Easy Halloween Cookies

Easy Halloween Cookies

Spooky, festive, and fun, these Halloween Cookies use OREOs and other simple treats to make the cutest little cookies around. No baking, no rolling out dough, and no fancy piping skills required. Just grab a few packages of store-bought cookies, a tub of frosting, and a handful of candy, and you’ve got a tray full of spiders, bats, ghosts, mummies and monsters in about 30 minutes. These are perfect for classroom parties, Halloween movie nights, trick-or-treat get-togethers, or a rainy October afternoon with the kids. Little hands can help with every step, and every cookie turns out a little different, which is half the fun

Why You’ll Love These Halloween Cookies

• No baking required. Everything starts with store-bought cookies, so there’s no oven and no waiting for anything to cool.
• Grocery store ingredients. You can find everything in one trip, usually in the cookie and candy aisles.
• Kid-friendly. Spreading frosting and placing candy eyes is the perfect job for kids of all ages.
• Endlessly customizable. Make one design or all seven, and swap in whatever candy you already have on hand.
• Party-ready. A platter of mixed characters looks impressive with very little effort.

Halloween Cookie Ideas

• Spiders
• Bats
• Frankenstein
• Ghosts
• Pumpkins/Jack-O-Lanterns
• Monsters
• Mummies

What You’ll Need

Here’s a master shopping list that covers every cookie in this post. You won’t need all of it unless you’re making the whole lineup.

Cookies

• OREO cookies (regular or Double Stuffed)
• Nutter Butter cookies (for the ghosts)

Frosting & Coatings

• Chocolate frosting
• Vanilla frosting (tint it with food coloring for orange, green, and purple)
• White candy melts or white chocolate chips
• Green candy melts (optional, for Frankenstein)
• Gel food coloring (orange, green, purple)
• Black decorating gel or a black food-safe marker

Candy & Decorations

• Candy eyes (mixed sizes are great for monsters)
• Mini M&M’s
• Milk Duds or mini peanut butter cups
• Chocolate or pull-apart licorice
• Mini chocolate chips
• Chocolate sprinkles
• Mini marshmallows

Tips for Decorating Halloween Cookies

• Use frosting as glue. A small dab of frosting holds candy pieces in place. For heavier pieces like Milk Duds, press gently and let them set for a few minutes.
• Gel coloring beats liquid. Gel food coloring gives brighter colors without making the frosting runny.
• Put frosting in a zip-top bag. Snip a tiny corner and you have an instant piping bag for drizzles, faces, and mummy wrappings.
• Melt candy melts low and slow. Microwave in 20-second bursts, stirring between each, so they stay smooth and don’t seize.
• Set up a decorating station. Put each candy in its own small bowl and give everyone a plate. It keeps the mess contained and makes it easy to build cookies assembly-line style.
• Chill to set. A quick 10 minutes in the fridge firms up frosting and candy coatings so the cookies are easier to stack and transport.

Spider Cookies

These creepy-cute spiders are the easiest place to start, and kids love building the legs. What you need:

• Base: Frosting + OREO
• Bodies: Milk Duds or Mini Peanut Butter Cups
• Eyes: Mini M&M’s
• Legs: Chocolate or Pull Apart Licorice

How to make Spider Cookies:

1. Cut licorice into short pieces, about 1 to 1½ inches long. You’ll need 8 legs per spider.
2. Spread a thin layer of frosting on top of an OREO.
3. Press 4 licorice legs into the frosting on each side so they hang over the edge of the cookie.
4. Add a dab of frosting to the center and press a Milk Dud or mini peanut butter cup on top for the body.
5. Use tiny dots of frosting to attach two Mini M&M’s as eyes.

Tip: Twist the OREO open and tuck the licorice legs into the cream filling, then press it back together for extra-secure legs.

Bats

Dark, flappy, and adorable. These bats come together in minutes. 

What you to Make Bat Cookies:

• Base: Chocolate Frosting + OREO
• Wings: OREO cookie halves, cut in half
• Eyes: Candy eyes
• Ears: Mini chocolate chips

How to Make Bat Cookies:

1. Twist apart a few extra OREOs and scrape off the filling. Carefully cut each wafer in half with a sharp knife to make wings.
2. Spread chocolate frosting on top of a whole OREO.
3. Press a wing into the frosting on each side, rounded edge facing out.
4. Add two candy eyes in the center.
5. Press two mini chocolate chips, point side up, at the top for ears.

Tip: Warm your knife under hot water and dry it before cutting the wafers so they’re less likely to crack.

Frankenstein

Every Halloween lineup needs a friendly Frankenstein.

