Skeleton Cookies

Jump to Recipe

Spooky scary skeleton cookies made from an easy chocolate shortbread recipe then decorated with melted white chocolate. A fun and tasty treat to share at your Halloween-themed party or get together.

Large and small skeleton cookies on white plates.

Who knew spooky scary skeletons could be so cute?! And tasty to boot. These fun, Halloween-themed Skeleton Cookies are such a fun treat to make. The cookie is made from a simple chocolate shortbread and the bones are made from melted white chocolate.

This recipe was inspired by my Matariki Star Shortbread. Another playful recipe that kids love to get involved with.

Jump to:

Ingredient notes:
Step by step instructions:
Recipe FAQs:
Storage:
Top tips:
Related Recipes:
Skeleton Cookies

Ingredient notes:

The ingredients for skeleton cookies on a white bench.

Butter: I use salted butter to make shortbread which eliminates the need to add salt to the mixture.
Flour: This recipe calls for plain flour, with no rising agent (ie. not self-raising).
White chocolate: I pipe melted white chocolate onto the finished cookies to make the skeleton. You could also make royal icing if you prefer.

Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.

Step by step instructions:

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake.

Cut the butter into cubes and add to the bowl of a mixer. Add the icing sugar and beat for a few minutes until pale and fluffy.

Butter and icing sugar in the base of a stand mixer.

Butter and icing sugar creamed in a stand mixer.

Sift in the cornflour, cocoa and flour. Mix on low until it starts to come together.

Sifted cocoa on top of creamed butter and sugar in a stand mixer.

Chocolate shortbread dough in the base of a stand mixer.

Roll the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.

A ball of chocolate shortbread dough wrapped in cling film on a white bench.

A ball of chocolate shortbread dough covered in flour on a white bench.

On a lightly-floured bench, roll the dough out to a 1cm thickness. Gently compress the edges in if it looks crumbly. Use large or small people-shaped cutters to cut out the cookies.

Cutting shortbread cookies wth a gingerbread cutter

Carefully transfer to lined baking trays and bake for 15 minutes until starting to brown on the edges but still soft.

Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool while you melt the chocolate.

Shortbread people sitting on wire racks.

Once the cookies and chocolate have both cooled, place the melted (but not too runny) chocolate in a snap lock bag. Carefully cut off a small corner, then pipe your skeleton onto the cooled cookies.

Once the chocolate has firmed up, serve or store in an airtight container for later.

Recipe FAQs:

Is it better to make small or large skeletons?

Honestly, it just comes down to personal preference. If you have a lot of kiddies to share with, little ones might be better! Or, you could double the recipe and make lots of big ones.

Wait, there's no baking powder?

No! Shortbread is literally short. As in, there is no rising agent to make it rise.

Small Skeleton Cookies on a small white plate on an orange tablecloth.

Storage:

The shortbread dough can be made ahead of time. Wrap the dough ball in two layers of cling film then refrigerate for 2 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Allow to defrost before rolling out.

Leftover cookies can be stored in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 1 week.

Top tips:

Don't get stressed about the skeleton! Keep it as simple as you need it to be and certainly don't try to make it anatomical!

Made this recipe?
Please click on the stars below to rate it or, write a review!

Yield: Makes 15 large skeletons

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Additional Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Chocolate flavoured shortbread cookies finished with melted white chocolate to create skeletons.

Ingredients

160g salted butter, softened
½ cup icing sugar
½ cup cornflour
½ cup cocoa
1 cup plain flour
100g white chocolate

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake.
Cut the butter into cubes and add to the bowl of a mixer. Add the icing sugar and beat for a few minutes until pale and fluffy.
Sift in the cornflour, cocoa and flour. Mix on low until it starts to come together.
Roll the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film, then refrigerate for 30 minutes.
On a lightly-floured bench, roll the dough out to a 1cm thickness. Gently compress the edges in if it looks crumbly. Use large or small people-shaped cutters to cut out the cookies.
Carefully transfer to lined baking trays and bake for 15 minutes until starting to brown on the edges but still soft.
Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool while you melt the chocolate.
Once the cookies and chocolate have both cooled, place the melted (but not too runny) chocolate in a snap lock bag. Carefully cut off a small corner, then pipe your skeleton onto the cooled cookies.
Once the chocolate has firmed up, serve or store in an airtight container for later

Notes

You can use either large or small people cookies cutters for this recipe. I like to make a combination of both.
If you have a small amount of dough left, I roll it into a log then slice it into little round cookies.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 15 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 168Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 75mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 1gSugar: 8gProtein: 2g

Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.

Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
If you don't already follow me, head over to my Instagram, Facebook or TikTok pages to keep up to date with all my new recipes.
Vanya