Description
These Oreo Style Bat Cookies are chocolatey, soft-baked treats perfect for Halloween or any fun occasion. Featuring a rich cocoa dough with a smooth, creamy buttercream filling, these cookies are decorated with oven-safe sprinkles to resemble cute bat eyes. The recipe involves a simple chocolate cookie dough, a luscious homemade buttercream filling, and tips for perfect chilling and baking to achieve the ideal soft and tender texture.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 157 grams Plain Flour (5½ oz, 1¼ cup All Purpose)
- 48 grams Cocoa Powder (1¾ oz, ⅓ cup + 1 tbsp)
- ½ tsp Bicarbonate of Soda (Baking Soda)
- ⅛ tsp Salt
- 1 Pinch Salt (for buttercream)
- 187 grams Icing Sugar, sieved
Wet Ingredients
- 113 grams Butter, unsalted, cubed & soft (4 oz, ½ cup, 1 stick)
- 100 grams Granulated Sugar (3½ oz, ½ cup)
- 3 tbsp Golden Syrup (60g/2 oz)
- 128 grams Butter, unsalted & melted (6 oz, ¾ cup)
- ¾ tsp Vanilla Extract
Additional
- 20 Sprinkles, oven-safe (for bat eyes)
Instructions
- Prepare The Cookie Dough: Combine butter, granulated sugar, golden syrup, bicarbonate of soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Mix on low speed or by hand at first, then increase to medium speed and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Sieve the plain flour and cocoa powder over the wet mixture. Mix on low speed, pushing the dough down with the back of a spoon to help the flour absorb moisture. Continue mixing on low to medium speed until a thick dough forms. Knead by hand in the bowl to create a smooth, flat disc-shaped dough.
- Prepare Baking Sheets: Line baking trays with baking or parchment paper, ready for the cookies.
- Roll Out the Dough: Place the dough between two sheets of paper and dust with icing sugar if necessary. Roll out to 4-5 mm (about 1/6 to 1/5 inch) thickness, using two 10p coins as thickness guides if desired.
- Cut Out Cookies: Dust a cookie cutter with flour or icing sugar and cut out bat shapes. Neaten edges if needed. Transfer cookies carefully to the lined baking tray with small gaps between them. Re-roll scraps to make more cookies ensuring pairs for sandwiching.
- Add Eyes and Chill: Press oven-safe sprinkles onto the cookies to create bat eyes, or add these after baking. Chill the tray of cookies in the fridge for 1 hour, or 5 minutes in the fridge followed by 25 minutes in the freezer, to firm the dough before baking. Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan)/350°F/Gas Mark 4 during chilling.
- Bake the Cookies: Bake cookies for 10 to 15 minutes until just set but still soft. Check around 8 or 9 minutes by gently pushing with a spatula—if they stick or crack, bake a little longer but avoid over-baking to keep them tender.
- Cool the Cookies: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking tray for a few minutes. Then transfer carefully to a cooling rack with the paper to cool completely.
- Make the Buttercream Filling: Melt the cubed butter in a small pot over medium-high heat, then reduce to low-medium and simmer, stirring occasionally. The butter will foam and leave residue on the pot’s sides. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Strain the melted butter to get a clear golden liquid and let it cool for 5 minutes.
- Sieve Icing Sugar: Sieve the icing sugar into a mixing bowl. Add white or purple food coloring at this stage if a whiter buttercream is desired.
- Combine Butter and Sugar: Slowly add the clarified melted butter to the icing sugar, mixing well after each addition. Mix until you reach a smooth, spreadable consistency. Thin with a little milk if you want to pipe the filling.
- Assemble the Cookies: Spread a generous amount of buttercream onto the underside of one cookie of each pair using an offset spatula or butter knife. Sandwich with the other cookie and gently press together. Any excess filling can be smoothed or scraped off.
- Optional Piping: Alternatively, pipe the buttercream filling onto cookies using a piping bag with a small nozzle. Thin the buttercream slightly with milk if needed for piping.
- Chill and Serve: Place assembled sandwich cookies in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to let the filling set. Serve chilled or at room temperature if cool.
- Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container or tin for up to 3 days at room temperature or up to 7 days refrigerated.
Notes
- Golden syrup can be substituted with light corn syrup or honey, but the flavor and texture may slightly vary.
- Use oven-safe sprinkles only to prevent melting or burning during baking.
- Chilling the dough is essential to prevent cookie spread and maintain defined bat shapes.
- Watch baking times carefully to avoid over-baking, which makes cookies dry and hard.
- Buttercream can be adjusted for consistency by adding a little milk if too thick or beaten longer if too thin.
- For a more authentic Oreo filling look, add a drop of purple food coloring to make the buttercream appear whiter.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 sandwich cookie (2 cookies with filling)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Sugar: 18 g
- Sodium: 110 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 7 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 24 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 30 mg
Keywords: Oreo style cookies, chocolate cookies, buttercream filled cookies, bat cookies, Halloween cookies, sandwich cookies, cocoa cookies
