Move over Flourless Fudge Cookies, there’s a new sheriff in town!
These candy-studded chocolate cookies are a new fav at The Mouse House!
Go figure, right? We do live in Salem, Massachusetts, aka Witch City, after all.
These cookies are a riff on my traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe.
I tweaked a few things, threw in some dark cocoa powder to dial up the fudge factor, then added as many Halloween-y colored chips as I could muster—plus some mini Reeses Pieces candies just for good measure.
The result?
Quite possibly the ultimate Halloween cookie!
These cookies are loaded with dark chocolate goodness, and studded with a combo of white chocolate chips, Halloween (or pumpkin spice, up to you) chips, peanut butter chips, Reeses Pieces, and, of course, regular dark chocolate chips.
I mean, seriously, just look at this situation on my counter:
Honestly? Use any combination of chips you like.
See what you can find in the seasonal baking section that looks good to you.
Hate white chocolate (or another kind of chips included)?
Easy! Just leave ’em out. These are your cookies, after all. 😉
If you want to skip all the weird Halloween-flavored products, these would also be great with a simpler mix of white, peanut butter, and dark chocolate chips.
What kind of cocoa powder is best?
Good question.
These cookies get their extra dark color from dark chocolate cocoa powder.
For this batch, I used Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa, which is readily available in the baking aisle of most major supermarkets.
That’s this stuff:
You could also use black cocoa powder.
What’s that?
Black cocoa powder has gone through extreme Dutch processing, which gives it an intense chocolate flavor and extra dark color.
If you want to try it, King Arthur Flour sells one here.
You could also mix a dark cocoa with some black cocoa. Totally up to you!
Most any kind of dark cocoa powder will give you cookie dough that’s black as midnight:
Whatever kind you choose, be sure to get unsweetened cocoa powder, NOT instant hot cocoa mix (which is loaded with sugar and other stuff).
What’s the secret to picture perfect cookies?
After you scoop out the cookies and have them ready to go on your pans, dot the tops with some extra chips.
Just plop them on top, then press down lightly so they stick, just like decorations.
Check it out:
When they bake up, they’ll mostly keep their shape and position, so you have picture-perfect, perfectly spooky Halloween cookies:
Alrighty, let’s get baking!
If you want to cook along, you’ll find my step-by-step photo recipe below.
Want to skip all that jazz? No problem. Scroll all the way to the bottom of this post for a printable recipe card.
Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Halloween Cookies
For the cookie dough
1 cup butter (that’s 2 sticks in the U.S.)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
2/3 cup dark or black cocoa powder (be sure to use unsweetened)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Pinch of kosher salt
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
3/4 cup peanut butter chips
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup Halloween or pumpkin spice chips
3/4 cup mini Reese’s Pieces candies (find ’em in the baking aisle)
For decorating the cookie tops
An extra handful of each of the chips above
An extra handful of mini Reese’s Pieces candies
Makes 2-3 dozen cookies, depending on how large you scoop them!
Do a little prep
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set them aside.
Preheat your oven to 350-degrees F.
Make the cookie dough
Put the butter, white sugar, and dark brown sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl if you’re doing it by hand).
Beat until uniform and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Beat in the eggs and vanilla until your mixture is uniform and fluffy.
Add the flour, dark (or black) cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
Beat until just combined and uniform. Your dough should be really dark, thick, and fairly stiff.
Throw in the white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, dark chocolate chips, Halloween chips, and mini Reese’s Pieces candies.
Mix until just combined.
Scoop your cookie dough
Grab your prepped pans. Use a large soup spoon, and scoop out your cookies.
Roll each spoonful of dough between your palms until you have a rough ball.
Set the balls, spaced out, on your pan.
The dough is going to spread and flatten as the cookies bake.
Don’t put more than 6 on a pan.
Once you have your cookies formed, press a few of each kind of chip (and some Reese’s Pieces) onto the top of each ball of dough.
Your cookie dough balls will wind up looking like little Halloween porcupines.
Bake your cookies
Pop your pan into your pre-heated, 350-degree F oven.
Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until done.
Why the time range? Everyone’s oven is a little different.
Just keep an eye on them.
If you scooped huge cookies, yours may need a few minutes more.
When your cookies are done, remove them from the oven and place the pans on a wire rack for about 5 minutes to let them finish setting up.
After roughly 5 minutes, transfer the cookies off the pans and onto the racks with a spatula to cool.
Serve and enjoy!
We love these fresh out of the oven with an ice cold glass of milk.
They’d also make a great base for an ice-cream cookie sandwich.
Just soften up a quart of your favorite chocolate ice cream, sandwich a big scoop between two (completely cool) cookies, and freeze again ’til solid.
Enjoy and happy haunting!
Stay tuned for a lot more Halloween deliciousness soon from spooky Salem, Massachusetts!
The Hungry Mouse
Yields 2-3 dozen
This is quite possibly the ultimate Halloween cookie! They're a riff on my traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe. They're loaded with dark chocolate goodness, and studded with a combo of white chocolate chips, Halloween (or pumpkin spice, up to you) chips, peanut butter chips, Reese's Pieces, and, of course, regular dark chocolate chips.
Save RecipeIngredients
Instructions
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set them aside. Preheat your oven to 350-degrees F.
- Put the butter, white sugar, and dark brown sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl if you're doing it by hand). Beat until uniform and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Beat in the eggs and vanilla until your mixture is uniform and fluffy.
- Add the flour, dark (or black) cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat until just combined and uniform. Your dough should be really dark, thick, and fairly stiff.
- Throw in the white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, dark chocolate chips, Halloween chips, and mini Reese's Pieces candies. Mix until just combined.
- Use a large soup spoon, and scoop out your cookies. Roll each spoonful of dough between your palms until you have a rough ball. Set the balls, spaced out, on your pan.
- Once you have your cookies formed, press a few of each kind of chip (and some Reese's Pieces) onto the top of each ball of dough.
- Pop your pan into your pre-heated, 350-degree F oven. Bake for 10-13 minutes, or until done.
- When your cookies are done, remove them from the oven and place the pans on a wire rack for about 5 minutes to let them finish setting up.
- After roughly 5 minutes, transfer the cookies off the pans and onto the racks with a spatula to cool.
- Serve and enjoy! We love these fresh out of the oven with an ice cold glass of milk. They'd also make a great base for an ice-cream cookie sandwich.
