You know the cookies I’m talking about. The little pale disks of dough decorated with holiday designs like Christmas trees or, at this time of year, pumpkins or ghosts, that come in colorful boxes with the Pillsbury dough boy waving at you. These cookies pop back onto shelves for every holiday from Halloween to the 4th of July, and fly off the shelves just as suddenly as they arrive. People hoard them like treasure. My own apartment blows through boxes of these cookies — there is never a time where a box isn’t in our fridge. Posts about the Halloween versions started creeping onto my social media feeds at the end of July and will just not go away. They’ve even inspired Halloween costumes and decor. These cookies are a certified foodie phenomena and a core item on the fall menu. But why? What makes them such a legendary holiday treat? It’s time to break down the obsession with the Pillsbury ready-bake holiday cookies.
They’re reliable.
These cookies will always have your back with festive designs to raise your spirits. There’s an option for pretty much every major holiday and they come out well in advance so you can start getting your Halloween on in August. Plus, Pillsbury clearly sees the obsession with these cookies and continues to put out more designs. They brought the Halloween cat pattern back from the grave this year, and released a new sugar skull pattern for Día de los Muertos. So if anything, they’ll only get more reliable from here. I won’t say no to more cookies.
They’re quick and convenient.
Baking your own holiday cookies can be time-consuming. The Pillsbury cookies are pretty much the exact opposite. You place the cookies on a tray, shove them in the oven, and 13 minutes later, boom, fresh festive cookies without breaking a sweat. They’re easy festivity for even the worst bakers and perfect for any occasion, holiday-related or not. Don’t have anything to serve at your Halloween party? These cookies will be sure to please. In need of a movie night snack? Crack a box open. Just in need of an afternoon pick me up or a late night snack? These cookies always satisfy with extremely minimal effort.
Plus, if you’re really impatient, or really enjoy cookie dough, you don’t even have to bake them to enjoy them. They’re safe to eat raw. That’s about as quick and convenient as it gets.
They can be used as a base for more desserts.
Now, say you do want a little something more than just the base sugar cookie. You’re in luck because the cookies are surprisingly versatile, working as an ingredient in other treats for something even more festive. You can stick them in the center of other cookie dough, like pumpkin dough or chocolate chip cookie dough, to make a new kind of blossom cookie. You can use them as a topper on a cake or add them to a tray of brownies or make ice cream sandwiches with them.
They’re tasty.
This might be a given, but it can’t go unsaid. Sure, the cookies are easy to throw in the oven and have a design for each holiday, but does all that even matter if the cookies are bad? The sugar cookies are soft and chewy, with a sweet, slightly artificial, and addictive taste very specific to these cookies. They’re a comforting snack good for any occasion. Plus, they’re small, meaning they’re easy to gobble up in bunches.
They’re tradition.
These cookies have become part of the holiday tradition, specifically around Halloween. Plenty of holidays have traditional foods, like pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving or candy corn for Halloween. And while candy corn is divisive, these cookies really aren’t, allowing them to slip in nicely as a traditional Halloween treat. People love traditions, and the fact that these cookies come around year after year to mark the transition into the Halloween season, is enticing for that reason alone. Seeing them for the first time in the grocery store each year is exciting. Cracking open your first box is like popping a popper to celebrate the season.
The obsession with the Pillsbury cookies is very real and for good reason. They’re a staple in Halloween culture, and considering it’s October and Halloween is right around the corner, I think it’s time we all grab a box and get in on this tasty Halloween tradition.