Halloween Spider Cookies

The kids are going to go crazy over these super cute Halloween Spider Cookies. Grab your kids and have fun making these for Halloween!

Halloween is not all about gore, blood and scary monsters or at least that’s what the kids say. These Halloween Spider Cookies are fun to make, taste amazing, and look super cute too! They will make a great addition to your Halloween dessert table along with a few more of my other favorites like Halloween Werewolf Paws, Rice Krispie Halloween Bundt Cake, and Halloween Monster Cookies.

The dough for these cookies can be whipped up in about 10-15 minutes and is made from basic ingredients like; flour, leaveners, butter, shortening, sugars, salt, an egg, pure vanilla extract and peanut butter. Mixed all together these ingredients render a creamy, soft, melt in your mouth cookie. The fun part begins when you decorate these cookies and turn them into cute little spiders. And as you can see, I was having trouble deciding what ones I liked best, so I made three different versions.

Grab your kids and enjoy decorating these tasty Halloween treats. Let us know what one you think is the cutest Halloween Spider. Happy baking and Happy Halloween!

Tools to help you make the best cookies

• Use a good mixer: if you like to bake, invest in a good mixer like the Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer. However, a good hand mixer can be used as well. 
• Invest in good, baking sheets: using the right baking sheets make a huge difference when baking cookies. For most of my cookies I use the Doughmakers Baking Sheet. This is my go-to baking sheet and it’s amazing! The cookies do not stick and can be easily removed. No parchment paper needed. Makes a great present for any baker!
• Wire racks: if you haven’t invested in a wire rack or two, you should. Placing your baked goods on wire racks help with both cooling and eliminating carryover baking. 
• Thin spatula: a thin spatula will help you to remove your cookies from the baking sheet with ease. It will also help eliminate cookie distortion when removing! 

How to decorate these Halloween Spider Cookies

As you can see, I did three different versions:

• Version 1: one large peanut butter cup on each cookie with three frosting legs
• Version 2: one mini peanut butter cup on each cookie with three frosting legs
• Version 3: two mini peanut butter cups on each cookie with four frosting legs

In addition, I only had these Wilton sugar pearls in my pantry, so I used them for the eyes. For each eye, I colored on a little black dot with my black edible food writer. Unfortunately, I usually have these candy eyeballs in my pantry, but I ran out so I improvised with what I had. However, I still think they came out great!

Halloween Spider Cookies-Ingredients

Peanut Butter Cookies

• 1/4 cup butter (softened)
• 1/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt

Chocolate Frosting

• 1 tbsp butter (softened)
• 1 oz Baker’s unsweetened chocolate (melted)
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 3 tbsp milk
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Decorations

• 1 bag peanut butter cups (mini unwrapped or regular peanut butter cups )
• 1 package candy eyeballs or Wilton sugar pearls
• Wilton edible food writer (if using sugar pearls)

Instructions

Peanut Butter Cookies

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a hand mixer, beat butter and vegetable shortening until combined.
• Add granulated sugar and dark brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
• Add egg and pure vanilla extract and beat.
• Beat in creamy peanut butter until incorporated.
• Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and beat until combined. 
• Scoop dough into 1 inch balls and roll dough balls until they are smooth and even. 
• If using Doughmakers Baking Sheet, place dough balls on the baking sheet 3 inches apart. If not using Doughmakers Baking Sheet, line the baking sheet with parchment paper first before dropping dough balls onto the baking sheet.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes for a softer cookie or until the edges are golden brown. Bake 12-14 minutes for a crunchier cookie.
• Remove from oven and let cookies stand on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes. Push in the peanut butter cups then move to a wire rack to cool. 

Chocolate Frosting

• Melt Baker’s chocolate in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. 
• Using a hand mixer, beat butter, melted chocolate, powdered sugar, milk and pure vanilla extract until smooth and creamy. If thick, add a little milk at a time to get desired consistency. 
• Place frosting in a ziplock bag. Cut a tiny hole in the corner of the bag then pipe 6-8 legs on each cookie. 
• Place a small dot of frosting for the eyes and press in eyeballs. 
• Let dry.
• Serve and enjoy!
• Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days. To freeze, place in an airtight container with wax paper between layers for up to 3 months.

For more Halloween treats try:

Easy Harvest Snack Mix

Frankenstein Rice Krispie Treats

Halloween Sugar Cookies

Festive Halloween M&M Cookies

Rice Krispie Halloween Bundt Cake

Halloween Monster Cookies

No-Bake Cheesecake Brain

Halloween Werewolf Paws