halloween mash cookies;

Originally posted October 27, 2017, updated October 10, 2025 for content and clarity.

Halloween mash cookies have everything you could want to mix up your spooky dessert table. A chewy cocoa cookie is the base, and then these Halloween mash cookies are chock full of macadamia nuts, pumpkin spice chocolate chips, and white chocolate chips. All your favorite festive Halloween inspired colors in one delicious cookie. I love any excuse to pull out the pumpkin spice chips.  (Need another excuse?  pumpkin spice muffins.).

This base chocolate cookie recipe is adaptable, even outside the spooky month of October! You could use any chocolate chips or nuts you prefer. Of course, in my opinion, they aren’t Halloween mash cookies unless you’ve got that chocolate offset against the “black” cookie.

Here I used traditional cocoa powder, but to make the black color pop even more, try black cocoa powder.

Secret to success

Here I used standard cocoa powder but if you want the “black” color to pop even more, try using black cocoa powder. It’s cocoa powder treated to the extreme to alkaline the flavor and the process turns it almost black, hence the name.

Pumpkin spice chocolate chips are seasonal, so make sure to stock up if you want to make sure you have that sweet holiday spice flavor in multiple recipes! I’m not always a fan of pumpkin spice, but I was surprised by how much I like these chocolate chips. I think they work really well in the chocolate cookie.

While the pumpkin spice chips pair really well with the chocolate cookie, don’t skip the white chocolate or nuts—that pumpkin spice flavor is intense!

Secret to success

Personally, I think the white chocolate and nuts are needed to offset the intense sweet spice mixture of the pumpkin spice chips. So for my own palate I would never go solely pumpkin spice chips. They’re potent!

I first made this recipe in 2017 (where does the time go?!) and was super excited for Halloween that year. Despite adulting, it was really fun to hand out candy the first time in our neighborhood. It was the year we bought our house and was so looking forward to seeing all the trick or treaters in their costumes! We have a ton of perfectly aged kiddos in our neighborhood, plus with townhouses, that means a higher density of candy and door knocking!

I adapted Amy’s recipe dark chocolate halloween chip cookies into these Halloween mash cookies and I could not be happier! I swapped chopped macadamia nuts for the regular chocolate chips because I was craving a macadamia nut cookie, and the result was deeeeelicious!  I just love the texture of a soft cookie and that satisfying snap of a macadamia nut! Of course you can use whatever nut you prefer, bonus points if it’s toasted.

For extra nutty flavors, lightly toast your macadamia nuts before adding to the cookie dough.

Secret to success

That said, I’ll level with you—I’m lazy and rarely roast my nuts ahead of time. The flavors are already a delicious combo without an extra step, and I always worry about getting the nuts too dark on the second bake once they’re in the cookie. But toasted nuts are just so scrumptious and can add yet another depth of flavor to these Halloween mash cookies.

How are you celebrating spooky season? I hope with these cookies!

secrets to success;

Want all the best tips and tricks to make this recipe a success? Check out the blog post above to find out more!

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more recipes;

Looking for other spooky favorites? Well look no further, Best with Chocolate has got you covered!

• Make your own pumpkin patch out of delicious pumpkin bread truffles. Decoared to look like cute little pumpkins!
• Another favorite recipe to use your pumpkin spice chocolate chips is pumpkin spice muffins!
• For a sweet apple treat, try apple pie tacos for a build your own dessert that everyone will love!
• Or opt for my favorite fall pie: pecan streusel apple pie!