OCTOBER HAS LANDED – in case you hadn’t heard.

Meaning it’s time for fuzzy blankets, scary movies and the two official food groups of fall: soup and cookies! (though not always in that order)

But if there’s anything I’ve learned from cookie baking so far, it’s that a stand mixer is not only chic but a total game-changer…and our oven is utter trash.

TRASH, I SAY

I know there’s plenty of you guys out there that still rent, too. Which is fine and all – except when you get stuck with a 30-year-old oven. And I’m NOT talking about the type that’s so well made it lasts forever.

Alas, this snuggly baking season I knew something had to be done. We’ve had enough of toying with temperature and guessing how much extra time to tack onto recipes. So in true Alton Brown fashion, we finally rigged up a probe thermometer to take charge of the heat before us.

And luckily, it worked! So say hello to fall and the fun Halloween-themed recipes that come along with it. Starting with some ultra glam, amazingly cute, bat-shaped sugar cookies!

Let’s be real, bats are the true self-care icons. Avoiding daylight and hugging themselves as they sleep – I mean, talk about serious #goals. So to kick off this year’s festivities, we’re embracing that spooky sentiment AND exploring a simpler alternative to those expertly iced cookies you see all over Instagram.

Which mark my words, we’re totally working up to. But in the meantime, just making the most of sanding sugar and micro-sprinkles that still can elevate the aesthetic – no Amber Spiegel skills required.

Shall we?

// INGREDIENTS //

FOR THE COOKIE DOUGH

+ 2 1/8 c all-purpose flour

+ 1/8 c cornstarch

+ 1/2 tsp baking powder

+ 1/4 tsp Kosher salt

+ 3/4 c unsalted butter (softened)

+ 3/4 c granulated sugar

+ 1 large egg (beaten & room temp)

+ a splash of milk (beaten into the egg)

+ 2 tsp vanilla extract

+ a bat-shaped cookie cutter

FOR THE ROYAL ICING/DECORATION

+ 2 c powdered sugar

+ 1 1/2 tbsp meringue powder

+ 4 to 6 tbsp water (room temp)

+ your choice colors of sanding sugar

// THE COOKIES //

++ Whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt together in a medium mixing bowl.

++ Throw the softened butter and sugar into the bowl of your stand mixer with its paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high for 3 to 5 minutes until pale, light and super fluffy (all of the air will make for incredibly soft, pillowy cookies).

++ Add the beaten egg/milk and vanilla extract to the butter/sugar and mix for another minute on medium-high.

++ Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on a slow speed JUST until combined into a smooth dough (you do NOT want to over-mix here – unless you love tough cookies and hate fun).

++ Throw down a piece of lightly floured parchment paper and spoon half of the dough onto it. Form it into a ball and ((g e n t l y)) roll it out to a 1/4-inch thickness. Set aside.

++ Do the same thing with the other half of dough, sandwich a piece of plastic between the two, wrap it all in plastic and stick into the refrigerator to chill for at least 1 to 2 hours (& up to two days, so I’m told).

++ Once you’re ready to bake it up, preheat your oven to 350℉ and remove the two sheets of dough from the fridge.

++ Line some room-temp baking sheets with more parchment paper (time to buy stock in Reynolds?) and begin cutting your bats. If the dough sticks to the cutter, ~~carefully~~ push the shape onto the baking sheet. If it stays on the parchment paper, use a spatula to transfer it to the sheet.

++ Make sure the cookies are placed an inch or two from one another (even though they won’t spread) and bake each sheet one at a time for 9 to 11 minutes until the bats start to lightly brown around the edges (seriously, it’s WAY better to under-bake than over-bake them).

++ Remove sheet from the oven and throw in the next round. Let the cookies cool for a few minutes on the sheet, then use a spatula to transfer them to a wire rack for the ~full~ cool ahead of icing.

// THE ICING // 

PSA in advance: consistency is EVERYTHING

++ Add the powdered sugar, meringue powder and water to a medium mixing bowl and whisk by hand for about 5 minutes. (NOTE: plenty of people use a mixer for this. I personally like to do it by hand – not only for the workout – but because it gives you way more control over the sometimes-tricky consistency.)

++ Test the consistency of your icing, which when lifted up should drizzle back down and smooth out within 10 seconds. If too thick, add a touch (and I mean t o u c h) more water. If too thin, add some additional sugar. 

++ Load the icing into a squeeze bottle or piping bag and ice the completely cooled cookies all over.

++ Figure out your color combos of sanding sugar and sprinkle accordingly while the icing is still wet. 

++ Let dry & ENJOY!

Consider this the first of many more spooky sweets to come. Until then…

xxAA

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