Last updated on July 21st, 2025 at 06:43 pm
Looking for an easy Halloween party dessert that’s spooky but still totally cute? These bat sugar cookies are the perfect blend of simple and striking. Made with buttery cutout cookie dough and decorated with dark royal icing and candy eyes, they’re a fun Halloween themed dessert for kids and adults alike.
They’re also one of the easiest Halloween sugar cookies to decorate—just flood with black icing and add a few simple details. Whether you go all out or keep it minimal, these bats are a treat to make and eat.
Let’s get baking!
Jump to Recipe
Ingredients for Bat Sugar Cookies
These cookies use the same sugar cookie dough and royal icing base as my other Halloween sugar cookies—so you can prep one batch of dough and decorate several shapes at once, like cats, ghosts, pumpkins, or witch hats. (I’ll link to a list of all of them once it’s ready!)
For the sugar cookies:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the royal icing (I use this recipe for royal icing):
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons meringue powder
- 9-10 tablespoons water (plus more as needed)
- Black gel food coloring
- Optional: small amount of white icing for accents
For decorating:
- Candy eyes
- Piping bag or a small icing bottle with a fine tip for details
- Toothpick or scribe tool
How to Make Bat Halloween Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Make the dough.
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and salt, then slowly add to the wet ingredients. Mix until combined and a soft dough forms.
Step 2: Chill and roll.
Split the dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 1 hour. Roll dough to about ¼ inch thick and cut out bat shapes using a cookie cutter. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Step 3: Bake.
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake for 8–10 minutes or until the edges are just starting to turn golden. Cool completely before decorating.
Step 4: Make the royal icing.
Sift together the powdered sugar and meringue powder. Mix in water until smooth and slightly thickened but still fluid. Color the icing black with gel food coloring. Optional: set aside a small amount of white icing for tiny details.
Step 5: Decorate the bat cookies.
You have two options for icing these cookies—both work great!
Option 1: The Easy Way (Dipping)
Dip each cookie face-down into the black icing. Lift it out, let the excess drip off, then flip and gently shake or tap to level the surface. Use a toothpick or scribe tool to pop any bubbles. This method is fast and great for batch decorating, though a bit messier.
Option 2: The Pretty Way (Piping)
Transfer the black icing to a piping bag or bottle with a small (like the one that looks too small to be true) tip and outline each bat, then flood the center with more icing. Use a toothpick to help fill in gaps and pop any air bubbles.
Step 6: Add eyes while the royal icing is still wet
Pro Tips for Decorating Bat Cookies
- Use gel food coloring for a rich black icing without thinning it out.
- Black icing stains easily, so protect your workspace with parchment paper and keep wipes or paper towels nearby.
- Dip for speed, pipe for detail—dipping is great for a fast finish, but piping makes things neater for sure. With the dipping, you do risk dropping the cookies full-on in the royal icing (something I do a lot!), and then there will be icing down the sides of your cookies and not just on the front. With piping, it comes out neater but definitely takes more time. You just have to weigh your options and choose the one that’s best for you.
- Pop any bubbles immediately after flooding to prevent craters in the icing.
- Keep it simple—bats look great even with just black icing and candy eyes!
FAQs
Can I make the dough in advance?
Yes! You can chill it in the fridge for up to 2 days or freeze it for later.
How many cookies does this make?
That depends on the size of your bat cookie cutter. I got about 30 medium-sized bats from one batch of dough.
Will one batch of royal icing be enough?
Yes, one batch is plenty. You’ll need the most for the black base. The rest—like white for tiny accents—only requires a small amount.
What if I don’t have candy eyes?
You can leave them off and just decorate with icing, or keep things super simple with plain black bats—they still look great! Also, you can try sprinkling black sanding sugar (maybe even purple?) on top for a simple decoration rather than using eyes.
How long does the icing take to dry?
Allow 6 to 8 hours or overnight. Make sure the icing is fully dry before stacking or packaging.
How should I store decorated cookies?
Store them in a single layer or between sheets of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
These bat Halloween sugar cookies are dark, cute, and super easy to decorate. Whether you’re going for spooky or sweet, they’re a fun way to add a little bite to your Halloween dessert table.
Keep an eye out for my full Halloween sugar cookie roundup—coming soon with even more designs and decorating ideas!
Halloween Bat Cutout Cookies
Equipment
- bat-shaped cookie cutter
- piping bag with a plain round tip or a small icing bottle optional, but helpful
- toothpicks to pop bubbles in royal icing
- Sifter optional, but helpful
Ingredients
Cutout Cookie Base
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
Royal Icing and Decorating
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tbsp meringue powder
- 9-10 Tbsp water
- black gel food coloring
- candy eyes optional
Instructions
Make and Bake Bat Cookies
- Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and mix until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and salt, then gradually add it to the wet ingredients. Mix until a soft dough forms.
- Divide the dough in half, flatten into disks, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for at least an hour (definitely don't skip the chilling!).
- Once chilled, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about ¼ inch thick. Use a bat-shaped cookie cutter to cut out shapes and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Bake the cookies for 8–10 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to turn lightly golden. Let cool completely before decorating.
Make Royal Icing and Decorate
- In a medium bowl, sift together the powdered sugar, meringue powder. Then, add water a little bit at a time until the icing is smooth and slightly thickened but still fluid. You’re aiming for a consistency that coats the back of a spoon and slowly runs off—not too thick, not too runny.
- Add black gel food coloring until the icing is a deep black. If you're planning to add whiskers, leave a small spoonful of white icing before coloring the rest black.
- There are 2 easy ways to decorate:
- Option 1: The Easy Way (Dipping)Dip each cookie face-down into the black icing. Lift it out, let the excess drip off, then flip and gently shake or tap to level the surface. Use a toothpick or scribe tool to pop any bubbles. This method is fast and great for batch decorating, though a bit messier.
- Option 2: The Pretty Way (Piping)Transfer the black icing to a piping bag or bottle with a small (like the one that looks too small to be true) tip and outline each bat, then flood the center with more icing. Use a toothpick to help fill in gaps and pop any air bubbles.
- While the black icing is still wet, add two candy eyes to each bat. If you're adding any extra details with white icing, wait for the black icing to set first.
