Halloween Sugar Cookies

I make sugar cookies for Christmas every year, but this is the first year I’ve made Halloween sugar cookies.  I finally learned how to use royal icing so I needed an excuse to practice.

Royal icing is the kind of icing that dries hard (and quickly, I might add!).  It’s usually seen on professionally decorated sugar cookies.  It’s very easy to make, and a little bit tricky to work with.

Let’s start out with the basic sugar cookie recipe.  This recipe made 18 pumpkin-shaped cookies.  The number of cookies you get will vary depending on the size of your cookie cutter.

Sugar Cookies
From Joy of Baking

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and baking powder.  Set aside.

With a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and beat well.  Add half of the flour mixture, beat well, then add the other half and mix until dough is smooth.

Divide the dough in half.  Form each half into a ball, and then flatten slightly to make a disc shape.  Wrap with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Remove one disc of dough from the refrigerator, unwrap, and place on a lightly floured countertop or table.  If it’s too stiff to roll, wait a minute or two for it to warm up.  Roll it to about 1/4″ thickness, rotating the dough as necessary to keep the height consistent.  Cut out the shapes that you’ve selected, and place each shape on the baking sheet.

If you’re not going to cover your cookies with icing, now is the time to decorate!  Use sprinkles or sparkles, or whatever else floats your boat.

Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator for 10 minutes to chill the cookies and help prevent them from spreading too much in the oven.  I tried one batch without this step, and there was only a slight difference in the amount of spreading.  However, if the rest of your dough has been out on the counter for a while, this step is very important!

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes, or until the edges just begin to brown.  Remove from oven and place entire baking sheet on a cooling rack for 5 minutes.  Then remove the cookies from the baking sheet and cool completely on cooling rack.

And now, for the icing!

Royal Icing
From Wilton Cake Decorating Course II
Yield: 3 cups

3 level tablespoons Meringue Powder (you can find this at Michael’s or JoAnn)
1 lb. (4 cups) sifted pure cane confectioners’ sugar
5-6 tablespoons lukewarm water

It is super important to make sure that all your bowls and utensils are free of any grease, as the icing will break down if it comes in contact with grease.  I usually wash my mixer bowl and paddle again before making this icing.  Also, try to avoid using any plastic bowls or utensils, as those generally have remnants of grease that are difficult to remove.  I recommend using only glass or stainless steel containers.

Place meringue powder and sugar in a bowl.  Mix at low speed until blended.  Add water and blend at medium speed for 7-10 minutes, or until icing loses its sheen.

This icing hardens when exposed to air, so be sure to keep it covered with plastic wrap when you are not using it.  Keep a damp towel handy and store your decorating tips up against it to prevent the icing in the tip from drying out while you use other colors.

Outline the cookies using full strength icing.  To flood the interior, the icing needs to be thinned.  I use a small plastic disposable cup (so that I know it’s grease free).  Spoon some icing into the cup and start adding lukewarm water slowly, a small amount at a time.  Mix well after each addition.  To test whether it’s the right consistency, pull your spoon out and let the icing drizzle down into the cup.  The icing is thin enough when the drizzle disappears within 5 seconds.

Pour the thinned icing into a disposable plastic decorating bag.  When you’re ready to use it, snip off the bottom of the bag and the icing will begin to flow.  Fill in the interior of the cookies, being careful not to flow over the outline.  If you’d like to draw on top of the filling (like the jack-o-lantern faces I made), use full strength icing.  Do this before the filling sets, so that the accents will sink into the filling.

Happy Haunting!