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Fridays require something sweet, enter these Milk Chocolate Stuffed Jack O’ Lantern Cookies. Sweet milk chocolate, sandwiched between spiced brown sugar cookies, and finished with a light dusting of cinnamon sugar. There’s nothing not to love about this cookie sandwich. Perfect for both a spooky Halloween night, or an elegant Thanksgiving dinner…or just when you need a deliciously sweet chocolate filled cookie.
This is one of those Fridays that I’m so excited for.
One, it’s just been a very, very long week. Lots of good things, plenty of cooking, one afternoon/night of not feeling well (probably due to lack of sleep), so much pretty white snow, cold temperatures, and a whole slew of other things. It’s safe to say that I’m ready for the weekend…and my inbox to slow down for a couple of days.
Two, we have cookies to talk about. Delicious, cute, chocolate filled cookies, that are the quintessential autumn dessert.
I’m obsessed with these cookies and have been so excited to share them with you guys!
Aside from their major cuteness factor, these jack-o-lantern cookies are honestly so good.
The cookie itself is a brown sugar cookie that’s been spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. I wanted the cookie to really have that “spiced” flavor and taste sweet and warming with every bite. It is a fall cookie after all! That said, I didn’t include any pumpkin in my cookies. I just don’t think it’s needed every time I make a pumpkin cookie. Pumpkin often causes the cookie to turn out cakey…and I’m not the biggest fan of cakey cookies. So no pumpkin here, just pumpkin shaped!
Speaking of which, I’ve been searching unsuccessfully for the exact cookie cutter I used to make these. I wanted to give you guys the link. It’s an old Target cookie cutter, probably over five years old now. Sadly, I’m guessing it’s no longer available. Oh well, I found some just as cute ones that I really wish I had right now.
These cookie cutters are my favorite, and would make for really fun cookies. I love that each cookie would be unique. This cookie cutter would give you more of the look of my cookie, but I think they’d be just a bit bigger. Also, I have this cutter and love it, but it does not have a face. Any of these options work great! And then of course, if you already have a pumpkin cookie cutter, use that. Then just cut out eyes using a sharp paring knife.
Don’t stress about making the cookies look perfect either. If you’re making these for Halloween, the more messed up they are, they spookier, which is perfect.
For the filling, I knew I wanted it to be straight up milk chocolate. Sometimes you need a good dark chocolate moment in your life, and sometimes life just calls for milk chocolate…preferably melted and sandwiched between these cookies.
Today is a milk chocolate day cookie day.
Go with me on this, you will be so happy you did.
To give each cookie a little sparkle, I dusted them lightly with cinnamon sugar.
Yes, yes, yes…sugar cookies, milk chocolate, and cinnamon sugar. All things sweet, all things perfect, and everything you need out of a cookie right now. There’s even a little browned butter too.
If you’re doing cookies, you might as well do them up right, you know?
Make these tonight, make them this weekend, or maybe even for Halloween. And then maybe even again for Thanksgiving. It doesn’t matter, just make them soon. Trust me, you’ll be making batch after batch because these cookies are that good.
If you make these jack-o’-lantern cookies please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Milk Chocolate Stuffed Jack-O'-Lantern Cookies
Ingredients
- 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) salted butter, softened
- 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 ounces milk chocolate, melted
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon sugar
Instructions
- 1. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until evenly combined. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt, beat until combined and the dough forms a ball.2. Generously flour your work surface. Divide the dough in half and flatten each half into a disk. Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Make sure you're using enough flour or your dough will stick. Cut out the cookies using a pumpkin cookie cutter. Carefully transfer the cookies to a parchment lined baking sheet. Cut eyes and a mouth in half the cookies using a pairing knife or cookie cutter. Cover the baking sheet and place the sheet in the freezer, freeze until firm, about 15-20 minutes. Roll out the leftover scraps, and repeat with the remaining disk of dough.3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven for 8-12 minutes (for soft cookies) or until just lightly golden brown. Do not over bake. Cool on the baking sheet five minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.4, Add the butter to medium pot. Allow the butter to slightly brown until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Stir often. Remove from the heat and let cool 5 minutes. Brush the butter over the top half of the cookies and then sprinkle the cookies with cinnamon sugar.5. To assemble, spread the melted milk chocolate over the half of the cookies with no face. Place the top pumpkin faced cookies over the chocolate, gently pressing to adhere. Cookies can be served immediately or let the chocolate firm up and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
These look great! Do you think they would work with a gluten free flour?
