GHOST
beginner 
intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch ghost cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
1½ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: whitener, super black
2 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
2 #1 tips
Large paintbrush
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make the lining and flooding icing for the ghost. Outline and paint in. Mix 1¼ cups royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make white for the ghost. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the ghost, following the edge of the cookie and exaggerating the contours of the fingers. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a large paintbrush, paint in the ghost. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make black lining icing to re-outline the ghost; draw the eyes and mouth. Beat the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Spoon ¼ cup into a small bowl and mix with super black gel to make black for outlining the ghost. Spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the ghost. Draw in the eyes and mouth by holding the tip on the cookie at a 45-degree angle and squeezing the bag. Let set for 15 minutes.
INDIAN CORN
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch ghost cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: ivory, gold, whitener, lemon yellow, bright red, super black, buckeye brown, regal purple, violet
6 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
2 #1 tips
4 #1.5 tips
Large paintbrush
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make beige lining and flooding icing for the husk. Mix ¾ cup royal icing in a bowl with the ivory and gold gels to make warm beige for the husk. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap.
- 3. Outline the husk and paint in. Position the cookie so that the ghost’s head is the top. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the corn husk including the stem at the bottom. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a large paintbrush and the warm beige flooding icing, paint in the corn husk. Let set until hard, 4 to 6 hours.
- 4. Make icings for the kernels. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Spoon ¼ cup icing into each of four bowls. Cover three with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add ivory and whitener gels to make off-white for some of the corn kernels. Thin to a little looser than lining consistency and spoon into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip. To the second bowl, mix in lemon yellow and whitener gels to make yellow. Thin and spoon into a piping bag as above. To the third bowl, mix in bright red, super black, buckeye brown, and whitener gels to make maroon. Thin and spoon into a piping bag as above. To the fourth bowl, mix in regal purple, violet, and super black gels to make dark purple. Thin and spoon into a piping bag as above.
- 5. Make the kernels. Using the off-white icing, make a few fat kernels of corn by squeezing the bag while moving it very slowly so that the icing builds up enough to make the size kernel you want. Make the kernels different sizes, smaller at the top and gradually larger toward the bottom. Allow the icing to set for about 3 minutes to avoid the kernels’ running into one another, then make more kernels next to them. Let set for 4 to 6 hours. Use the yellow, maroon, and dark purple icings in the same manner, making the kernels fat enough to fill the spaces so that no bare cookie shows through and allowing the kernels to set before using a new color.
- 6. Make dark beige lining icing to re-outline the husk; re-outline and make the details. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with ivory and gold gels to make dark beige for re-outlining the husk. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the corn husk, adding the details on the husk.
WITCH’S HEAD
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch ghost cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
3½ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: neon green, super black, whitener, regal purple
6 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
6 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make green lining and flooding icing for the witch’s face. Mix ¾ cup royal icing in a bowl with the neon green gel to make bright green for the face. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap.
- 3. Outline and paint in the face. Position the cookie so that the ghost’s head is the bottom. Using the green lining icing, outline the witch’s face, stopping where it meets the hair. Let set for 5 minutes. Reserve the green lining icing. Using a medium paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the face, thinning it out where the hair and hat overlap the face. Let set for 4 to 6 hours.
- 4. Make the gray lining and flooding icing for the hair; outline and paint in. Refresh the remaining icing on low for 30 seconds. Mix ¾ cup icing in a bowl with super black and whitener gels to make gray for the hair. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup icing into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the hair, making squiggly lines and going over the face, stopping where the hair meets the hat. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the gray flooding icing, paint in the hair, thinning it out where the hat overlaps it. Let set for 4 to 6 hours.
- 5. Make black lining and flooding icing for the hat; outline and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix 1¼ cups icing with super black gel to make black for the witch’s hat. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup icing into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the black lining icing, outline the hat, going over the hair and face. Let set for 5 minutes. Reserve the black lining icing. Using a large paintbrush and the black flooding icing, paint in the hat. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 6. Make white and gray lining icings for the witch’s eyes and strands of hair. Make purple lining and flooding icing for the hatband. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Spoon ¼ cup icing into each of three bowls. Cover two with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add whitener to make white for the witch’s eyes. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the second bowl, add super black and whitener gels to make darker gray for the strands of hair. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the third bowl, add regal purple to make purple for the hatband. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap.
- 7. Re-outline the face, draw details; re-outline the hair; outline and paint in the band. Using the reserved green lining icing, re-outline the face. Using the reserved black lining icing, draw the nose, mouth, and two circles for the eyes. Reserve the icing again. Using the darker gray lining icing, re-outline the hair and make additional squiggly lines on the interior. Using the purple lining icing, outline the band on the hat. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a small paintbrush and the purple flooding icing, paint in the band. Using the white lining icing, squeeze two small dots in the black circles for the eyes. Make one tooth coming out of the mouth. Using the reserved black lining icing, squeeze a tiny dot in each eye for the pupils. Let set for 15 minutes.
KITTY
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch ghost cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: super black, whitener, chocolate brown
4 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
4 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
Plate or ceramic mixing palette
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make gray lining and flooding icing for the cat. Mix 1¼ cups royal icing in a bowl with super black, whitener, and chocolate brown gels to make light gray for the cat. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap.
- 3. Outline and paint in the cat. Position the cookie so that the ghost’s head is at 8 o’clock. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the cat, making small bumps for the toes on the paws. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a large paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the cat. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 4. Make lining icings: dark gray to re-outline the cat, black to make the eyes, and brown for the nose. Spoon ¼ cup royal icing into each of three bowls. Cover two with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add super black, whitener, and chocolate brown gels to make darker gray to outline the cat and define its legs. Spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the second bowl, add super black gel to make black for the eyes. Spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the third bowl, add chocolate brown to make brown for the nose. Thin to lining consistency and spoon into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip.
- 5. Re-outline the cat and make details. Using the darker gray lining icing, re-outline the cat, including the interior lines for the head, legs, and toes. Using the black lining icing, draw two curvy lines for the eyes. Using the dark brown lining icing, draw in the nose and fill it in by holding the tip on the cookie at a 45-degree angle and squeezing the piping bag. Draw a small vertical line under the nose.
- 6. Make gray watercolor and paint on the cat’s stripes. Squeeze a dot of super black gel onto a plate or ceramic mixing palette. Using a small paintbrush, mix with water to make black watercolor (see here). Paint the stripes and inner ear details onto the cat. Let set for 5 minutes.