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Christmas Pinwheel Cookies Recipe

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4.3 from 11 reviews

Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are festive, colorful treats featuring swirls of red, green, and plain dough. Made with a buttery sugar cookie base tinted with red and green gel food coloring, these delightful cookies are rolled, sliced, and baked to golden perfection. Perfect for holiday celebrations, they combine classic flavors with eye-catching decoration.

  • Author: Chef
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
  • Yield: 24 servings
  • Category: Cookie
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Cookie Dough

  • 2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Food Coloring and Garnish

  • Red gel food coloring
  • Green gel food coloring
  • Red sanding sugar, to garnish

Instructions

  1. Cream Butter and Sugar: Add the softened butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat at medium speed until the mixture becomes creamy and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Then add the egg and vanilla extract, beating well to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure everything is mixed evenly.
  2. Mix Dry Ingredients and Combine: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, kosher salt, and baking soda to combine. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients, beating just until combined. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it evenly into three portions.
  3. Color the Dough: Place one portion of dough back into the mixing bowl and add red gel food coloring. Beat until the dough is uniformly tinted red. Remove this dough, wipe the bowl clean, then do the same with another third of dough using green gel food coloring until evenly green. Leave the remaining third of dough plain. Shape each dough portion into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
  4. Roll Dough Portions: After chilling, remove each dough ball from the refrigerator and roll them separately between two sheets of parchment paper into 7-inch squares. Return the rolled dough to the refrigerator for 15 minutes to firm up, keeping them between the parchment sheets.
  5. Assemble and Roll Up Dough: Stack the three dough squares on a piece of parchment paper in this order: red dough on the bottom, green dough in the middle, and plain dough on top. Place another piece of parchment paper on top, then roll the stack into a 12 by 8-inch rectangle. Remove the top parchment sheet, then starting from one long side, carefully roll the dough stack tightly into a log shape. Wrap the dough log in parchment paper and freeze for 1 hour.
  6. Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheets: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside for use after slicing the dough.
  7. Slice and Garnish Cookies: Use a serrated knife to cut the chilled dough log into 1/3-inch thick slices. Roll the edges of each cookie slice in red sanding sugar to add a festive sparkle. Arrange the cookie slices on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart.
  8. Bake the Cookies: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until they are set around the edges and slightly firm to the touch. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheets for 1 minute before transferring them to wire racks to cool completely.
  9. Store Cookies: Once fully cooled, place the Christmas Pinwheel Cookies in an airtight container to preserve freshness until ready to serve or gift.

Notes

  • Use gel food coloring for vibrant colors without altering dough consistency.
  • Chilling each dough portion is essential for easy rolling and clean cookie swirls.
  • Slice the log cold from the freezer for neat, clean cookie shapes.
  • Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
  • For extra festivity, consider using colored sanding sugars or sprinkles of your choice on the edges.

Find it online: https://cheftinaskitchen.com/christmas-pinwheel-cookies-recipe/