Adorable, simple, and spooky, these Monster Eye Cookies are a fun way to ring in the Halloween season. All you need is gel coloring, a white cake mix, candy eyes, and a few standard baking ingredients!
Table of contents
Halloween Cookies
Y’all, Iโm already thinking of Halloween! Every year I seem to start talking about it sooner and sooner. At this rate, next year, Iโll want to begin the spooky season around St. Patrickโs Day, ha!
One of my favorite things to do every Halloween is to think of a new tasty treat I can bake for my favorite people. Everyone loves fun Halloween dessert ideas.
These vanilla-flavored Monster Eye Cookies are cute as all can be, colorful, melt-in-your-mouth, and super easy to make. I wonder why I never thought of them before?!
Best of all, you can get the kids involved in baking them, then wrap them up in a care package for your favorite faraway friends, or give them out on Halloween night, or maybe just sneak them all when no oneโs looking, then blame it on a ghost. (I wonโt say I HAVENโT done that before!)
Arenโt they the cutest thing youโve ever seen?! Give this Halloween cookies recipe a try if youโre looking for a simple and fun Halloween dessert recipe this year!
Monster Eye Cookies: Ingredients & Equipment
For this Monster Eye Cookies recipe, you will need …
Ingredients
- butter – most baked goods need a โfatโ of some kind, and in these eyeball cookies, butter is it! It contributes to texture and taste.
- vanilla extract – vanilla extract enhances the flavor of the other ingredients in cookies, cakes, etc.
- eggs act as a binder in any cookie or cake recipe (besides, most white cake mix requires them). Make sure yours is room temperature!
- cream cheese – if youโve never baked before, cream cheese might seem like an unusual ingredient. BUT, if you want super moist cookies, you want to use cream cheese!!
- white cake mix – this is the base of your cookie. You can get the boxed stuff at the store! Donโt follow the instructions on the box, though. Instead, follow this recipe!
- gel food coloring – get your favorite Halloween colors, orange, purple, black, and green! Just remember that bright colors work best here.
- powdered sugar – youโll roll your cookie dough in these before baking them.
- candy eyeballs – you can find these at a party store, a craft store, or probably even at the grocery store at certain times of the year!! These are your Halloween decor.
Equipment
- cookie sheet – lined with parchment paper.
- electric mixer and mixing bowls – for making your cookie batter.
- small bowls – youโll need a few of these for your food coloring, depending on how many colors you use.
- cookie scoop – useful for making little cookie dough balls!
How to make Monster Eye Cookies
*SEE THE PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE*
First, you will preheat the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and set it aside.
Next, prepare the cookie dough by combining the butter, vanilla, egg, cream cheese, and cake mix.
Next, separate the dough into bowls by the number of colors you want to use and add your food gel.
Before baking, you’ll want to chill the dough. Once chilled, you’ll roll the dough into balls before rolling the balls into powdered sugar. Place the cookie dough balls onto the prepared baking sheet and slightly press down.
Next, bake the cookies. Once you remove the cookies from the oven, immediately place the candy eyes onto the cookie, pressing down slightly to make sure they adhere.
Monster Eye Cookies: FAQs
I actually donโt recommend it since it tends to change the consistency and texture of your batter. Gel food coloring is good when youโre going for a soft, squishy cookie!
Absolutely! Do everything in the recipe until the powdered sugar part, then cover the dough with plastic wrap. You can store it in the fridge for about 2 days before it loses freshness. You can also freeze the cookie dough balls for about 3 months.
After the cookies have been baked, theyโll remain fresh in the fridge for about a week. (As always, use an airtight container!!) In the freezer, again, theyโll stay โgoodโ for 3 months.
Theyโll melt in the oven! Monster Cookies are the best cute-ugly, but you donโt want the eyes to run all over the place.
Other recipes you may enjoy
Monster Eye Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ยฝ cup butter room temp
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg room temp
- 1 package cream cheese 8 oz.
- 1 box white cake mix 15.25 oz.
- 2 – 4 gel food coloring brighter colors work best
- powdered sugar
- candy eyes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- With an electric mixer, beat the butter, vanilla, egg, and cream cheese. Mix in the white cake mix.
- Divide the batter into the number of small bowls equal to the number of different colors that you want. Add food coloring to each of the bowls. Mix each color well.
- Cover and chill each bowl of batter for 20-30 minutes.
- Using a small cookie scoop, make the cookie balls.
- Roll each cookie ball into powdered sugar. As each cookie is rolled, place the cookie ball on the lined cookie sheet. Use your clean hand and press the cookie dough ball down slightly to flatten.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.ย
- Remove from the oven. While the cookies are still warm, place the candy eyeballs in the center of the cookie.
Notes
- After the cookies have been baked, theyโll remain fresh in the fridge for about a week. (As always, use an airtight container!!) In the freezer, again, theyโll stay โgoodโ for 3 months.
- D๏ปฟON'T add the candy eyes before baking – theyโll melt in the oven!
Nutrition
Please note that the nutritional information listed on this page is an estimation based on the products I used. Ingredients and nutritional information can vary significantly between brands. Always be sure to read labels. Please verify that a recipe fits your needs before using it. Nutrition info may contain errors, so please verify it independently. Likewise, recipes may contain errors, so please use your common sense when following them.
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