Halloween Party Pops

Cookie pops that double as a Halloween party activity. Refrigerated cookie dough rolled into balls, skewered on wooden sticks, baked, and decorated by the kids themselves. Three ingredients plus whatever candy and frosting you have on hand.

The dough gets sliced, rolled into balls, and baked with the stick inserted before going into the oven. The cookie bakes around the stick, locking it in place as the dough sets. Pointing the stick ends toward the center of the baking sheet keeps them from hanging over the edge and burning.

Spacing 3 inches apart is generous but necessary. These spread as they bake, and crowded pops merge into one unrecognizable blob. Give them room.

Two minutes of cooling on the pan before moving to a wire rack is important. Straight out of the oven, the cookies are too soft and the sticks will pull right out. That brief rest lets them firm up just enough to hold together.

Kitchen Tips

• Push the sticks in firmly, at least halfway through each ball. A shallow insert means the cookie slides off the stick after baking.
• Let the cookies cool completely before frosting. Warm cookies melt the frosting and decorations slide off.
• Set up a decorating station with orange and black frosting, candy corn, mini chocolate chips, and sprinkles. Let kids make pumpkin faces, spiders, and cats.

Variations

• Use homemade sugar cookie dough for a from-scratch version that holds its shape better on the stick.
• Dip half the cooled cookie in melted chocolate before decorating for a chocolate-dipped base.
• Make these for any holiday: hearts for Valentine’s Day, trees for Christmas, eggs for Easter.