These colorful hand-painted Hocus Pocus Cookies will enchant your family and friends this Halloween. Have fun making, decorating, and eating these magical cut-out sugar cookies.
Add one egg at a time mixing each until incorporated.
Scrape down the bowl making sure everything is well mixed.
Pour in the vanilla and almond extract and mix just until incorporated.
Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until the dough comes together.
Then, use your hands to pull the dough together into a ball.
Roll ⅓rd of the cookie dough out to ¼-inch thickness.
Dip the cookie cutter stamp insert into flour then tap it on the counter a few times to remove all the excess flour.
Press the stamp inside the cookie cutter and into the cookie dough.
Lift the stamp off the dough then remove the cookie cutter.
Repeat cutting more cookies out of the dough.
If you rolled your cookies out on a silicone mat, you can freeze them for 5-10 minutes, then easily peel them off the mat before placing them on the baking trays. This method keeps your cookies perfectly shaped!
Once the cookies have cooled, prepare the cookie paint by mixing food coloring into an egg yolk.
Mix 1 drop of yellow food coloring into the egg yolk to make yellow cookie paint.
Mix 1-3 drops of red food coloring into the egg yolk to make red/orange.
Mix 1 drop of purple food coloring into the egg yolk to make purple paint.
Finally, add 1-5 drops of black food coloring to make black cookie paint.
Use food-use-only paint brushes to paint the egg yolk paint into the indentations in the cookie. Paint Sarah's hair yellow, Winefred's hair red/orange, and Mary's hair purple (or black). Then, paint the letters using black.
Chill the painted cookies in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes. This will ensure they maintain their shape while baking.
While your cookies are chilling, preheat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit (177° C).
Bake the cookies for 12-16 minutes, depending on the size cookie cutter you used. Bake until the tops no longer look shiny and wet and the edges have set. For crispier cookies, bake until the edges become golden brown.
Serve and enjoy!
Store your hand-painted Hocus Pocus cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Freeze the cookies in an airtight container or zip-top bag for up to 6 months.
It's best to weigh your flour in order to get the most accurate measurement. If you do not have a kitchen scale, spoon the flour into your measuring cups, then scrape across the top of the cup using a straight edge to remove the excess flour.
Soften the butter until it is just soft enough to press your finger into it leaving an impression. To soften butter quickly, cut it into small tablespoon-size pieces, and set them in a single layer in the mixing bowl for about 20 minutes. They should be ready then.
For even baking, bake one tray at a time on the middle rack and rotate the pan halfway through the baking cycle.
Start by adding 1 drop of food coloring to your egg yolk, then add more as needed. To dull the yellow tone add a tiny drop (using a toothpick) of purple to your colored egg yolk. Do not mix in any egg white or your paint will be too runny.
Hocus Pocus Cookies https://hungryhappenings.com/hocus-pocus-cookies/