Hey Carol,
Yes, that should work well for you. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Made them last Halloween and they were a big hit with all the family! So delicious, just making a batch now as a sweet treat for the weekend. Can I freeze the dough to make more another time? If so how long would you recommend keeping it in the freezer before using? Thanks ??
Hey Olivia,
Awesome! It is so great to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a go! I would freeze for no more than 3 months. xTieghan
Hi, made these cookies and they were delicious. Do you think I can use the dough recipe to make gingerbread houses? My kids don’t like the gingerbread flavor
Hey Neomi,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try! Sorry I have never used this dough for gingerbread houses so I am honestly not sure how that will work out. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These look amazing So cute
Thank you Theresa! xTieghan
Perfectly amazing texture and held shape perfectly too. The taste was very mild but still craveable. I felt like it was a bit bland (tasted only a hint of the spice) and am wondering if I could add the something I felt missing… but beautiful texture and great fun to make!
I am really glad you enjoyed these, Laura!! Please let me know if there is anything I can help with! xTieghan
Love these so much ! I’m also freezing some cookies after baked so they are ready to just add the chocolate to before Thanksgiving.. thank you Teagan 🙂
Thank you so much Jenna! xTieghan
I absolutely loved this recipe! A little bit time confusing but definitely a crowd pleaser.
Thank you so much Deanna! xTieghan
Do you divide the butter? The recipe calls for you to brown butter at the end, but the first step is to cream all the butter.
Hey Midge,
The butter that I am referring to in step 4 is for the cinnamon sugar coating. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These are so cute so I figured I would give them a try But the dough was super crumbly and was really hard to transfer to the baking sheet without falling apart. Do you have any tips for keeping the dough a bit more solidified? Thank you!!
Hey Lindsay,
So sorry you had issues with the dough? Did you happen to adjust the recipe at all? Different cooking method? These would help me to better answer your question! xTieghan
OMG TIEGHAN
Thank you
these are literally amazing. I’m blown away at this cookie I’ve just created. The sugar cookie is so buttery and crisp and then the browned butter/cinnamon sugar top tastes so good. Then the milk choc stuffed inside?!? I’m in love and they are actually so adorable. I’m making these for a local Halloween treat bake-off! I hope I place.
Aw you are so kind!! I am really glad these cookies turned out so well for you and hopefully you win the bake-off!! Thank you! xTieghan
Hi, these looked super cute and fun to make but not at fun as expected… they took much longer than expected. Amazing idea and all, but I was wondering how i could make the cookies thinner without burning them (minus the freezing – sorry!). Thanks so much, Holly
Hey Holly,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try! To make them thinner, you would just roll thinner. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These look delicious! Would they freeze okay do you think? Thanks!
Hey Nat,
Yes that would be fine! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I just wanted to say how much I love your recipes!! I made these cookies today with my 3 year old, we filled them with Nutella and let me just say how amazing they turned out!! Mine were definitely not as cute as yours but they sure tasted great!! Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!! Keep them coming!! Xoxoxo
Thank you so much Sarah Jane!! I am so happy you have been loving my recipes and I hope you continue to! xTieghan
How much butter do you reserve from the 1.5 cups for the part where your brown the butter?
Hi Carolyn,
The 1.5 cups of butter is being used in the cookie batter. The butter you are browning in step 4 is 2 tablespoons of butter for the cinnamon sugar coating. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Can this dough be made the day before baking ?
Hey Sara,
Yes totally fine! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if I can help in any other way! xTieghan