Description

A roll-and-cut black sesame sugar cookie with a ghost silhouette and quick white chocolate face dots. No royal icing piping required.

Ingredients

All-purpose flour: 2 1/2 cups (300 g)
Almond flour (or finely ground almonds): 3/4 cup (75 g)
Black sesame paste: 1/3 cup (110 g)
Unsalted butter, softened: 1/2 cup (113 g)
Granulated sugar: 1/2 cup (100 g)
Light brown sugar: 1/4 cup (50 g)
Large egg: 1 (about 50 g, without shell)
Vanilla extract: 1 teaspoon (5 ml)
Fine salt: 1/2 teaspoon
Baking powder: 1/4 teaspoon
White chocolate chips or chopped white baking chocolate: 4 oz (113 g)
Optional: neutral oil or coconut oil, for thinning white chocolate (start with 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml), add only if needed)

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Instructions

Make the dough: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, almond flour, salt, and baking powder. In a large bowl, beat butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar until smooth. Mix in black sesame paste, then add egg and vanilla and stir until combined.
Combine: Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix just until a cohesive dough forms. If it feels very soft, wrap and chill 20 to 30 minutes.
Chill: Flatten dough into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour (up to 48 hours).
Roll: Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Roll dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 in (6 mm) thick.
Cut: Cut with a ghost cookie cutter and place shapes on baking sheets, spacing about 1 in (2.5 cm) apart. Gather scraps, re-roll once more, and cut again. If dough softens, chill 10 minutes before continuing.
Optional crisping step: Chill the cut cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before baking for cleaner edges.
Bake: Bake 8 to 10 minutes, until edges look set and centers are not glossy-wet. The cookies will firm up as they cool.
Cool completely: Transfer to a wire rack and let cookies cool fully before decorating (this prevents smearing).
Melt white chocolate: Microwave in short bursts (10 to 15 seconds), stirring between, until smooth. If it’s too thick to dot easily, stir in a tiny amount of oil—no more than 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 ml) total at first.
Decorate: Spoon melted white chocolate into a small bag (or use a spoon/toothpick). Dot two small “eyes” on each ghost and add a short mouth (a single dot, or a small curved line). Optional: make thin drips by letting a few lines fall slightly from the top edge.
Set: Let decorated cookies sit until the chocolate is fully set (20 to 40 minutes). Store airtight.

Notes

– Dough chilling matters: it keeps the ghost edges crisp.
– If you want thicker ghosts, roll to ~5/16 in (8 mm) and bake 1 to 2 minutes longer, watching for set edges.
– For the cleanest face dots, let the melted chocolate cool 2 to 3 minutes before decorating so it thickens slightly.