A quick note… To date, this is probably the most involved recipe I’ve ever published on Amy’s Healthy Baking. Therefore, I’m sharing a lot of tips about the ingredients you’ll need, the process, and step-by-step photos. It’s a long blog post with a lot of information, but I want to make sure your candy corn sugar cookies turn out just as cute — and with the perfect taste and texture too!
One night in mid-September, thoughts of cute Halloween-themed treats drifted through my mind while I brushed my teeth and climbed into bed. Each year, I admired the adorable sweets I saw on Pinterest: green marshmallow Frankensteins, Oreo truffle spiders, Milano cookie gravestones, white chocolate pretzel skeletons…
Yet I worried about creating something similar to share here on my blog. What would people think if I used store-bought marshmallows, gummy worms, or licorice twists to make something that looked just as fun — when my blog currently has a reputation for mostly “clean” recipes?
That’s a much longer story for another day…
But a few hours later, I woke up in the middle of the night from a completely unrelated dream with what felt like a brilliant idea.
Candy corn sugar cookies!
Not traditional candy corn… But harvest candy corn. The kind that has stripes of white, orange, and brown. I could use three flavors of cookie dough — classic, pumpkin, and chocolate — to create the layers. I even knew exactly how I’d roll out and slice the cookie dough to get those triangular shapes without cookie cutters.
It took another week for me to find enough time to attempt my idea, but when I finally sliced into the dough for the first time to make those little candy corn wedges, I actually cheered aloud and startled my dog from her afternoon nap.
“It worked! It actually worked!”
And although I might be biased… I think these healthy candy corn sugar cookies turned out even cuter than I had envisioned — and tastier too!
QUICK OVERVIEW – HEALTHY CANDY CORN SUGAR COOKIES
Difficulty: Intermediate. The cookie dough itself is easy to make, but shaping and slicing it to get those cute candy corn shapes requires more precision. However, I’ve shared step-by-step photos below to walk you through how to do that!
Taste: Sweet — but not overly sweet. One part buttery classic sugar cookie; one part cozy pumpkin spice (that almost tastes like pumpkin pie!); and one part rich, chocolaty, brownie-like flavor.
Texture: Soft and chewy. The chocolate layer has hints of fudginess too, like fudgy brownies!
INGREDIENTS TO MAKE HEALTHY CANDY CORN SUGAR COOKIES
Let’s go over the ingredients you need to make candy corn sugar cookies! There are some predictable ingredients — and a few surprising ones as well. For example, this may sound a little strange, but… There’s no granulated sugar in these sugar cookies!
I promise I haven’t lost all of my marbles… yet. 😉 I also promise these cookies are still perfectly sweet! But I’m getting a little ahead of myself. Back to those ingredients…
White whole wheat flour. Yes, this actually exists — and it’s not a combination of white flour (aka all-purpose flour!) and regular whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!). Here in the US, regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. They both have the same health benefits (like extra fiber!), but white whole wheat flour has a lighter taste and texture. That lets the soft texture and sweet flavor of your candy corn sugar cookies truly shine!
Hint: It’s like the difference between red and green grapes. Different flavors but the same health benefits!
Tip: If you’d rather make these candy corn sugar cookies gluten free, then check the Notes section of the recipe. I’ve shared my recommendations there!
Cocoa powder. Regular unsweetened cocoa powder, to be exact — not Dutched or “special dark” cocoa powder. Those latter two have different acidity levels, which will affect the taste and texture of your cookies. I love and use Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa powder the most!
Cornstarch. This gives your sugar cookies an even softer texture.
Unsalted butter or stick-style vegan butter. For the best flavor, use one of these two options. Although coconut oil will also work, it can impart a subtle coconut flavor. I love the buttery taste of sugar cookies, so I use unsalted butter the most.
Why stick-style vegan butter? And not the spreadable tub-style kind? I’ve found stick-style vegan butter melts better and yields a better texture in cookies. And if you’re going to go to the trouble of making these cute candy corn cookies… They might as well have the best possible taste and texture to go along with their adorable appearance!
Pumpkin purée. Again, the regular kind — not pumpkin pie mix! Here in the US, it’s really easy to find canned pumpkin purée on the baking aisles of grocery stores (especially during the fall!). It’s also called “100% pumpkin.” The only ingredient on the label should be pumpkin!
I haven’t tried making these cookies with homemade pumpkin purée or purée from other squash (ie butternut, acorn, etc), so I’m not personally sure how those substitutions would work out. The ease of store-bought canned pumpkin is just so handy!
The pumpkin is there for flavor, and it also replaces the eggs in both the pumpkin and chocolate cookie doughs. It creates a wonderful soft and chewy texture too!
Milk. The milk actually replaces the eggs in the classic sugar cookie dough. This means your healthy candy corn sugar cookies are egg free!
