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Best Easy Halloween Spider Cookies – Perfect Royal Icing Treats

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These Halloween spider cookies are buttery sugar cookies topped with smooth royal icing and decorated with licorice legs and candy eyes. They’re easier than they look and perfect for impressing guests at any fall gathering.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 ¾ cups (345g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 4 cups (480g) powdered sugar
  • 3 tablespoons meringue powder
  • 5–6 tablespoons water
  • Black gel food coloring
  • Orange gel food coloring
  • Black licorice strings (e.g., Twizzlers Pull-n-Peel), cut into 1-inch pieces
  • Edible candy eyes
  • Small black sprinkles (optional)

Instructions

  1. Cream the butter and sugar. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat 1 cup softened butter and 1 cup sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape the bowl halfway through.
  2. Add the wet ingredients. Beat in 1 egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla until combined.
  3. Mix the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together 2¾ cups flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt. Add to the wet mixture in two additions, mixing on low until just combined.
  4. Chill the dough. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
  5. Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  6. Roll and cut. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to ¼-inch thickness. Cut out rounds with a 2½ to 3-inch cookie cutter and place them 2 inches apart on the prepared sheets. Gather scraps, re-roll, and cut again. You should get about 24 cookies.
  7. Bake. Bake for 8-10 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through. The edges should be just barely golden. Let them cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Cool completely before icing.
  8. Make the royal icing. In your mixer bowl, combine 4 cups powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons meringue powder, and 5 tablespoons water. Beat on low until combined, then increase to medium-high for 4 minutes. The icing should be thick but flow slightly—think honey consistency. Add water ½ teaspoon at a time if it’s too stiff.
  9. Color the icing. Divide the icing. Leave about ¾ white (you’ll color it black), and reserve ¼ for the orange webs. Add black gel coloring to the larger portion—start with ½ teaspoon and add more until it’s deep black. Orange the smaller portion.
  10. Pipe the base. Fill a piping bag fitted with a small round tip with black icing. Outline each cookie, then fill in the center. Use a toothpick to spread the icing into corners if needed. Let these set for 2 hours until completely dry to the touch.
  11. Add the legs. While the base is setting, cut your black licorice strings into 1-inch pieces. You’ll need 8 per cookie. Gently press 4 pieces into each side of the cookie while the icing is still slightly tacky—not wet, not dry. If it’s too dry, dab a tiny bit of fresh icing to hold them.
  12. Pipe the webs (optional but impressive). Using orange icing, pipe thin lines radiating from the center of each cookie. Connect them with curved lines to create a web pattern. Let set for 30 minutes.
  13. Attach the eyes. Dab a tiny amount of black icing on the back of each candy eye and press them onto the spider body. Two eyes per spider, placed close together near the front.
  14. Let everything set. Allow the cookies to dry completely for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. The icing needs to be rock hard before you stack or store them.

Notes

Don’t skip the chill time—warm dough spreads. For royal icing, the perfect consistency is when a ribbon of icing disappears back into the bowl within 5 seconds. Work in an assembly line: ice all cookies first, then add legs, then eyes. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Do not refrigerate or freeze.

Nutrition

Keywords: Halloween cookies, spider cookies, royal icing, sugar cookies, Halloween treats, spooky cookies, decorated cookies

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