Kitchen science: Beating butter and sugar traps tiny air bubbles in the dough, and the oven's heat makes them grow, so the cookies are soft and tender, not hard.
Gobble Gobble Cookies! Let's bake cookies and give each one candy-corn feathers. This easy recipe is for ages 8 to 13 (grades 3rd–7th), takes about 40 minutes (plus 15 minutes waiting) and serves 6. Crumb, our tiny chef, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow along, and every hot or sharp step is marked for a grown-up.
Turkey cookies are drop cookies given candy-corn tail feathers and a chocolate chip head. Children can mix the dough, roll the balls and decorate; a grown-up works the oven.
Ingredients
½ cup butter½ cup (120 ml) butter
¾ cup sugar¾ cup (180 ml) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1½ cups flour1½ cups (360 ml) flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup powdered sugar½ cup (120 ml) powdered sugar
2 teaspoons cold water
3 handfuls candy corn
2 tablespoons chocolate chips
Tools
The oven (grown-up), A mixing bowl, Measuring cups, Measuring spoons, A whisk or a fork, A big spoon, A baking tray, Baking paper, Oven mitts, A plate.
Steps
Wash your hands with soap for twenty seconds, then let's make Gobble Gobble Cookies!
Grown-up step: A grown-up turns the oven on to 350°F.A grown-up turns the oven on to 180°C.
Beat ½ cup of butter, ¾ cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla in a big bowl until fluffy.Beat ½ cup (120 ml) of butter, ¾ cup (180 ml) of sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla in a big bowl until fluffy.
Crack 1 egg into the bowl, then beat it in.
Wash your hands again: raw egg has germs.
Stir in 1½ cups of flour, ½ teaspoon of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon of salt until you have a soft dough.Stir in 1½ cups (360 ml) of flour, ½ teaspoon of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon of salt until you have a soft dough.
Roll the dough into balls on a lined tray, and press each one flat.
Grown-up step: A grown-up bakes the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are golden.
Let the cookies cool on the tray for 15 minutes.
Stir ½ cup of powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of cold water into a thick icing.Stir ½ cup (120 ml) of powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of cold water into a thick icing.
Dab icing on a cookie, then press five candy corns round the top edge, points out.
Press a chocolate chip in the middle for the head, and a candy corn under it for the beak.
Gobble gobble! Your turkeys are ready to strut.
Safety notes
Hot! A grown-up does this part.
Contains milk, eggs, wheat, soy. Tap "Allergies?" on the Kitchen's front page and the swaps fill themselves in where there is one.
Hard or chewy candy is a choking risk for little ones under 4: leave it off for them.
No tasting raw dough or batter: wait till it's cooked.
Read the label on packets for allergies.
A bit messy.
Sticky fingers.
Kitchen science
Beating butter and sugar traps tiny air bubbles in the dough, and the oven's heat makes them grow, so the cookies are soft and tender, not hard.
Make it your own
Use a round chocolate-sandwich-cookie instead of a baked cookie, for a quick no-bake turkey.
Stir a spoonful of cocoa into the dough for a chocolate turkey.
Pipe a little icing wattle under the beak.
Questions about turkey cookies
How do you make turkey cookies?
Bake a simple butter-and-sugar cookie dough into flat rounds. When the cookies are cool, dab on a thick icing, press five candy corns round the top edge for feathers, then add a chocolate chip head and a candy corn beak.
Can I use store-bought cookies?
Yes. Round chocolate sandwich cookies or plain sugar cookies make quick turkeys, with the same icing and candy corn.
How far ahead can I make them?
Bake the cookies up to two days ahead and keep them in a tin. Decorate them on the day, because the icing is easiest to work with fresh.
Is candy corn safe for young children?
Hard or chewy candy is a choking risk for children under 4. Leave the candy corn off for them.