I love using unsweetened vanilla almond milk. If you do the same, or if you use another dairy free milk, as well as the stick-style vegan butter option, then your cookies will be egg free, dairy free, and vegan too!
Vanilla extract. A standard cookie ingredient. However, to make these, you’ll use a bit more than in traditional recipes, which amplifies the buttery flavor — and therefore makes your healthy sugar cookies taste more like traditional ones!
Butter extract. This is my secret ingredient in many of my healthy sugar cookie recipes! It creates that sweet, rich, indulgent bakery-style taste… but for a fraction of the calories! I use Watkin’s, and I’ve found it on both the baking aisle of grocery stores and the wedding aisle at Walmart.
Pure maple syrup. The kind that comes directly from maple trees — not pancake syrup! The only ingredient on the label should be “maple syrup.” This is one of two sweeteners that you’ll need, and the second is…
Liquid stevia. If you haven’t heard of it before, stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly. I buy it online here because that’s the best price I’ve found. (You’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine too!)
And yes… You must use both sweeteners! Pure maple syrup + liquid stevia. Why?
Well… If you just used maple syrup, then you’d have one of two issues. If you used enough to make your sugar cookies taste just as sweet as regular cookies, then your cookie dough would have the same wet consistency as cake batter… And you’d never be able to roll it out or cut it into shapes.
But if you only used enough to get the right cookie dough consistency, then your cookies would have the sweetness level of breakfast muffins or scones. Also not good.
So that’s where the liquid stevia comes in! Stevia is very concentrated, so a little goes a long way. With the kind I use, 2 teaspoons is the sweetness equivalent of about 1 cup of granulated sugar!
By using enough maple syrup to achieve the correct texture and adding a small amount of liquid stevia (with a 24x sweetness equivalent!), your healthy candy corn sugar cookies will have the perfect texture and taste.
HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY CANDY CORN SUGAR COOKIES
Now that you have all of the ingredients, let’s go over how to make candy corn sugar cookies! No cookie cutters required. Instead, you’ll make these cute triangular shapes by layering the cookie dough and slicing into it a special way.
Because pictures are worth a thousand words, I’m including lots of step-by-step photos to guide you through the process. In a nutshell, here’s what you’ll do…
Make the classic sugar cookie dough first. Roll it into a log that’s 1 ½” in diameter. If the dough sticks to your hands, just moisten them with a few drops of water. Tightly roll that log in plastic wrap, and (for bonus points!) put it inside of a round jar. I used this peanut butter jar, which is 3 ¼” in diameter. The round sides of the jar will help prevent the log from turning completely flat while you make the next layer of cookie dough. Then stick the jar (on its side!) in the freezer while you…
Make the pumpkin sugar cookie dough next. On a fresh sheet of plastic wrap, shape it into a rectangle that’s as tall as the log of classic cookie dough and wide enough to wrap around the classic cookie dough like a burrito. That should be about 4 ½” tall and 6 ½” wide. I just used my hands because that was easiest, but you can use a rolling pin if you’d prefer!
Wrap the pumpkin cookie dough around the classic cookie dough. If the classic cookie dough’s bottom is a bit flat after sitting in the freezer, gently roll it back into a round tube first. Then pinch the edges of the pumpkin cookie dough to seal it shut. You should now have a log of cookie dough that looks kind of like a “burrito!”
Gently roll it back and forth to even out that seam and smooth out any cracks. Then wrap that cookie dough log in plastic wrap, slip it into a jar (I used a plastic one around 4 ¼” in diameter from Target, which originally came with holiday snack mix inside — and if you scroll down, you can see a photo of it!), and pop that in the freezer while you…
Make the chocolate cookie dough. Follow the same steps as with the pumpkin cookie dough! Shape it into a rectangle. This time, it’ll be 4 ½” tall and about 10 ¼” wide because you need it to circle all the way around the pumpkin cookie dough too, not just the classic cookie dough!
Wrap the chocolate cookie dough around the pumpkin + classic cookie dough log. Again, gently reshape the log into a cylindrical shape after removing it from the freezer first, if necessary. Pinch the chocolate cookie dough edges together to seal it shut. Tightly wrap this final cookie dough log in plastic wrap, place it inside of a jar (I used the same plastic one from Target!), and then…
Refrigerate the full cookie dough log for at least 20 hours. Why so long? Two reasons! You want the cookie dough to be really stiff so it’s easy to slice into thin discs (more on that in a moment!). I’ve also found that the cookies turn out perfectly flat if you chill the cookie dough longer, whereas you’ll sometimes see raised bumps on top of the cookies after baking (that look like air bubbles!) if you only chill the cookie dough for a few hours.
