Description
Celebrate the vibrant Day of the Dead with these festive skull-shaped cookies, coated in white candy melts and decorated with colorful candies and black icing for authentic, eye-catching treats.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 1-1/4 cups butter, softened
- 1-3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 2 ounces almond paste
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1/4 cup 2% milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Decoration
- 2 packages (12 ounces each) white candy coating melts
- Optional decorations: Jumbo sprinkles, peppermint candies, candy-coated sunflower kernels, Skittles, Twizzlers Rainbow Twists, Good & Plenty candies
- Black paste food coloring
Instructions
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and confectioners’ sugar together for 3-4 minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the almond paste and continue mixing to combine thoroughly.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Beat in the egg, followed by milk and vanilla extract, ensuring the batter is smooth and well incorporated.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix the all-purpose flour and salt together. Gradually add this to the creamed mixture, stirring well to form a cohesive dough.
- Chill Dough: Cover the dough and refrigerate for 1 hour to firm up, which will make it easier to roll and cut.
- Roll and Cut: On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to about 1/4 inch thickness. Use a floured 5-inch skull-shaped cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
- Bake Cookies: Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Bake the cookies for 7-9 minutes or until they are firm to the touch. Let them stand on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
- Melt Candy Coating: In a large, shallow, microwave-safe dish, melt the white candy coating melts according to package instructions until smooth.
- Dip Cookies: Dip the top side of each cooled cookie into the melted white candy coating, letting the excess drip off. Place the dipped cookies on waxed paper to set.
- Decorate: While the coating is still tacky, apply optional decorations like jumbo sprinkles, peppermint candies, candy-coated sunflower kernels, Skittles, Twizzlers Rainbow Twists, and Good & Plenty candies as desired.
- Create Black Icing: Tint the remaining white candy coating black using black paste food coloring. Use this to pipe on the mouths of the skulls and any additional details. Allow the coating and decorations to set completely before serving.
Notes
- Make sure the dough is well chilled to prevent sticking and maintain cookie shape during baking.
- Use a skull-shaped cookie cutter approximately 5 inches wide for authentic shapes.
- Choose decorations that are lightweight to avoid weighing down the candy coating.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- For a firmer candy coating, refrigerate dipped cookies to speed up setting.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 18g
- Sodium: 90mg
- Fat: 16g
- Saturated Fat: 9g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 29g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 35mg
