s Pieces, chocolate chips and leftover candy. Even better, you’ll only need to dirty one bowl to make them.
23. Pumpkin Butter Rugelach Cookies
Crispy, classy and totally chic. It’s just the coffee pairing for your grown-up Halloween party.
24. Frosted Chai Spice Snickerdoodles
Presenting a chai tea latte in dessert form. We'd layer the vanilla bean frosting on thick if we were you.
25. Double-Stuffed Pumpkin Pie Oreos
Your childhood favorite, but homemade with a fall twist. Be sure to have a glass of milk at the ready for dunking.
26. White Chocolate Candy Corn Cookies
These cookies will keep for up to four months in the freezer, meaning you can celebrate spooky season through Valentine’s Day.
27. Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies
A solid way to use up all the leftover candy the trick-or-treaters didn’t devour if we’ve ever seen one.
28. Chocolate-Drizzled Buttery Pecan and Caramelized Condensed Milk Cookies
Make sure you brag to your party guests that you whipped these up yourself—they look like they’re from a fancy bakery.
29. Candy Bar Blondies
Ah blondies, the chewy, crispy-edged cookie bars that never disappoint. These will work with just about any sweet add-ins that you have on hand.
30. Peanut Butter-Stuffed Chocolate Jack-O’-Lantern Cookies
Dark cocoa turns these chocolate sugar cookies black as night. Use both a pumpkin cookie cutter and pumpkin cookie stamp to take them over the top.
31. Brown Butter Milky Way Oatmeal Cookies
Browning butter before adding it to the dough will give the cookies an irresistibly caramel-like, nutty flavor.
32. Peanut Butter Blossom Spiders
The PB cookie classic gets a creepy makeover. Trade traditional Hershey’s Kisses for peanut butter cups, then craft tiny spiders with black licorice and candy eyes.
33. Frosted Pumpkin Cookies
Pumpkin purée and pie spice make these no-frills treats super festive. Hook your guests up with some Halloween sprinkles and let them take care of the decorating.
34. Mexican Chocolate Earthquake Cookies
Sorry kids, you’ll have to sit this one out. These spicy cayenne- and chipotle-spiked gems are for the grown-ups.
35. Chai, Chocolate Chip and Coconut Cookies
The homemade chai spice including ground ginger, nutmeg and allspice is straight-up soul warming.
RELATED: 60 Best Halloween Dessert Ideas That Are Easy & Festive
36. Witches Broom Sticks
The easiest way to turn your Halloween party into a real brouhaha? Serve these cookie-pretzel hybrids.
37. Vegan Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
Because no one should have to miss out on dessert. The secret? Vegan butter and almond milk.
38. Double Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
We hope you aren’t afraid of the dark. These are beyond bold and decadent.
39. Pumpkin Chocolate Twix Cookies
Never choose between a pumpkin dessert and chocolate ever again. Bonus? They’re made without butter or oil and use whole-wheat flour.
40. Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Ritz Sandwiches
So easy even your little monsters could make them without you. We’re talking four ingredients and not a second of cook time if you use your trusty microwave instead of a double-boiler.
41. Candy Bar Cookies
Use any confection, from Snickers to Rolos, in these simple cake mix cookies. We’re sure the kids won’t mind donating some from their stash, particularly when you tell them about the end result.
42. Caramel Apple Cider Cookies
All the tart sweetness of the quintessential autumn drink, plus a kiss of gooey caramel. They’ll taste even better dunked in hot homemade apple cider.
43. Bloody Spooky Macarons
These almond cookies stuffed with cherry jam-spiked frosting are nothing short of divine. But splattering them with diluted food coloring gives them a devilish appearance.
44. Salted Pretzel Chocolate Chip Cookie Snickers Bars
Sweet-and-salty lovers, meet your new favorite candy bar. They're easier to make than you think, thanks to store-bought caramels.
45. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Not that the O.G. needs any help being delicious, but a few spoonfuls of pumpkin puree and a slew of autumn spices take the classic to a whole new level. Did we mention the butterscotch chips?
46. Butterfinger Brown Butter Cookies
Sorry, what'd you say? We were totally distracted by these sweet-crunchy-salty cookies. Don't forget to garnish them with a flourish of flaky salt.
47. Decorated Halloween Sugar Cookies
Bust out the piping bag and flex your skills ahead of your kids' Halloween party. (We're betting they'd be happy to help decorate cookies, too.)
48. Chewy Molasses Cookies
This mature dessert screams fall and is perfect for an intimate spooky soirée. Rolling the dough balls in sugar before baking them gives the exterior of the cookies extra crunch.
49. Dark Chocolate Orange Slice-and-Bake Cookies
These icebox cookies are not only prime for Halloween, thanks to their color scheme, but would also be a hit at this year's holiday cookie swap.
50. Pumpkin S'mores Cookies
When fall pumpkin picking and summer bonfires collide, these ooey-gooey handhelds are the result. Don't be shy with the mini marshmallows.
51. Halloween Cookies
They're only as epic as their toppings, so go wild with Halloween M&Ms, peanut butter cups and orange and black sprinkles. (Bonus points for including candy corn and Mellowcreme Pumpkins.)
52. Creamy Pumpkin Eton Mess
Store-bought meringue cookies star in this pumpkin pie-inspired masterpiece.
53. Snickerdoodle Peanut Butter Cookie Cake
The only thing better than a bunch of small cookies is one giant one. And since the recipe calls for boxed snickerdoodle cookie mix, the dough will come together in a flash.
54. S’mores Cookies
Campfire, shmampfire. We’re getting our autumn s’mores fix without an open flame, thanks to these s’mores cookies.
55. Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting? Call us basic, but we’re certain it’s a match made in autumnal heaven.
RELATED: 51 Halloween Dinner Ideas for Adults
For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.
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