Jack-O’-Lantern Sandwich Cookies are one of my favorite Halloween treats. These charming cookies combine festive fun with delicious flavors, making them a perfect addition to my holiday celebrations.
Contents
Jack-O’-Lantern Sandwich Cookies recipe
Jack-O’-Lantern sandwich cookies are a delightful fusion of two beloved treats. These cookies consist of two pumpkin-shaped sugar cookies sandwiched together with various creamy fillings. The outer cookies are decorated to resemble miniature Jack-O’-Lanterns, complete with expressive faces and vibrant orange hues.
These are made from a sugar or cinnamon cookie dough, often flavored with pumpkin spice for a seasonal twist. They can be filled with cream cheese frosting, pumpkin ganache, or flavored buttercream, with cream cheese being particularly popular for its tangy sweetness. For these Halloween treats, I will make the pumpkin ganache.
These cookies pair perfectly with other seasonal treats like pumpkin cookies, cinnamon roll cookies, and chocolate gingerbread cookies. For extra variety, try bourbon pecan chocolate chip cookies or black and white pumpkin cookies.
Classic autumn treats like mini caramel apples, spiced apple cider doughnuts, and chocolate bark with nuts also complement the cookies well. You can balance the sweetness with savory options like spooky grilled cheese sandwiches, warm tomato soup, or butternut squash soup. Cheese platters with cheddar, gouda, or brie, plus apples and pumpkin seeds, work great too.
For drinks, try spiced apple cider, hot chocolate, Halloween-themed punches, or opt for adult beverages like mulled wine or a Black Magic Martini.
Here’s how to make the Jack-O’-Lantern sandwich cookies:
Jack-O’-Lantern sandwich cookies
Nutrition
Ingredients
For the cookies
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk
- Orange food coloring optional
For the filling
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ¼ cup heavy cream
For decoration
- Orange and black icing for piping optional
Instructions
Prepare the cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
- In a separate large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, vanilla, and milk, mixing until combined.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a dough forms. Add a few drops of food coloring if desired and mix well.
- Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about ¼-inch thickness. Using a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter, cut out 24 cookies. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.
- Use a small knife or tool to carve jack-o'-lantern faces into half of the cookies.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. Let the cookies cool on a wire rack.
Make the filling
- In a small saucepan, combine the pumpkin puree, white chocolate chips, and pumpkin pie spice over low heat. Stir continuously until the chocolate is melted.
- Remove from heat and stir in the heavy cream until smooth. Allow the ganache to cool and thicken slightly before using.
Assemble the sandwich cookies
- Spread a generous amount of pumpkin ganache on the flat side of each whole cookie (the ones without faces).
- Top with a jack-o'-lantern face cookie to form a sandwich.
- Decorate with orange and black icing for an extra festive touch. (Optional)
Notes
- Beet powder mixed with turmeric
- Carrot juice concentrate
- Paprika use sparingly
SIMILAR RECIPES:
These Jack-O’-Lantern sandwich cookies can be adapted for various holidays throughout the year. You just need to change the shape of the cookies:
- Heart-shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day
- Shamrock cookies for St. Patrick’s Day
- Snowflake cookies for the winter holidays
Variations
If you want to make other fillings for the Jack-O’-Lantern cookies, check these options below:
Classic cream cheese filling
- Ingredients:
- 4 oz (115g) cream cheese, softened
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- Instructions:
- Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy.
- Add the vanilla extract and gradually mix in the powdered sugar until fully combined.
- Chill the mixture for 30 minutes before use
- Spread the filling on the cookies and sandwich them together.
Pumpkin-spiced filling
- Ingredients:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- Instructions:
- Beat the butter until smooth, then gradually add the powdered sugar until creamy.
- Mix in the pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla extract.
- Continue mixing until the filling is smooth and fluffy.
- Spread on the cookies before sandwiching them together.
Vegan filling
- Ingredients:
- ½ cup vegan butter (like Earth Balance), softened
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- Instructions:
- Beat the vegan butter until smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar, alternating with small amounts of almond milk to reach the desired consistency.
- Stir in the vanilla extract and continue beating until fluffy.
- Spread on the cookies before sandwiching.
Low-calorie filling
- Ingredients:
- ½ cup low-fat cream cheese
- 2 tbsp Greek yogurt (0% fat)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- Instructions:
- Beat the low-fat cream cheese and Greek yogurt until smooth.
- Add powdered sugar and vanilla extract, and continue to mix until light and creamy.
- Use this lighter filling between the cookies.