Description
These Chocolate Skeleton Cookies offer a delightful spooky treat perfect for Halloween. Featuring a rich cinnamon chocolate cookie base, they are decorated with sweet, detailed royal icing skeleton designs. The combination of a soft cocoa-spiced cookie and smooth, sweet icing makes for an irresistible festive dessert that both kids and adults will love.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1¼ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1½ cups unsalted butter
- 2½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Royal Icing
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2½ tablespoons meringue powder (or powdered egg whites)
- ¼ cup water
- White sanding sugar (for decoration)
Instructions
- Mix Dry Ingredients: Whisk together the all-purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl. Set this mixture aside for later.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: Using an electric mixer, cream unsalted butter and confectioners’ sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy, which takes about 2 minutes.
- Add Eggs and Vanilla: Beat in the two large eggs and vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
- Combine Dough: Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in two batches, mixing just until combined each time. Avoid overmixing to keep cookies tender.
- Chill Dough: Divide the dough in half, wrap each piece in plastic wrap, flatten into disks, and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight to firm up.
- Preheat Oven and Roll Dough: Heat oven to 350ºF (175ºC). On a floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to ¼ inch thickness. Use a 5-inch gingerbread man cookie cutter to cut out shapes and transfer them to unlined baking sheets. Reroll scraps once and repeat.
- Bake Cookies: Bake for about 12 minutes, or until cookies spring back slightly when touched. Allow cookies to cool completely on wire racks.
- Prepare Royal Icing: Using an electric mixer, blend confectioners’ sugar, meringue powder, and water on low speed. Scrape down sides as needed and mix until icing reaches the consistency of soft whipped cream, about 10 minutes.
- Decorate Cookies: Transfer the royal icing to a piping bag fitted with a #2 plain tip. Pipe an outline of skulls and circles for eyes and mouths on each cookie, then flood the face area with icing. Optionally, sprinkle some cookies with white sanding sugar for extra sparkle.
- Dry Icing: Allow the decorated cookies to dry completely before serving or storing to ensure the icing hardens properly.
Notes
- Chilling the dough is essential to make rolling and cutting easier and to prevent spreading during baking.
- The cinnamon adds a warm, subtly spicy note that complements the cocoa flavor perfectly.
- Royal icing must be mixed until light and fluffy to pipe detailed skeleton designs accurately.
- Use a piping bag with a fine tip for intricate skeleton bone details.
- Allow icing to dry fully for several hours or overnight for best results.
- Store the decorated cookies in an airtight container at room temperature to maintain crispness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 264 kcal
- Sugar: 22 g
- Sodium: 38 mg
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 37 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 44 mg
