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Adorable Black Cat Sugar Cookies: Easy Royal Icing Recipe

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These adorable black cat sugar cookies with royal icing are sturdy enough to hold their shape but still soft and buttery on the inside. Perfect for Halloween parties, bake sales, or spooky movie nights, they’re a crowd-pleaser that comes together in about 2 hours.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
  • 2 1/2 cups (312g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups (360g) powdered sugar, sifted
  • 2 tablespoons meringue powder
  • 4–5 tablespoons water, room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (or clear vanilla)
  • Black gel food coloring
  • Yellow gel food coloring
  • White gel food coloring (optional)

Instructions

  1. Make the cookie dough. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy—about 3 minutes with a stand mixer on medium speed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract (if using). Mix until combined, about 1 minute.
  2. Combine dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, mixing on low speed until just combined. Don’t overmix! The dough should come together and look slightly crumbly but hold together when pressed.
  3. Chill the dough. Divide the dough in half, shape each half into a flat disk, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 3 days.
  4. Preheat and prepare. When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
  5. Roll and cut. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disk of dough to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use your cat cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Re-roll the scraps and cut more cookies. Place them about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
  6. Bake. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are just barely golden. The centers should look set but not brown. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Do not ice warm cookies.
  7. Make the royal icing. In a large bowl, combine the powdered sugar and meringue powder. Add 4 tablespoons of water and the vanilla extract. Beat on low speed until combined, then increase to medium-high and beat for 4-5 minutes, until the icing is thick, glossy, and forms stiff peaks. If it’s too thick, add water 1 teaspoon at a time. If it’s too thin, add more powdered sugar.
  8. Color the icing. Divide the icing into two bowls. Color the larger portion black using black gel food coloring. Color a small portion yellow for the eyes. Keep the remaining icing white for highlights and whiskers, if desired. Cover each bowl with a damp paper towel to prevent the icing from drying out.
  9. Prepare the piping bags. Fill a piping bag fitted with a #2 tip with black icing for outlining. Fill another bag with a #3 tip for flooding. For the yellow icing, use a #2 tip. If you don’t have multiple bags, you can use small zip-top bags with a tiny corner cut off.
  10. Outline the cookies. Using the black icing with the #2 tip, outline each cat cookie. Let the outlines dry for about 5-10 minutes.
  11. Flood the cookies. Thin the remaining black icing with a few drops of water until it reaches a ’10-second consistency’—when you lift the spoon, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out in about 10 seconds. Fill the #3 piping bag with this thinned icing. Pipe the icing inside the outlines, using a toothpick to spread it into the corners and pop any air bubbles. Let the flooded cookies dry completely, about 2-4 hours.
  12. Pipe the faces. Once the black icing is completely dry, use the yellow icing to pipe two small oval eyes. Let the eyes dry for about 30 minutes. Then, using the white icing (if you reserved some), pipe tiny highlights in the eyes. Finally, use the black icing to pipe a small nose and whiskers. You can also add a tiny pink tongue or little eyebrows for extra personality!

Notes

Chill the dough for at least 1 hour to prevent spreading. Use gel food coloring for the icing to avoid thinning it out. The ’10-second consistency’ test is key for flooding. Let flooded cookies dry 2-4 hours before piping faces. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks; do not refrigerate. Undecorated cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Keywords: black cat sugar cookies, royal icing, Halloween cookies, sugar cookie recipe, decorated cookies, cat cookies, easy royal icing

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