These Vegan Halloween Spooky Cookies are the perfect treat to kick off the Halloween season. They have a deliciously soft and chewy chocolate cookie base, chocolate ganache, and a royal icing spiderweb! They are easy to make, only require a few pantry-friendly ingredients, and are great for all ages to enjoy!
Black cocoa gives these spooky cookies an intense chocolate flavor that is not too sweet—kind of like a fudgy Oreo cookie. It gives them their dramatic color without using additional dyes, and it doesn’t stain your teeth, which makes them perfect for Halloween.
These cookies are not only delicious but also really easy to make—the dough comes together quickly! Once made, you can form, bake, and decorate them. You can also make these cookies with my other easy Halloween recipes, such as dirt cups or Halloween cheesecake brownies.
✨ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It's easy to make! The cookie dough easily comes together, and you can bake them right away—no chilling required!
- They are eye-catching. Instead of using dyes, these are naturally colored using black cocoa to create a deep and intense color. I also used black cocoa. It's in my black velvet cupcakes!
- It's fun to make with the kids. Have the family join in to decorate these vegan halloween spooky cookies, and let them decorate them however they want.
✏️ Ingredient Notes
- Black cocoa powder - is the most crucial ingredient for these spooky cookies. It has a deep chocolate flavor and is naturally black without using dyes! I love using The Cocoa Trader’s black cocoa powder.
- Sugar - In this recipe, we’ll use both granulated and brown sugar. Using both sugars will result in a soft and chewy cookie!
- Dairy-free milk - I love using soy milk in baked recipes. Soy milk contains fat and proteins that give vegan baked goods their structure and texture.
- Semisweet chocolate - Use high-quality, vegan-friendly chocolate that is easy to melt. My favorite is Guittard Semisweet Wafers.
- Powdered sugar - We’ll use powdered sugar to make royal icing for the “spider webs.”
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
📝 Substitutions & Variations
- Use vegan white chocolate instead of royal icing for the spiderwebs!
- You can use Dutch-processed powder if you can’t find black cocoa powder. It won’t have an intense chocolate flavor, but it will still taste great!
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
🍴 How to Make Vegan Halloween Spooky Cookies
Top Tip: Use a food scale to weigh out the ingredients. That way, you'll only need one or two bowls, and you won't have to wash a bunch of measuring cups!
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350° F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside until ready to use. Next, whisk together the flour, black cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
Step 2: In a large bowl, using a stand mixer or hand mixer, on high speed, cream the softened vegan butter, white sugar, and brown sugar together until fluffy.
Step 3: Add the lukewarm dairy-free milk and vanilla extract to the bowl, and mix until well combined.
Step 4: Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix them at low speed. It'll look like it's almost too soft to shape, but that is the consistency we want!
Step 5: Scoop the cookie dough into roughly 2-tablespoon scoops onto a parchment-lined baking tray, aiming for around 14 cookies. I used a medium-sized cookie scoop. Without adding a lot of pressure, roll the dough into a ball and gently flatten it into a thick disc.
Step 6: Bake for 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool on the pan for 10 minutes. Then, transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. Allow the cookies to cool completely before decorating.
Step 7: Combine the chocolate and dairy-free milk in a heat-proof bowl. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds, and mix it. Heat it once more for 30 more minutes, and stir until all the chips have melted and you have a smooth and thick consistency. Set aside until ready to use.
Step 8: In a small bowl, add the sifted powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and dairy-free milk. Whisk until well combined. It will look like it won’t mix well initially, but that’s normal. Continue to whisk until it does. You should get a pretty thick consistency. If not, add more powdered sugar. Fit a small piping tip into a piping bag and pour the icing into it. Set aside until ready to use.
Step 9: Working with one cookie at a time, take about a tablespoon of the ganache and dollop it over the cookie. Gently smooth it over with an offset spatula or a butter knife. Repeat for the rest. Allow the chocolate to harden before moving on.
Step 10: Next, pipe your royal icing over the chocolate in spider webs or whatever design you want. Repeat for the rest. Allow the icing to set before serving. Enjoy!
⭐ Expert Tips
- Use room-temperature or lukewarm ingredients! In a recipe like this, you want to start with room-temperature or lukewarm ingredients, such as butter and dairy-free milk. This will help the ingredients mix and combine well.
- Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer. Creaming the butter and sugar will take a lot of arm work, so use an electric hand mixer to make things easier!
- Allow the cookies to cool before decorating. This will just ensure that the chocolate will not melt off.
- This cookie dough may appear very soft, and you might think it won’t hold its shape, but it will! The butter makes it slightly greasy, which actually helps prevent stickiness. When rolling the dough into balls, be gentle and avoid applying too much pressure.
