Getting SPOOKY this year with a batch of Vegan Halloween Monster Cookies! These spooky sugar cookies combine three flavors- matcha, purple sweet potato, and charcoal- into Halloween cookies that are the perfect mix of scary & cute!
*Recipe shared October 2020 and updated October 2023*
The inspiration for these Halloween eyeball cookies actually came from combining my super popular Vegan Matcha Sugar Cookies and the Halloween Pinwheel Cookies I made last year. Since we have been celebrating all things sugar cookies this year, I figured why not make a spooky flavor to celebrate Halloween?!
P.S.- the idea of making sugar cookies in this Neapolitan style originally came from Constellation Inspiration who makes the most gorgeous triple-flavored sugar cookies!
Ingredients:
These cookies use the same base recipe as all my sugar cookie recipes but with a fun twist! (full ingredients in the recipe card)
Ingredients notes:
- Matcha powder: I recommend using Encha Matcha Powder
- Black cookie color: You can use activated food grade charcoal powder or black food coloring to get the deep black color in these cookies.
- Sweet Potato powder: I used Suncore Foods Purple Sweet Potato Powder
- These are the Edible eyeball sprinkles I used for this recipe
P.S.- these monster sugar cookies can actually be made with virtually any flavor! As you will see in the recipe, I used a different amount of powder for each flavor, so you will have to experiment with the quantity of powder for other flavors.
Steps to make Monster cookies
Make the base cookie dough
Start by creaming together the vegan butter and sugar until fluffy.
This step is crucial to incorporate air and structure into vegan cookies. You'll want to cream the butter and sugar together using a standing mixer or electric mixer until super fluffy.
After that, add in the flax egg and vanilla and whip for another 30 seconds. Then, add in the flour, baking powder, and salt and mix into a thick cookie dough.
Split dough & add flavors
To make this recipe as easy as possible, make a big batch of vegan sugar cookie dough first.
Then, split it into three separate bowls and mix the powder into each bowl by hand. It makes for less cleanup and is the most efficient way to make these cookies!
Chill dough for at least 30 minutes
For the absolute best cookie dough flavor always chill your dough! These cookies really only need 30 minutes to 1 hour of chill time and, believe me, it is worth the wait.
There are two reasons this is important:
- Chilling the dough helps the cookie dough firm up and ultimately makes it easier to form into a ball which is especially important for shaping these cookies.
- It actually makes the cookie sweeter! As the cookies sit the sugar absorbs some moisture from the dough and makes for a better-flavored cookie.
Shape the monster cookies
- After chilling the bowls of dough, remove from the fridge and form each flavor of dough into 12 small dough balls that are about 20 grams each (or around 1 Tbsp).
- Take three balls (one of each color) and press together. Then, gently roll the balls together into one larger ball between your palms.
- Next, roll in granulated sugar. Rolling in granulated sugar helps these cookies get that crinkly texture and prevents them from spreading too much.
- Add to a baking tray and press down with your palm. Then, stick a few eyeball sprinkles into each cookie.
Do I add the googly eye sprinkles before or after baking the cookies?
I decided to use edible googly eyes in these cookies, but found that some brands melted during baking if they spread to the edges!
Since mine held up pretty well, I added some before baking. However, I recommend adding a few extra eyeball sprinkles on top of each cookie right when they are out of the oven.
I found about 6-7 eyeball sprinkles per cookie is best!
Add to tray and bake
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and top with the cookie dough balls. Then, add to the oven and bake for 11-13 minutes.
My best tip for chewy monster cookies?
Don't over-bake them. Seriously!!
The cookies may look slightly under-baked right out of the oven, but as they are left to sit and cool on the tray they will continue cooking. This leads to gooey monster cookies that are nice and chewy inside!
FAQ & Substitutions:
Can I make these monster cookies gluten-free?
I haven't tried it personally, but a 1:1 Gluten-Free Flour mix like Bob's Red Mill may work! Subbing almond flour, coconut flour, or other flour substitutes 1:1 for this recipe will not work.
Can I make these cookies refined sugar-free?
When it comes to sugar cookies, I really don't recommend it as cane sugar not only adds sweetness but helps the cookies spread. Granulated cane sugar really works best for this recipe to give it the best flavor, texture, and color.
