This year, I decided to bake chocolate sugar cookies and decorated them as Jack Skellington from Nightmare before Christmas. Jack has relatively simple facial structures so decorating the cookies is a beginner-friendly and fun project for all ages.

The chocolate sugar cookie recipe is adapted from baking a moment. The recipe is spread-proof so no need to worry about cookies getting deformed while baking;)

The white icing recipe is adapted from Cakewhiz. I love this icing recipe because of the color. It creates nice opaque pure white without white food coloring.

For the black icing, I decided to modify chocolate icing instead of turning the white icing into black. This way, I can limit the amount of food coloring in the icing and avoid food coloring taste and change in texture.

Handling icing is a major part of making these Nightmare Before Christmas cookies. Here are some icing tips:

• Icing dries very quickly if exposed to air. Once the icing is made, move it to an airtight container, cover the icing with saran wrap, and close the lid until needed.
• There is some drying time once white icing is placed and black icing can go on top. Black icing can be made once white icing has completely dried on cookies.
• If any left-over icing, icing with meringue powder can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.[1]

WHAT TOOLS HELP MAKE THESE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS COOKIES?

• Electric stand mixer or hand mixer
• Parchment paper
• Rolling pin
• Round cookie cutter (2-inch diameter)
• Piping bags or Ziplock bags
• Toothpick/scribe tool
• Baking sheets

Ingredients

Chocolate Sugar Cookie (Makes about 30 cookies – 2 inches in diameter)

• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter (1 stick), cut into small cubes
• 1 tablespoon oil (light/neutral flavor such as canola, grapeseed, or light olive oil)
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (you may need as much as 2 cups)

White Icing

• 1 1/2 tablespoon meringue powder
• 3 tablespoon warm water (NOT hot)
• 1/2 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Black Icing

• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 heaping cup powdered sugar
• 2–3 tablespoons hot water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Black food coloring

Instruction

For Chocolate Sugar Cookie

1. Cream the butter, oil, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a mixer until the mixture is smooth. (Do not overbeat, as this will incorporate air into the dough, which may lead to spreading.)
2. Add the egg and mix just until incorporated.
3. Mix in the cornstarch, cocoa powder, and 1 1/4 cups of the flour.
4. Continue adding more flour until the dough gathers itself into a ball and pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.  (You may not need all the flour.)
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
6. Roll the dough to a thickness of 3/8-inch with a rolling pin, between two sheets of parchment paper. 
7. Cut shapes using a round cookie cutter. (I used a cookie cutter in 2-inch diameter)
8. Bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 9 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies look dry on the surface, and feel firm around the edges, and set in the middle.
9. Cool completely.

For White Icing

1. In a deep bowl, add meringue powder and warm water.
2. Beat this for about 1 minute until you have a white and frothy mixture.
3. Add powdered sugar, corn syrup, and vanilla extract and start mixing at medium to medium-high speed.
4. Continue mixing until your icing becomes thick and peaks start forming.
5. Add ¼ teaspoon of water at a time to get to the consistency you need.

My icing was between “Medium consistency” and “flood consistency.” More detailed explanations of icing consistency can be found here.

For Black Icing

1. Whisk the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, hot water, and vanilla.
2. If needed, add 1/8 teaspoon of water at a time to get to the consistency you want. (I recommend medium consistency)
3. Add some black food coloring with a toothpick and mix until well combined.

For Assembly

1. Place white icing in a piping bag/ziplock bag and snip a small corner off. (I cut enough to have a ¼ inch hole)
2. Pipe the white icing on the chocolate sugar cookies. Pipe by starting from the outside rim and work your way toward the middle in a swirl motion. Do NOT worry about filling every gap while piping. Smooth out any bare spots by poking and moving the wet icing with a toothpick or a scribe tool until the cookies have solid surfaces. Let the icing completely dry before moving on to the next step.
3. Place black icing in a piping bag/ziplock bag and snip a small corner off. (I cut enough to have a 1/8 inch hole)
4. Draw Jack’s face. Looking at reference always helps. I referenced Jack’s face on the lighted necklace I had from Walt Disney World. There are always some good references online.
5. Let the black icing dry completely.

Nightmare Before Christmas Cookies

I decided to bake chocolate sugar cookies and decorated them as Jack Skellington from Nightmare before Christmas. Jack has relatively simple facial structures so decorating the cookies is a beginner-friendly and fun project for all ages.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Decorating 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 30 Cookies

Equipment

• Electric stand mixer or hand mixer
• Parchment paper
• Rolling Pin
• Piping bags or Ziplock bags
• Toothpick/scribe tool
• Baking sheets

Ingredients

  

Chocolate Sugar Cookie (Makes about 30 cookies – 2 inches in diameter)

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter cold, cut into small cubes
• 1 tablespoon oil light/neutral flavor such as canola, grapeseed, or light olive oil
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 egg large
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour you may need as much as 2 cups

White Icing

• 1 1/2 tablespoon meringue powder
• 3 tablespoon warm water (NOT hot)
• 1/2 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Black Icing

• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 heaping cup powdered sugar
• 2-3 tablespoons hot water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Some Black food coloring

Instructions

For Chocolate Sugar Cookie

• Cream the butter, oil, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a mixer until the mixture is smooth. (Do not overbeat, as this will incorporate air into the dough, which may lead to spreading.)
• Add the egg and mix just until incorporated.
• Mix in the cornstarch, cocoa powder, and 1 1/4 cups of the flour.
• Continue adding more flour until the dough gathers itself into a ball and pulls away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.  (You may not need all the flour.)
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Roll the dough to a thickness of 3/8-inch with a rolling pin, between two sheets of parchment paper. 
• Cut shapes using a round cookie cutter. (I used a cookie cutter in 2-inch diameter)
• Bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 9 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies look dry on the surface, and feel firm around the edges, and set in the middle.
• Cool completely.

For White Icing

• In a deep bowl, add meringue powder and warm water.
• Beat this for about 1 minute until you have a white and frothy mixture.
• Add powdered sugar, corn syrup, and vanilla extract and start mixing at medium to medium-high speed.
• Continue mixing until your icing becomes thick and peaks start forming.
• Add ¼ teaspoon of water at a time to get to the consistency you need. My icing was between “Medium consistency” and “flood consistency.” More detailed explanations of icing consistency can be found here.

For Black Icing

• Whisk the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, hot water, and vanilla.
• If needed, add 1/8 teaspoon of water at a time to get to the consistency you want. (I recommend medium consistency)
• Add some black food coloring with a toothpick and mix until well combined.

For Assembly

• Place white icing in a piping bag/ziplock bag and snip a small corner off. (I cut enough to have a ¼ inch hole)
• Pipe the white icing on the chocolate sugar cookies. Pipe by starting from the outside rim and work your way toward the middle in a swirl motion. Do NOT worry about filling every gap while piping. Smooth out any bare spots by poking and moving the wet icing with a toothpick or a scribe tool until the cookies have solid surfaces. Let the icing completely dry before moving on to the next step.
• Place black icing in a piping bag/ziplock bag and snip a small corner off. (I cut enough to have a 1/8 inch hole)
• Draw Jack’s face. Looking at reference always helps. I referenced Jack’s face on the lighted necklace I had from Walt Disney World. There are always some good references online.
• Let the black icing dry completely.

Keyword Cookies

If you like character dessert, check this out

• Hello Kitty Cookies
• Totoro Madeleines – Easy Kawaii Food
• Rilakkuma Macarons – with Detailed Instruction

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