💭 Common Questions
I haven’t tried it myself, but I think you can get away with using a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour. If you’ve tried it, please let me know!
Dutch-processed cocoa powder undergoes alkalization to remove its acidity, producing a more mellow flavor. Black cocoa is an ultra-alkalized Dutch-processed cocoa powder, giving it that deep color and intense chocolate flavor.
It could be flour that is incorrectly measured. I use a food scale to measure all my ingredients; it’s more accurate than using cups. It improves your chances for success and lessens the room for error. My favorite scale to use is Escali!
🥣 Storage & Reheating
- Room temperature
I recommend storing the undecorated cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week. - Chilling Instructions
If you decorate your cookies with chocolate, store them in the fridge for 1 to 2 weeks. - Freezing Instructions
Freeze thoroughly cooled cookies in a freezer-safe container for up to 1 month. You can freeze the cookie dough and bake it up to a month later.! Let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight, scoop it, and bake.
❤️ More Recipes You'll Love
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Halloween Spooky Cookies
Equipment
- Measuring spoons
- Stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Silicone spatula
- Medium cookie scoop or a measuring tablespoon
- Parchment Paper or silpat mat
- 2 Rimmed baking sheet
- Wire cooling rack
- Piping bag or squeeze bottle
- Small piping tip skip if using a squeeze bottle
Ingredients
Cookies
- 140 grams vegan butter (softened at room temperature)
- 300 grams all-purpose flour
- 25 grams black cocoa powder (substitute for Dutch-processed cocoa powder)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 100 grams granulated sugar
- 100 grams light brown sugar
- 90 grams dairy-free milk (lukewarm, I used soy)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Ganache
- 60 grams Semi-sweet Baker's Chocolate (chopped)
- 30 grams dairy-free milk (I used soy)
Royal Icing
- 80 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons dairy-free milk (I used soy)
Instructions
Black Cocoa Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350° F and line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside until ready to use.
- Whisk together the flour, black cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium-sized bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, using a stand mixer or hand mixer, on high speed, cream the softened vegan butter, granulated sugar, and light brown sugar together until fluffy.
- Add the lukewarm dairy-free milk and vanilla extract to the bowl, and mix until well combined.
- Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix them at low speed. You want a very soft cookie dough consistency. It'll look like it's almost too soft to shape, but that is the consistency we want!
- Scoop the cookie dough into roughly 2-tablespoon scoops or a medium-sized cookie scoop onto a parchment-lined baking tray, aiming for around 14 cookies. Without adding a lot of pressure, roll the dough into a ball and gently flatten it into a thick disc. See notes
- Bake for 18 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool on the pan for 10 minutes. Then, transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. Allow the cookies to cool completely before decorating.
Ganache
- Combine the chocolate and dairy-free milk in a heat-proof bowl. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds, and mix it. Heat it once more for 30 more seconds, and stir until all the chips have melted and you have a smooth and thick consistency. Set aside until ready to use.
Royal Icing
- In a small bowl, add the sifted powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and dairy-free milk. Whisk until well combined. It will look like it won’t mix well initially, but that’s normal. Continue to whisk until it does. Try not to add too much milk, you want a pretty thick consistency where it holds it shape. If it's too runny add more powdered sugar. Fit a small piping tip into a piping bag and pour the icing into it. Set aside until ready to use.
Decorating
- Working with one cookie at a time, take about a tablespoon of the ganache and dollop it over the cookie. Gently smooth it over with an offset spatula or a butter knife. Repeat for the rest. Allow the chocolate to harden before moving on.
- Pipe your royal icing over the chocolate in spider webs or whatever design you want. Repeat for the rest. Allow the icing to set before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
- Measure your flour correctly. I test my recipes, 100% in grams. A common reason baked goods fail is incorrectly measured flour. I always recommend using a scale for accuracy when baking. This greatly improves your chance for success and lessens room for error.
- Use room-temperature or lukewarm ingredients! In a recipe like this, you want to start with room-temperature or lukewarm ingredients, such as butter and dairy-free milk. This will help the ingredients mix and combine well.
- Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer. Creaming the butter and sugar will take a lot of arm work, so use an electric hand mixer to make things easier!
- Allow the cookies to cool before decorating. This will just ensure that the chocolate will not melt off.
- You can use melted vegan white chocolate instead of royal icing for the spiderwebs!
- This cookie dough may appear very soft, and you might think it won’t hold its shape, but it will! The butter makes it slightly greasy, which actually helps prevent stickiness. When rolling the dough into balls, be gentle and avoid applying too much pressure.
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