Cookies decorated, shaped, or designed to look like turkeys are such a fun way to decorate your holiday table. A perfect Thanksgiving dessert, but just as fun for Christmas, or any other occasion. Here are some easy turkey cookies to make. My go-to for a quick and easy treat are Turkey cookies with fudge stripes.
Turkey Cookies with Fudge Stripes
Here are the steps for making turkey cookies with fudge stripes. These are fun cookies to make with your kids. Because you use store bought cookies like Keebler Fudge Stripes, the cookies are easy to make anytime you need a cute dessert. My kids love helping to make these cookies, and they are easy enough for toddlers and little kids to help too.
In addition to being cute and delicious, I like these turkey cookies with fudge stripes because they can also be used as place card holders on your Thanksgiving table. It’s such a pretty way to decorate your table and give your guests a fun treat to eat.
How to Make Turkey Cookies
These simple turkey cookies use store bought cookies and crackers to create the turkey. Keebler shortbread cookies are used as the turkey feathers. The turkey body is made with peanut butter cups and round caramels like Rolo’s. Chocolate covered graham crackers are used as the base of the cookie. And, a candy corn piece is used for the turkey beak, and each of the turkey legs. Melt chocolate chips to make the “glue” that will hold all of the pieces together.
Fudge Stripe Turkey Cookies
Equipment
- Microwave safe container
- Ziploc bag
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 8 fudge-striped shortbread cookies
- 8 fudge covered graham crackers
- 8 miniature peanut butter cups
- 1 roll chocolate covered caramels
- 24 pieces candy corn
- 1 tube black decorating gel
Instructions
- Melt chocolate chips in microwave for 30 seconds and then stir to smooth. Continue at 15 second intervals as needed.
- Transfer melted chocolate to a Ziploc bag and snip off one corner of bag.
- Lay a shortbread cookie flat on worksurface with stripes facing vertically.
- Squeeze melted chocolate to pipe a line across the bottom of each cookie. The line will cross over each of the vertical stripes.
- Place long side of graham cracker along the line of melted chocolate. Hold until chocolate begins to set.
- Repeat for remaining cookies and then let them set for 30 minutes.
- If necessary, reheat chocolate in microwave for 10-30 seconds until it's smooth again.
- Pipe about 1/2 teaspoon of melted chocolate along the wider side of 1 peanut butter cup.
- Place peanut butter cup centered over the hole of the shortbread cookie. Repeat with remaining peanut butter cups and cookies.
- Squeeze about 1/2 teaspoon of chocolate on the bottom of caramel and place on top of the peanut butter cup. Repeat with remaining caramels and then let set for 15 minutes.
- Turn cookie so that the graham cracker is flat on the work surface and the shortbread cookie is upright.
- Pipe a small amount of chocolate on one side of a candy corn and place against peanut butter cup for beak. Hold for a minute until chocolate sets and then repeat for remaining cookies.
- Pipe a small amount of chocolate on one side of two more candy corns and place them on either side of peanut butter cup and caramels for legs. Repeat for remaining cookies.
- Using black decorating gel, add eyes on each candy corn beak. Let cookies set for 1 hour.
Notes
- Use melted chocolate for eyes if you don’t have black decorating gel.
- You can place chocolate chips in Ziploc to microwave if you prefer. I don’t like microwaving plastic so I prefer to melt in a glass container and then transfer to a Ziploc bag, or piping bag.
- You can use regular chocolate chips instead of mini, it will just take longer to melt in the microwave. Start with 1 minute and continue with 30 second intervals.
More Turkey Cookie Ideas
There are lots of ways to make adorable turkey cookies. I like the turkey cookies with fudge stripes because it uses simple ingredients, and products that are easy to get at any grocery store. But there are other ways to make turkey cookies. Here are a few ideas.
Turkey Cookies with Milano Cookie
Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies can also be used to make turkey cookies. Here are a couple of ways to do it.
- Modify the fudge stripe turkey cookie by using a Milano cookie for the turkey’s body instead of the Reese’s cup and Rolo. With this cookie you won’t use the graham crackers as a base, so the cookie will lay flat.
- Lay shortbread cookies on work surface with the chocolate side facing up.
- Squeeze bag to pipe a small amount of chocolate along one side of the Milano cookie. Place this on the shortbread cookie and hold for a minute to let the chocolate set.
- Place a dab of chocolate on the bottom of the candy corn (on the orange color) and attach that to the Milano to form the beak.
- You can use melted chocolate, candy eyeballs, mini M&Ms, or mini chocolate chips for the eyes.
- Here’s another way to use Milano cookies to make cute turkey cookies.
- Use a sugar cookie in place of the shortbread fudge striped cookie. You can use store bought sugar cookies, simple sugar cookies from slice and bake cookie dough. Or, use your favorite sugar cookie recipe to bake round sugar cookies.
- Frost the sugar cookie with chocolate frosting, chocolate ganache, or melted chocolate.
- Follow steps 2-4 above to place the Milano cookies in the center of the frosted sugar cookie to make the turkey body and turkey head.
- For added color, arrange candy corns around the top of the cookie to create the tail feathers.
Nutter Butter Turkey Cookies
Another variation of the turkey cookies above, is to use Nutter Butters for the turkey body. You can either make them as flat cookies like the ones made with the Milano cookies. Or, make ones that stand up like the turkey cookies made with fudge-stripe cookies.
- Place fudge stripe cookies upside down on work surface with chocolate side facing up. Pipe melted chocolate along top half of cookie and place 5-6 candy corns as feathers. Align the candy corn so that the white tips are pointing in and the orange stripe is on the outside.
- Put a little chocolate on top of each candy corn, and at the bottom of the cookie in the center.
- Place the nutter butter cookie in place on top of the chocolate, and hold for a moment to set.
- Use Reese’s pieces candy, mini chocolate chips, or mini M&M’s to decorate the nutter butter to make a turkey face.
- On a parchment lined cookie sheet, place a shortbread cookie with the fudge stripes facing up.
- Place melted chocolate in the hole of the cookie and then set nutter butter turkey on top. Hold for a minute to let chocolate set.
- Add orange candies, or candy corn to make the turkey legs.
Oreo Turkey Cookies
Another cute way to make turkey cookie treats is to use chocolate Oreos as the body. Stick the pointy end of candy corn candies into the cream filling in the Oreos to create the feathers. You can use melted chocolate to help if needed. Then make the face of the turkey by using an orange candy, butterscotch chip, or peanut butter chip as the nose. The eyes can be made with mini candies, candy eyes, or by using melted white chocolate topped with milk chocolate.
Turkey Cookies
Making turkey cookies is such an easy way to decorate your table for Thanksgiving. Not only are they an adorable treat that all will enjoy, but they are also quick and easy to make. In addition to using them at your Thanksgiving dinner, these turkey cookies with fudge stripes are also a sweet treat for a school party, a holiday bazaar, or church fair.
I’ve given you a few options for how to make turkey cookies, but the sky is the limit. Have fun and create your own. You can always go with sugar cookies decorated with yellow frosting and candies, but I like the fun of making these Thanksgiving treats.
I also like that these are no bake cookies and I can use up candy that we have left over from Halloween. Mini peanut butter cups, M&Ms, and Reese’s pieces are all a great way to decorate cookies to look like a turkey. And you don’t have to limit yourself to the store-bought cookies I used. If you prefer chocolate chip cookies, you can use those instead. Have fun creating turkey cookies that you and your family will enjoy. Happy Thanksgiving!
More recipes to use for holidays:
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