Yes, it’s a two-day process and requires planning ahead… But I promise their taste and adorable candy corn appearance is worth it!
The next day, it’s time to make those individual candy corn shapes! To do that…
Cut the cookie dough into thin discs. Turn the log on its side, and slice through it to make discs that are about ⅜” thick. I highly recommend using a serrated knife (aka a bread knife!) to do this. There’s a fairly good chance that the disc will be a little lopsided and flat on the bottom from the pressure of your knife, but that’s okay! Just gently reshape it into a circle with your hands (and reshape the log into a circle again too!).
Cut each disc into 6 wedges. I like to cut the disc in half, then cut each half into thirds. It’s okay if your wedges’ layers are a little lopsided! You can gently reshape them with your fingers into prettier, more even-looking candy corn shapes.
Bake the cookies. They don’t bake for very long — just 5 minutes! — and please oh please, do NOT overbake them! They’ll still have the same delicious flavors, but they won’t have as soft and chewy of a texture. If you overbake them, you’ll lose the distinction between the classic and pumpkin layers, and your cookies can also look dry and almost scaly. I found that even 1 extra minute was enough to change their appearance, so I stuck with 5 minutes max in the oven.
Then after all of that hard work… Eat and enjoy!
FAQS ABOUT HEALTHY CANDY CORN SUGAR COOKIES
Can I substitute something else for the cornstarch? Or omit it?
I haven’t tried substituting any other starch (ie tapioca, potato, etc), so I’m not personally sure how those will work. However, you can substitute additional flour for the cornstarch. Your cookies just won’t be quite as soft and chewy.
Can I substitute more maple syrup for the liquid stevia? Or honey? Or coconut, brown, or granulated sugar?
Unfortunately, no. These cookies require a precise balance of wet and dry ingredients, and using maple syrup or honey will throw that off. (See my blog post above for more information!) Because sugar dissolves in liquids, coconut, brown, and granulated sugar still count towards the liquid volume of this cookie dough, so trying to substitute any of them will also throw off the ratio of wet and dry ingredients.
Are these gluten free? Dairy free? Vegan?
Yes, yes, and yes! If you use a good gluten free flour blend (see the Notes section of the recipe for my top recommendation!), then your candy corn sugar cookies are gluten free. If you use stick-style vegan butter and non-dairy milk, they’re also dairy free and vegan.
How should I store these cookies? How long do they last?
Because of the pumpkin, these candy corn sugar cookies should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container. (Pumpkin baked goods tend to spoil really quickly if stored at room temperature!) They should around a week when stored in the refrigerator, possibly longer. They freeze really well too!
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy candy corn sugar cookies!
Healthy Candy Corn Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
FOR THE CLASSIC COOKIE DOUGH
- ½ cup + 3 tbsp (82g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- ⅜ tsp cornstarch
- ⅛ tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or stick-style vegan butter - melted and cooled slightly
- 1 tbsp (15mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk - room temperature
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp butter extract
- ⅜ tsp liquid stevia (see Notes!)
- 2 tbsp (30mL) pure maple syrup - room temperature
FOR THE PUMPKIN COOKIE DOUGH
- 1 cup + 6 tbsp (165g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ¼ tsp ground cinnamon (see Notes!)
- ¾ tsp cornstarch
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter or stick-style vegan butter - melted and cooled slightly
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp butter extract
- 1 ¼ tsp liquid stevia (see Notes!)
- 7 tbsp (107g) pumpkin purée - room temperature (not pumpkin pie mix!)
- 2 tbsp (30mL) pure maple syrup - room temperature
FOR THE CHOCOLATE COOKIE DOUGH
- 1 cup + 6 tbsp (165g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- ½ cup + 3 tbsp (55g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter or stick-style vegan butter - melted and cooled slightly
- 3 tbsp (45mL) unsweetened vanilla almond milk - room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ tsp butter extract
- 1 ⅛ tsp liquid stevia (see Notes!)
- 2 tbsp (31g) pumpkin purée - room temperature (not pumpkin pie mix!)
- 6 tbsp (90mL) pure maple syrup - room temperature
Instructions
- To make the classic cookie dough, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together the butter, almond milk, vanilla extract, butter extract, and liquid stevia. Stir in the maple syrup. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated.
- Transfer the dough to the center of a large sheet of plastic wrap, and shape into a long that’s 1 ½” in diameter and approximately 4 ½” long. Tightly seal inside of plastic wrap. Lay the wrapped cookie dough inside of a jar (I used this one, which is about 6” tall and 3 ¼” in diameter!) to prevent the bottom from flattening, and place in the freezer while making the pumpkin cookie dough.
- To make the pumpkin cookie dough, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, vanilla extract, butter extract, and liquid stevia. Stir in the pumpkin purée. Stir in the maple syrup. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated.
