Description
With layers of red and green cookie dough rolled and sliced to create a pinwheel pattern, these Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are a fun and festive addition to any holiday cookie tray or dessert table. Optional sprinkles add an extra fun touch!
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups plus 2 tbsp (384g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup (224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups (259g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Red and green gel icing color
- 3–4 tbsp sprinkles, optional
Instructions
- Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
- Cream the butter and sugars together in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until light in color and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. You should be able to see the change in color happen and know it’s ready.
- Add the egg and mix until well combined.
- Add the vanilla extract and mix until well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix until the dough is well combined. It will be thick and shouldn’t be sticky. Do not over mix. Once it’s well combined, use a rubber spatula to help it come together to form a more cohesive ball.
- Divide the cookie dough in half. Color one half with the red gel icing color and the other half with the green gel icing color. Wrap the cookie dough individually in plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator. Refrigerate both cookie doughs for about 20-30 minutes, until it’s a little firmer and easier to work with, but still roll-able.
- Now it’s time to roll out each ball of cookie dough. I roll them out between two pieces of parchment paper. It’s naturally non-stick, so you don’t need to use flour, but it also releases easily. Roll each ball out into an 8×14 inch rectangle. Remove one color of cookie dough at a time and roll them out. They should be about ¼ inch thick each. I try to get them as rectangular as I can and will trim off outlier pieces and place them on top of the cookie dough to re-incorporate them into the cookie dough, so that I don’t waste any. While your rectangles don’t have to be perfectly 8×14, this size should give you an accurate number of cookies.
- Refrigerate the rolled-out cookie doughs for 5-10 minutes (or freeze for about 3-4 minutes). You want the cookie dough to be firm enough that it’s easier to work with again.
- Turn the red cookie dough over on top of the green cookie dough and do your best to line them up. Carefully peel the parchment paper off of the red cookie dough. Flatten the red cookie dough on top of the green cookie dough as best you can. You can use a pizza cutter or pastry cutter to straighten the edges, if needed.
- Starting on the long size, roll the two cookie doughs together, without leaving gaps. Go slowly and patch up the cookie dough with your fingers, if needed. Once it’s rolled into a log, cut it in half so you have two logs.
- Wrap each log in clear wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until firm.
- When you’re ready to bake them, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Cut each log into about ½ inch thick slices (mine were just slightly less than ½ inch). You should be able to get 28-30 cookies. If you’d like to add the sprinkles, place the sprinkles on a rimmed plate and roll the edges of the individual slices in the sprinkles.
- Place cookies onto the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart and bake for 9-12 minutes or until just before they start to brown around the edges.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Store cookies in an air-tight container. Cookies are best if eaten with 4-5 days.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 148
- Sugar: 9.7 g
- Sodium: 90.5 mg
- Fat: 7.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 20.4 g
- Protein: 1.7 g
- Cholesterol: 24.1 mg
