You won’t need a spellbook or charms to produce the perfect Halloween dessert (and you can even skip the eye of newt)—we’ve got all the cookie recipes you need to craft a sweet spread for your party or get-together. You’ll find new ideas for sugar cookies, plenty of pumpkin-flavored treats and even a haunted Halloween gingerbread house. And that’s just the beginning. No cookie plate is complete, however, without a few of these soft and chewy cookies. They've got a stark black center and colorful Halloween-inspired powdered sugar coating on the outside. This recipe is perfect for a trick-or-treat celebration when you’re short on time; chilling the dough isn’t required, so the cookies come together quickly and will be on the table in about an hour. Using both black and regular unsweetened cocoa powders give the cookies deep, balanced chocolate flavor, while the secret to the colorful coating is blitzing sanding sugar and sprinkles in a food processor until they’re powdery—no food coloring required.