Halloween Sprinkle Cookies
Soft and fudgy chocolate sprinkle cookies made with festive black cocoa powder and holiday sprinkles. Add a few candy eyeballs to these chocolate cookies post-bake for an extra fun Halloween cookie!
Halloween Sprinkle Cookies
It’s officially October, which means Halloween is just a few short weeks away. There’s something about this extra spooky season that triggers my holiday spirit every year – Halloween is like an intro to the real holiday season, right?! 😉 We strung spider webs across our porch last night, and the kids had a blast carefully placing the myriad of fake spiders we’ve acquired over the years.
We’ve all been enjoying my extra festive Halloween bakes this past week, and I know you’ll love these Halloween Sprinkle Cookies as much as we have. They’re a fun and simple chocolate cookie enrobed in Halloween sprinkles. I was feeling the black and purple this year, but any Halloween sprinkles will look cute on these cookies!
Why You’ll Love These Cookies
- Fudgy texture that stays soft for days
- Dark chocolate flavor
- Naturally colored dough that’s almost black
- Tried and true recipe that comes out perfect every time
What You’ll Need
- Chocolate chips are melted and mixed into the dough for extra chocolate flavor. I use dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips and find semi-sweet works best. I don’t recommend dark chocolate since we’re using black cocoa in these cookies.
- Plant-based butter adds flavor and moisture. I use the Country Crock Plant Butter Sticks with Olive Oil. Regular butter will also work.
- Sugar adds sweetness, of course! I use white granulated sugar for these cookies, but you can use coconut sugar, raw sugar, or an unrefined cane sugar (just note that the gram measurements will vary).
- Vanilla extract adds flavor.
- Eggs bind the ingredients and help create the perfect chewy chocolate cookie. I haven’t tested this recipe with any egg alternatives.
- All-purpose flour makes up the bulk of the cookie dough. I like to use an unbleached variety, but any all-purpose flour will work.
- Black cocoa powder brings that dark, festive black color to these cookies. Since black cocoa powder isn’t used for deep chocolate flavor, you’ll also be using a Dutched cocoa powder.
- Dutched cocoa powder adds a dark chocolate flavor to these cookies. Since it’s darker in color than natural cocoa powder, I don’t recommend using natural (regular) cocoa powder in these cookies (we want these cookies as dark as possible!).
- Baking soda leavens the cookies and aids in proper spread.
- Salt enhances flavor.
- Sprinkles add that extra festive touch and make these, well, sprinkle cookies. I don’t recommend using any candy-like sprinkles as they may melt in the oven. Candy eyeballs should be added after baking the cookies.
FAQ
Can I use regular (natural) cocoa powder? No, only black cocoa powder and Dutched cocoa powder will work for this recipe. The black cocoa is for color, and the Dutched cocoa is for color and flavor.
Do I have to chill the dough? Yes, chilling the dough firms it up so you can roll the dough balls and get perfectly smooth/round cookies. Chilling also allows the cocoa powders to darken, resulting in a darker cookie.
When do I add the candy/sprinkle eyeballs? You’ll add these immediately after baking. As soon as you pull the baking sheet out of the oven, you’ll gently press the eyeballs into the tops of the cookies. The eyeballs might melt if added before baking.
How many cookies does this recipe make? I was able to make 11 bigger cookies with my dough balls being 3 Tbsp in size.
Can I bake them ahead of time? These can be baked up to one day in advance – these cookies will still taste fresh on Day 2. The dough can be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Can I make the dough balls smaller? Definitely. I haven’t tested this, so I can’t provide an exact bake time. You will follow the instructions as written and then bake the smaller dough balls for less time.
Halloween Sprinkle Cookies with Black Cocoa
Fudgy chocolate sprinkle cookies made extra festive with black cocoa powder and Halloween sprinkles!
Ingredients
- 1 cup (170g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup (78g) plant-based butter (or regular butter)
- 3/4 cup (150g) white granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup (130g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (20g) black cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (20g) Dutched cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- ~1/2 cup Halloween sprinkles
Instructions
- In small, microwavable bowl, add the chocolate chips and butter. Microwave in 15-30 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until chocolate is melted and smooth; set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, vanilla, and eggs. Stir in the melted chocolate.
- Sift in the flour, cocoa powders, baking soda, and salt. Use a large spoon to gently mix in the dry ingredients. Your dough will resemble brownie batter.
- Cover and chill the dough for 3 hours. This allows the dough to stiffen enough to be rolled into balls AND deepens the color of the dough for a darker, more black color.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F for 10 minutes and prepare a baking sheet (or two) with parchment paper. Add your Halloween sprinkles to a small bowl, separating the sprinkle eyeballs and setting them aside for after baking.
- Scoop dough balls, six at a time, 3 Tbsp in size. Roll all of the dough balls smooth (I wash my hands after this step). Roll each ball in the sprinkles and place on the baking sheet - avoid adding sprinkles to the bottoms of the dough balls.
- Bake cookies at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. The cookies should begin to spread and may crack slightly. For fudgy cookies like the ones pictured, be careful not to over-bake.
- Immediately after pulling the cookies out of the oven, gently press candy eyeballs into the tops of the cookies. If needed, use the back of a spoon to carefully re-shape any lopsided cookies. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Repeat steps 5 and 6 until all cookies are baked. Enjoy warm for a gooey cookie. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature - these cookies say soft for a few days after baking.
Notes
- Butter: I used Country Crock Plant Butter Sticks with Olive Oil.
- Eggs: the eggs do not need to be room temperature for this recipe. I used mine straight from the fridge.
- Sprinkles: the exact sprinkles I used can be found here and here (I took out the green balls and big eyeballs). I also mixed a little black sanding sugar (black sugar sprinkles) into the purple and black sprinkle mix.
- Refrigeration: chilling the dough is mandatory for these cookies. The dough needs to be chilled for at least 1 hour to be properly rolled, but a few hours is better as the black cocoa powder darkens as it sits.
Did you make this recipe? I would love to see!
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