How to Make Scarecrow Decorated Cookies for the Fall Season

Scarecrow decorated sugar cookies

Our friend and brand ambassador Bridget Edwards is back again, this time with a decorated cookie recipe that will sweeten your fall season. These scarecrow cookies are too cute to scare any birds away. In fact, they will attract kids of all ages to any buffet table and are the perfect edible gift to give family and friends during the autumn months. 

And now, here's Bridget from Bake at 350!!

If you want to break in that gingerbread man cookie cutter, but aren’t quite ready for gingerbread men, use it to make scarecrow cookies! What makes these cookies especially fun is that in addition to royal icing, we’re using a few unconventional ingredients to decorate.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Dixie Crystals Cut-out Cookies, gingerbread shape
  • Dixie Crystals Royal Icing, double batch
  • Gel paste food coloring: navy, orange, red, yellow, ivory, green
  • Piping bags
  • Icing tips: #2, small star, leaf, and #1
  • Squeeze bottles
  • Toothpicks
  • Shredded Wheat cereal
  • Chocolate or vanilla sugar wafer cookies
  • Food coloring pens: black and orange

Set aside about 1/4 of the royal icing. Press plastic wrap onto the icing, cover and refrigerate for day two of decorating.

Tint the remaining icing navy, orange, red, and yellow. (You won’t need much red or yellow.)

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Use a #2 tip to outline the pants in navy. Reserve some navy, orange, and ivory piping consistency icing.

Thin the remaining navy, orange, red, yellow, and ivory icings with water. Add a teaspoon at a time, stirring until the icing is the consistency of thick glue. A ribbon of icing dropped back into the bowl will disappear in a count of “one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two.” Three is ok; if the icing is too thin, stir in sifted powdered sugar.

Cover the icing with a damp dish towel for several minutes. Stir gently and pour into squeeze bottles.

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Working 6 cookies at a time, fill in the jeans with navy icing using a toothpick to guide to edges and pop large air bubbles. Starting with the first cookie filled, add a rectangle of orange icing on one leg to make a patch.

Use a #2 tip and the reserved orange piping icing to outline the shirt.

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Working 6 cookies at a time, fill in the shirts with orange, using the toothpick as directed above. Starting with the first cookie filled, add lines of red and yellow icing in intersecting stripes to make a plaid pattern.

Use a #2 tip to outline the head; flood with thinned icing in the same manner.

Use the navy icing to pipe suspenders over the shirt.

Let the cookies dry uncovered 6-8 hours or overnight. Place the bags of navy and ivory piping icing in the refrigerator for later use.

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The next day, crush the cereal. Pipe some of the ivory icing at the ends of the shirt sleeves and pant legs.

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Sprinkle the shredded cereal on top and gently pat into place. Shake off excess.

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Cut the wafer cookies into a hat shape. The cookies are thick, so once cut, halve them down the center of the wafer.

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Pipe some of the ivory icing onto the top of the head. Press a hat onto the icing.

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Use food coloring pens to draw faces and stitches around the patch.

Take the reserved plain royal icing and whip until stiff peaks form again. (It will have loosened overnight.) Add more sifted powdered sugar if needed. Divide and tint red, green, and yellow.

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Decorate the hat: Use a #2 tip to add a line across. Use a small star tip to pipe a rose in red. Use a leaf tip to add a leaf.

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Use a #1 tip and the yellow icing to add buttons to the bottom of the suspenders, hair, and a thin line across the hat.

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Let the cookies set up for about an hour before packaging or stacking.

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Scarecrow cookies. Take them along on your next trip to the corn maze!

 

PIN IT NOW

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