Jazz Up HEB Jack-O-Lantern Cookies With Ube Frosting

The pumpkin-shaped cookies in the HEB bakery are famous. Fans flock to the store to snap them up as soon as Fall foods hit. Here's how you can elevate these addictive store-bought sugar cookies with ube and dark chocolate frosting.

In case you aren't already familiar with these beauties, here's what they look like in-store. They're officially called "Halloween Orange Pumpkin Cookies".

I’ve been dying to make Ube frosting so I ordered some extract from Amazon. Ube is a purple yam with a nutty, vanilla flavor. They don’t sell it at HEB, unfortunately, but you can find the kind I bought here.

✨ The true magic happens when you let these sit for about 4-5 hours before eating them. The frosting soaks into the cookies and softens them so you get a perfect cookie sandwich bite without a million crumbles.

This recipe makes just the right amount of frosting to fill and decorate a tub of these cookies.

Main Frosting:

• 1 stick butter

• 2 cups powdered sugar

• 2 tablespoons milk

• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

• Pinch of salt

For special frosting flavors:

• 1/4 teaspoon Ube flavor

• 2-3 tablespoons Hershey special dark cocoa (or regular cocoa)

• Black food coloring

• Sprinkles optional

Instructions:

• Let the butter sit to room temp, then beat it till it’s light and fluffy.

• Add powdered sugar and milk, alternating.

• Add vanilla and salt.

• Split into two bowls and add cocoa and black food coloring to one and Ube extract to the other. If you purchase this Ube extract, it will make this purple color, no food coloring needed!

I frosted the middle of the cookies with a big tip and the little inlets for the eyes and mouth with a small round tip.

*Always taste your frosting and add more extract or cocoa a little at a time to get your desired flavor! I’m a big fan of breaking recipes.