Hosting a Halloween party? Shape these Buranelli Cookies into Witch Finger Cookies and lay them in edible dirt. Creepy but delicious buttery witches cookies.
Trick or treat?
North American Halloweeners have asked that question since the late 1920’s. Since I was never one for tricks, I thought of sharing this very special treat with all of you.
Not only are they a treat to eat, they are also fun to make. The actual dough comes together in less than 10 minutes. The fun part is shaping the dough to look like witches finger cookies.
How to make the Halloween Cookie Dough:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
In a bowl, sift or whisk together 3 cups of all purpose flour with 1 teaspoon of salt. Set aside for now.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, cream the butter (125 grams) and the sugar (240 grams) for about 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
One by one, add 5 egg yolks. Scrape down the sides after each addition.
Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and ¾ teaspoon of lemon extract.
Add the dry ingredients and the zest of one lemon.
Now for the fun part.
How to Shape Witch Cookies:
Use a small disher to scoop the dough and create a thick sized log about 3-4 inches long.
Next, pinch the dough to create two indentations to imitate the knuckles/joints of a finger. With a butter knife, create creases to imitate finger folds and joints.
Next, press an almond in the tip of the dough in order to imitate a fingernail.
Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven. Note: Chill the fingers before baking them if the dough was manipulated for a long time.
Once baked, carefully remove the almond, place about 1/4 of a teaspoon of strawberry jelly and replace the almond.
And there you have it, you have just created a Halloween biscotti in the shape of a witch finger.
Tips for Witch Cookies:
- If you have a scale, use it to weigh the ingredients.
- If you judge that the dough was manipulated for a long time, chill the dough to prevent the cookies from spreading too much when baking.
How do you make the edible dirt?
Simply pulse chocolate wafer cookies in a food processor until coarsely ground. Create the perfect base to lay the witch fingers on.
What can I make with the leftover egg whites?
Origins of the recipe for Finger Halloween Cookies:
One of my favorite cookbooks is “The Italian Baker” by Carol Field.
When I purchased her book, I was pleasantly surprised to see a whole chapter on cookies. This recipe for these Halloween fingers is an adaptation of Carol Field’s Buranelli Cookies.
These Italian butter cookies, Bussolai Buranei originate from Burano, a tiny island in the lagoon surrounding Venice.
The cookie dough is usually made into backward shaped S cookies. As you can see, they also make great Halloween Biscotti Cookies.
So, the next time someone asks you trick or treat… you know what to ask for!
Hope everyone has a safe and Happy Halloween!
THANKS SO MUCH for following and being part of the She Loves Biscotti community where you will find Simple & Tasty Family-Friendly Recipes with an Italian Twist.
Ciao for now,
Maria
★★★★★ If you have made this Halloween cookie recipe, I would love to hear about it in the comments below and be sure to rate the recipe!
Witch Finger Cookies [Buranelli Cookies]
Ingredients
- 125 grams butter (about 1 stick plus 2 teaspoons)
- 240 grams granulated sugar (1 cup plus 3 tablespoons)
- 5 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¾ teaspoon lemon extract
- 400 grams all purpose flour (almost 3 cups)
- 1 tsp salt
- zest of 1 lemon
- 3 tbsp strawberry jelly
- 48 almonds
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- One by one, add the egg yolks. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add the extracts.
- Add the flour, salt and lemon zest and mix until just incorporated.
- Scoop dough with small sized cookie scoop and drop on work surface.
- Roll into a log. Pinch the dough to create two indentations to imitate the knuckles of finger. With a butter knife, create creases to imitate fingers folds and joints. Next, press an almond in the tip of the dough in order to imitate a fingernail.
- Preheat oven to 375℉ (190°C).
- Place on parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned.
- Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.
- Once cookies are cool, carefully lift the almond and place 1/4 teaspoon of strawberry jelly. If almond cannot be removed, simply dab a bit of strawberry jelly.
Notes
- If you have a scale, use it to weigh the ingredients.
- If you judge that the dough was manipulated for a long time, chill the dough to prevent the cookies from spreading too much when baking.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on October 31, 2017 and republished on October 15, 2019 with updated content. Thanks for sharing!
Katharina says
Hi Maria thank you so much for this awesome recipe. I made this yesterday and everybody loved them. One friend really was a bit grossed out when she looked at them first but then ate the most. They look so real.
Maria says
How wonderful to hear you all enjoyed this wonderful butter cookie recipe. They really are fun to make and eat! Thanks so much Katharina for taking the time to comment, appreciate it 🙂
Ur Pal Val says
So much fun to make! This recipe is a keeper!
Maria says
Thanks Val! I agree, they are fun to make. Thanks for stopping by ♥♥♥
Paula Barbarito Levitt says
So creative and clever on all levels – next year’s college care package for certain. Happy Halloween!
Maria says
Thanks Paula ♥ Still playing with my food 😉 Thanks for dropping by, Happy Halloween!
Sonia and me says
My dear neighbor you are a genius and thoughtful sonia was absolutely happy and said they look so real thanks again you are amazing 😉 and they were delicious 😋
Maria says
So glad you guys enjoyed them! Happy Halloween ♥♥♥