- Transfer the dough to the center of a large sheet of plastic wrap, and shape into a rectangle that’s approximately 4 ½” tall and 6 ½” wide. (I just use my hands and moisten them with a bit of water if the cookie dough is too sticky!) Remove the classic cookie dough from the freezer, and remove its plastic wrap. Reshape it into a cylinder, if necessary. Lay it on the pumpkin cookie dough rectangle, and gently roll the pumpkin cookie dough around the classic cookie dough to form a log shape (it should kind of look like a burrito!). Pinch the edges of the pumpkin cookie dough to seal it shut, and gently roll it back and forth a few times to smooth out the seam and any other cracks in the cookie dough. Tightly seal inside of plastic wrap. Lay the wrapped cookie dough log inside of a jar (I used a larger one about 6 ⅜” tall and 4 ¼” in diameter – see my blog post above!) to prevent the bottom from flattening, and place in the freezer while making the chocolate cookie dough.
- To make the chocolate cookie dough, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, almond milk, vanilla extract, butter extract, and liquid stevia. Stir in the pumpkin purée. Stir in the maple syrup. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated.
- Transfer the dough to the center of a large sheet of plastic wrap, and shape into a rectangle that’s approximately 4 ½” tall and 10 ¼” wide. (I just use my hands and moisten them with a bit of water if the cookie dough is too sticky!) Remove the cookie dough log from the freezer, and remove its plastic wrap. Reshape it into a cylinder, if necessary. Lay it on the chocolate cookie dough rectangle, and gently roll the chocolate cookie dough around the log of classic and pumpkin cookie doughs. Pinch the edges of the chocolate cookie dough to seal it shut, and gently roll it back and forth a few times to smooth out the seam and any other cracks in the cookie dough. Tightly seal inside of plastic wrap. Lay the wrapped cookie dough log inside of a jar (I used the same larger one – see my blog post above!) to prevent the bottom from flattening. Refrigerate for at least 20 hours or up to 4 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line three baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Remove the cookie dough log from the refrigerator. Peel off the plastic wrap. Reshape the log into a cylinder, if necessary.
- Place it on its long side. Using a serrated knife, slice off a disc from one end. Reshape the log into a cylinder again, if necessary, and place it upright (to prevent the long side from flattening).
- Reshape the disc into a circle, if necessary. Using a filet knife, slice the disc into 6 wedges. If the two sides of any wedge spanning all 3 layers aren’t even (aka not the bottom chocolate edge!), then gently nudge those sides to form a more even triangular shape. Place each wedge onto the prepared baking sheet. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap or a clean, dry towel over the top to prevent the cookie dough from drying out.
- Repeat Steps 9 and 10 for the rest of the cookie dough log. Other than the first and last disc, each disc should be approximately ⅜” wide. (The first and last will most likely be thicker, to account for the uneven edges!) At any point, if the cookie dough log starts to get too soft and the bottom flattens a lot when slicing discs with the serrated knife, tightly wrap it in plastic wrap, and place it in the freezer for 10-15 minutes or until it’s firmer and easier to work with.
- Bake each tray of cookies at 350°F for 5 minutes. (Do not overbake!) Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Sugar Cookies
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Chocolate Sugar Cookies
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
♡ Healthy Eggnog Sugar Cookies
♡ Healthy Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Gingerbread Cookies
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy cookie recipes!
BEAUTIFUL step by step photos & detailed recipe instructions, Amy!! I read through every line because I am just so fascinated by the process of how you made these!! I LOVE that the doughs are different flavors- I was just expecting them to all be sugar cookies with some natural food dye or something! YUM! 🙂
Hi Amy, nice step by step photo! Thx. Question! How much gram is 3/8 tsp of corn starch and stevia plz?🥺
I truly appreciate your interest in my recipe, Anna! I don’t recommend measuring either of these ingredients with a kitchen scale, which is why there are no gram measurements listed for them. For the best results, use measuring spoons to measure them! If you don’t own a ⅛ teaspoon (I know not everyone does, but they come in so handy! I own a few sets that include a ⅛ teaspoon, including this plastic set by Farberware and a metal set that’s similar to this), then use a full ¼ teaspoon + half of that same ¼ teaspoon to equal ⅜ teaspoon. 🙂
I’d love to hear what you think of these cookies if you try making them!
You’re the biggest sweetheart, Andrea!! Thank you SO much for taking the time to read through every line and also let me know. It truly means a lot, especially coming from an incredibly talented baker like yourself! ♡
Amy! These are the cutest cookies I have ever seen! You have outdone yourself. so cute friend!!! xo
You’re going to make me blush — thank you SO much, Ashley!! You’re too sweet. That means the world to me! ♡ Wish I could share a batch of these cookies with you and your family!