How do I store these vegan Halloween cookies?
The best part about these Halloween monster cookies is they can easily be prepped in advance for all your Halloween party needs! They can be stored in a closed container at room temperature for 2-3 days, in the fridge for 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
I highly recommend storing them in the freezer as it's the best way to keep the texture nice and chewy. Plus, they are easy to defrost- just let them sit on the counter at room temperature for about 30 minutes before eating.
I truly hope you love these Spooky Vegan Halloween Monster Cookies! They are perfectly delicious while still being cute & festive for Halloween. Enjoy!
-TSG
More vegan cookie recipes you will love:
If you loved this recipe, please leave a 5-star review on the recipe card. I always appreciate your feedback and support! You can also follow along on my Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Pinterest, or sign up for our newsletter!
Halloween Monster Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup vegan butter
- 1 cup organic sugar ¾ cup for the cookies and ¼ cup to roll the cookies before baking
- 1.5 flax eggs 1.5 tablespoon (12 grams) ground flaxseed mixed with 4.5 tablespoon water
- 2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon matcha powder
- 2 teaspoon sweet potato powder
- 1 teaspoon activated charcoal powder or a few drops of black food coloring
- ¼ cup edible eyeball sprinkles use more or less depending on preference
Instructions
Make & chill the cookie dough:
- Add the butter and ¾ cup of the sugar to a mixing bowl and cream together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Then, add in the flax eggs and vanilla and whip together for 30 more seconds to combine.
- Next, add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt to the mixing bowl. Mix everything together until a thick, yet slightly sticky, cookie batter forms.
- Divide the dough into three equal portions. Then, add the matcha powder to one bowl, the sweet potato powder to the second bowl, and the charcoal powder or black food coloring to a third bowl. Cover all three bowls with plastic wrap and add to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes- 1 hour.
Bake the cookies:
- About 10 minutes before the cookies are ready to be removed from the fridge, cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350F.
- Next, remove the bowls of dough from the fridge. Scoop the cookie dough into 1 tablespoon balls (around 20 grams per dough ball). Then take 1 tablespoon of each flavor dough (matcha, sweet potato, and charcoal), press together, and gently roll into a ball between your palms. Then, roll each cookie dough ball in the bowl of the remaining ¼ cup sugar that was set aside until coated.
- Place the cookie dough balls onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Then, slightly press each dough ball down with your palm. Make sure that each cookie is kept about 2 inches apart since they will spread slightly while baking. Then, press a few eyeball sprinkles into each cookie (making sure to save some to add after baking).
- Add the tray to the oven and bake the cookies for 11-13 minutes until the bottoms are lightly browned and the cookie edges are fully cooked with soft centers. The cookies will continue baking after they are removed from the oven so the centers should be soft and just cooked, but not glossy or raw, when they are removed from the oven.
- Remove the cookie tray from the oven and immediately tap the tray on the counter to produce a more “wrinkly” cookie. Then, while the cookies are still warm, press in any remaining googly eyeball sprinkles so they stick. At this point, you can also swirl the warm cookies between a round pastry/cookie cutter to make them round.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. The cookies will be soft and puffy out of the oven and will naturally deflate a little while cooling. After 5 minutes, move to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. Enjoy!
Notes
- These cookies can be made in any flavor. Simply sub the matcha, sweet potato, or charcoal powder for a flavored of your choice.
- Googly eye sprinkles will melt in the oven, so only add them before baking if you are okay with some being melted. The rest should be added directly after baking for the best results.
- Cookies can be stored at room temperature for 2-3 days, in the fridge for 1 week, or in the freezer up to 1 month. I highly recommend storing in the freezer as it's the best way to keep the texture nice and chewy!
Jane Doe says
PERFECTION
I made some changes, though. I used allulose sweetener (brand is NOW Real Food Slender Zero Organic Allulose) instead of cane sugar and it still worked perfectly. I also used 2 teaspoons of charcoal powder instead of 1 to get it extra dark and it was perfect. They look and are so so so yummy I’m definitely making more of your cookie recipes!! Oh also, put the googly eyes in when you pull them out as she suggested!! They completely melt if you put them in before