What you need to Make Frankenstein Cookies:

• Base: Green Frosting (or Green Candy Melts) + OREO
• Hair: Chocolate Sprinkles
• Eyes: Candy eyes
• Bolts: Mini M&M’s or Mini Chocolate Chips
• Mouth & stitches: Black decorating gel

How to make them:

1. Tint vanilla frosting green, or melt green candy melts.
2. Frost or dip the top of an OREO in the green coating.
3. While it’s still wet, sprinkle chocolate sprinkles across the top edge for hair.
4. Add two candy eyes in the middle.
5. Press a Mini M&M or chocolate chip on each side for the neck bolts.
6. Use black gel to draw a straight-line mouth and a few stitches.

Ghosts

Nutter Butters already have the perfect ghost shape, so these practically make themselves. 

What you need to make Ghost Cookies:

• Base: Nutter Butter cookies
• Coating: White Candy Melts or White Chocolate
• Eyes & mouth: Mini Chocolate Chips

How to make them:

1. Melt white candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring every 20 seconds until smooth.
2. Dip each Nutter Butter about three-quarters of the way into the coating and let the extra drip off.
3. Lay the cookies on parchment paper.
4. While the coating is still wet, press in two mini chocolate chips (flat side out) for eyes and one for an “O” shaped mouth.
5. Let them set at room temperature or in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

Tip: Peanut allergy in the group? Use Milano cookies or vanilla sandwich cookies instead.

Pumpkins/Jack-O-Lanterns

Bright orange and grinning, these are a classic. 

What you need to Make Jack O Lantern Cookies:

• Base: Orange Frosting + OREO
• Stem: Green Mini M&M or a small piece of green licorice
• Face: Black decorating gel or Mini Chocolate Chips

How to make them:

1. Tint vanilla frosting orange with gel food coloring (a drop of red helps deepen the color).
2. Spread a smooth layer of orange frosting on top of an OREO.
3. Press a green Mini M&M at the top for the stem.
4. Draw triangle eyes, a nose, and a toothy grin with black gel, or use mini chocolate chips for the face.

Tip: Leave the faces off a few for plain pumpkins. A mix of pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns looks great on a platter.

Monsters

There are no rules with monsters. The sillier, the better. 

What you need to Make Monster Cookies:

• Base: Colored Frosting (green, purple, orange) + OREO
• Eyes: Candy eyes in mixed sizes
• Teeth: Mini marshmallows, cut in half, or white sprinkles
• Extras: Licorice pieces for horns or antennae

How to make them:

1. Tint frosting in a few bright colors.
2. Twist an OREO open slightly, so the top wafer sits at an angle like an open mouth, and press a few marshmallow “teeth” into the cream. Or keep it closed and frost the top.
3. Frost the top wafer in your monster color.
4. Add one, two, or three (or more!) candy eyes.
5. Finish with licorice horns, antennae, or crazy hair.

Tip: Let kids design their own monsters. No two will look the same.

Mummies

The messier the wrapping, the better the mummy.

What you need to Make Mummy Cookies:

• Base: OREO
• Wrapping: White Candy Melts or White Frosting
• Eyes: Candy eyes

How to make them:

1. Place OREOs on a sheet of parchment paper.
2. Melt white candy melts and spoon them into a zip-top bag. Snip a very small corner.
3. Pipe lines back and forth across each cookie at different angles to look like bandages.
4. Before the coating sets, press two candy eyes into the gaps between the wrappings.
5. Let them set completely before moving.

Tip: For a fully white mummy, dip the whole OREO in candy melts first, let it set, then pipe the bandage lines on top.

How to Store Halloween Cookies

• Room temperature: Store decorated cookies in an airtight container in a single layer (or with parchment between layers) for up to 3 days.
• Make ahead: These can be made a day or two before your party. Wait until the frosting and coatings are completely set before covering.
• Avoid the heat: Keep them somewhere cool so the frosting and chocolate don’t soften.

Halloween Cookie FAQs

Can I use homemade cookies instead? Absolutely. Any round sandwich cookie or sturdy sugar cookie works. Store-bought just keeps things quick and easy. 

Where do I find candy eyes? Most grocery stores carry them in the baking aisle, especially around Halloween. Craft stores and online retailers have them year-round. In a pinch, use mini marshmallows with a dot of black gel. 

What’s the best frosting to use? Canned frosting works great and is the easiest option. If it feels too soft, stir in a spoonful of powdered sugar to thicken it so candy stays in place. 

Can I make these gluten-free? Yes. Use gluten-free OREOs and double-check the labels on your candy, since some licorice contains wheat. 

How many cookies does this make? As many as you want! One package of OREOs makes about 36 cookies, enough to make a few of each design for a party platter.

More Halloween Fun

• Halloween Cupcake Ideas
• Halloween Fruit Tray
• Easy Caramel Apples
• Halloween Crispy Cereal Treats
• Halloween: Mummy Dogs
• Halloween Truffles

Looking for more spooky treats? Set up a Halloween cookie decorating bar at your next party: put out plates of cookies, bowls of frosting, and all the candy toppings, and let everyone build their own creations. It doubles as a party activity and dessert all in one. Happy Halloween, and happy decorating!