How to Make Zombie Trick-or-Treat Cookies

Have you seen the previews to the new season of The Walking Dead yet? I promise no spoilers from me, but I'm really looking forward to the cliffhanger reveal from the last season. With the new fall shows, like The Walking Dead, starting up and the Halloween season just kicking in, I've always associated zombies and Halloween to be a killer combo.

I've been cookie-ing zombies since the beginning of my cookie journey. From my 3D zombie graveyard cookies to my TWD Ear cookies, zombie cookies have sort of been a tradition with me this time of year.

I wanted to keep that tradition alive with a fun and silly zombie idea. These zombie trick-or-trick cookies are a play on the classic zombie-- the "rise from the dead" kind of zombie. Not the "Shoot, I've been bitten. Stab my brain before I turn" kind from the TV show. Here's how I made these zombie trick-or-trick cookies, rising from the grave with candy buckets in hand.

Arch Set Cookie Cutter

To make these zombie trick-or-trick cookies, I used my new arch set cookie cutter, which was just posted to the shop.

What's great about this cutter is they will fit perfectly in my favorite favor box from BRP BoxShop when grouped in sets of three. However, if a solo cookie is what you're looking for, each cookie can be designed individually, as well.

Zombie Trick-or-Treat Cookies Template

This cookie design is relatively on the easy side. However, I know there are a lot of small details going on. So I made this template to help guide you through the decorating process.

You can download the Zombie Trick-or-Treat Cookies template HERE.

If you have a Kopykake or Pico projector, just print it out (or pull it up on your mobile device) and you are good to go. For those without a projector, follow the suggested steps below by tracing the design onto the cookie with an edible food marker.

Decorating Process

You'll notice in the steps below that the cookie doesn't look like my typical sugar cookie. That's because I used the pumpkin spice toffee cookie recipe I posted previously. Just in case you were wondering (or freaked out).

You will need the following suggested colors:

• Dark Gray royal icing (I used a touch of Americolor Super Black.)
• Lighter Gray icing (I used a little less of the Americolor Super Black.)
• Dark Green icing (I mixed Americolor Forest Green and Leaf Green.)
• Orange icing (I used Americolor Orange.)
• Brown icing (I used Americolor Chocolate Brown.)
• Zombie Green icing (I mixed Americolor Electric Green with Ivory.)

TIP: Preventing Icing Craters

Because this design involves filling small sections with flood icing, there’s a high chance of craters forming during the drying process. To prevent craters from forming, I highly recommend using thicker consistency flood icing and placing the wet cookie in front of a table top fan to speed up the dry time.

Step 1

Begin by piping a thin side profile of the tombstone with dark gray icing. Then fill the remaining tombstone area with lighter gray icing. Let this icing set for about 1 to 2 hours.

Step 2

Next, fill in the bottom area with green icing. Let that dry completely.

Then, with brown icing, pipe and fill the dirt mound over the green icing. Outline and fill the pumpkin bucket with orange icing. To get the placement of these correct, use the template as a guide.

Step 3

Too create the hand dimensions, build them in layers and sections. Using the zombie green icing, use the progression illustrated below. Be sure to let the icing set up and crust over before moving to the next step in the progression.

Step 4

Next, add all the fine details, as shown below. If you would like to add text to the tombstone, now would be the time to do so. Let these details dry completely before moving on to the next step.

Step 5

Once, the cookie had time to dry, add the all-important candy sprinkles. In the eye-shaped hole, fill with zombie green icing. Then pour the sprinkles of your choice (I used these.) over the icing. Then shake off the excess.

Video Tutorial

The steps above are summarized in this time-lapsed video below.

You can see from the video and the photo below, I added the words "Trick", "Or", and "Treat" to separate tombstone cookies. These would work great together as a set of three for a fun gift set. You could also just use the common "RIP" for individual cookies.

The font I used for these zombie trick-or-trick cookies was Creepster.