These cute little Candy Corn Sugar Cookies are just shaped like the popular Halloween candy. It's an eggless, dairy-free recipe too. So, everyone can enjoy them!
It's hard to imagine, but some people just don't have a passion for this nostalgic candy. Others have never tried it because of their diet. Problem solved. We didn't use actual candy corn in the recipe!
Even if you're not in the "I Love Candy Corn" camp, you can celebrate with the rest of us on October 30th (National Candy Corn Day.)
We used egg-replacer and plant-based butter too. You can make this Halloween cookie with egg. But, just like all of our Cookie Recipes, they've been tested both ways.
This kid-friendly recipe is perfect for parties. Be sure to add Harry Potter Golden Snitch Truffles and Halloween Fudge to your dessert table too!
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Ingredients and Substitutions
Here's what you'll need:
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour - This recipe was not tested with any other types of flour. It should work with white whole wheat flour.
- Plant butter sticks or unsalted butter - You'll find soft margarine alternatives and firm sticks, use the sticks!
- Egg Replacer or egg - we used a mixture of baking powder, vinegar, water (see recipe card for details)
- Red and Yellow Food Coloring
- Vanilla Extract and Salt
- Sugar and Powdered Sugar - Because of the way it's processed, not all sugar is vegan. This article by PETA may be helpful in selecting a product. If you're accustomed to substituting with sugar-free alternatives, they will work too.
- Note that the powdered sugar is used to coat the tip in white icing. The extra step does not have to be taken.
See recipe card for quantities.
Technique
Use this technique to color and shape any cookie dough that will holds it shape while baking like candy corn. You can even use pre-made dough from the store that’s designed for cut-out shapes.
- Prepare the dough and divide it into 3 equal sections.
- Tint one section of dough yellow by making a well in the dough and placing one or two droplets of yellow food coloring in the middle. Knead the dough until the coloring is uniform throughout.
- Tint the second section orange by making a well in the dough and placing one droplet of yellow food coloring and one droplet of red food coloring in the middle. Knead the dough until the coloring is fully distributed.
- Note: One section will not be colored at all. Remember to start with just one or two droplets and then mix. You can always add more if you need to.
- Line a 9 x 5 loaf pan with plastic wrap and spritz with cooking spray. Layer the dough in the pan as follows: plain, orange and then yellow, pressing each layer down before adding the next. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
- Once chilled, turn the dough out onto a work surface and slice into ⅜ inch slices. Lay each slice on its side and cut it into candy corn shaped triangles.
- Bake at 350 °F on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 7-9 minutes. Remove from oven before the cookie is brown or crisp. It will continue to firm up after you take it out of the oven. Allow the cookies to cool for a minute or two on the baking sheet and then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tip: Watch the cookies closely as they bake to ensure that they aren't overcooked since they are so small. The cooking time will vary if they are cut slightly larger or smaller.
Frosted Tips
Frosting the tips with a white glaze is optional, but gives these Halloween candy corn cookies a little something extra. After all, who doesn't nibble off the tip of the candy corn first?!
Mix together confectioners' sugar and water for the frosting. Dip the tips into the glaze, scraping excess icing off the bottom, and then return the cookies to a wire rack or wax paper while the glaze sets.
This recipe yields about 10 dozen little cookies. You definitely don't need to frost them all!
Storage and Make Ahead Tips
To Store: Store cookies in an air tight container at room temperature for about a week
Freeze before cooking: Prepare layered cookie dough as directed. The dough may be cut into triangles before or after freezing. Unbaked cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then cut, and bake as directed.
Freeze after cooking: Baked cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month, frosted or unfrosted. Allow cookies to cool completely before freezing. Store in a resealable freezer bag. When ready to enjoy some cookies, remove the desired amount and let thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
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📋 Recipe
Candy Corn Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup vegan butter 2 sticks
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 1 egg-replacer We used 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 Tablespoon vinegar, 1 Tablespoon water; a regular egg will also work
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Yellow food coloring
- Red food coloring
- ⅓ cup confectioners' sugar
- Water
Instructions
- Cream butter and sugar together with an electric mixer for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Prepare egg replacer in a separate bowl.
- Add egg replacer and vanilla to creamed butter mixture and stir to combine.
- Add flour and salt to butter mixture and stir to combine.
- Divide dough into 3 equal sections.
- Make a well in one section and add one to two drops of yellow food coloring. Knead dough until coloring is evenly distributed. Set aside.
- Make a well in the second section of dough and add a drop of yellow food coloring and a drop of red food coloring. Knead dough until coloring is evenly distributed. Set aside.
- Note that the third section is not colored with food coloring.
- Line a 9 x 5 inch bread loaf pan with plastic wrap and lightly spritz with non-stick cooking spray.
- Press dough into the loaf pan in layers in the following order: plain, orange, yellow.
- Cover and chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
- Preheat oven to 350 °F.
- Turn dough out onto a work surface.
- Slice dough in ⅜ inch thick slices (as if you were slicing bread.)
- Lay each slice on its side and cut into triangles (see picture above.)
- Bake cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 7-9 minutes. Note that the cookies will continue to set after they are removed from the oven and should not be brown when you take them out.
- Allow cookies to cool completely.
- To make frosting, combine confectioners' sugar with 1 teaspoon of water. If necessary, add small amounts of water or confectioners' sugar until the mixture is a thick glaze.
- Dip tips of cookies in the glaze, scraping excess off of the bottom of the cookie.
- Allow glaze to set before serving.
Claudia Lamascolo
going to try these I have made other recipes before and they were too hard to bite into ! Thanks
Erin
we have allergies I’m the house so these are perfect. Made them last year and they were gobbled right up. I’m so glad I was able to find your recipe again. I do remember making them a little bigger and ended up with fewer cookies. Watch the cook time. Mine cooked in about 7 minutes but they seemed bigger than the picture.
Marjory Pilley
I'm so glad you enjoyed them. Yes. Definitely need to watch the cook time for the first batch.