Red and white pinwheel cookies were one of them. And that’s too bad because they are a classic holiday cookie that everyone should learn to make. But today is your lucky day! I’m resurrecting the recipe and sharing it with you.
Getting the Perfect Swirl
Though they look difficult to make, the secret to pinwheel cookies is really just patience. The basic process involves dividing the cookie dough and adding color and flavoring extract to half. The dough is then rolled into rectangles and sandwiched together. Roll them up into a log, then just slice and bake. I also like to divide each ball of dough in half again (to make four pieces), so that I can make some cookies with the spiral of color on the inside and some with the spiral of color on the outside. Letting the dough chill in the refrigerator between each step makes it much easier to work with. I often make pinwheel cookies over a couple of days, letting the dough chill overnight before moving to the next step.
Freeze the Dough for Later
After the final roll, the logs of cookie dough can be frozen for up to a month (tightly sealed both in plastic wrap and an airtight resealable freezer bag). This means you can have homemade pinwheel cookies pretty much at your beck and call.
If you feel so inclined, the frozen dough logs can even be bundled as a homemade gift to your friends, so they can bake the cookies at home as well!
Today, I’ve gone with a classic raspberry-flavored red and white swirled dough, which is festive for the holidays. You can adapt the recipe by swapping out the food coloring and the flavoring extract with anything you like. Some of my favorites include orange food coloring and extract, green and mint, and yellow and lemon.
The sky is the limit with these cookies!
Looking for more ideas for Christmas Cookies? Check these out!
If raspberry extract isn’t available at your grocery store or you want a different flavor, just substitute out the same amount of your favorite extract, along with a corresponding food coloring.
Divide each half of the dough in half again – you should have 4 balls of dough, two plain and two raspberry. Roughly shape each ball into a square or rectangle, and tightly wrap each square in plastic wrap.
As you roll the dough, occasionally flip it over. If the parchment paper has become wrinkled, unpeel it from the dough and reapply (so you don’t get wrinkles in your dough).
When done, transfer the rolled-out dough to a baking sheet, still sandwiched between sheets of paper. Repeat with the remaining 3 pieces of dough, stacking the sheets of dough on top of each other on the baking sheet.
Carefully flip the raspberry dough onto the vanilla dough so they are sandwiched together (vanilla on bottom, raspberry on top – the colors are reversed in the photos below, but they’ll give you the general idea!). Peel away the remaining paper from the raspberry dough.
Trim the edges so the two sheets of dough line up. Carefully roll the dough from the long edge to make a 12-inch long log of dough, peeling away the bottom layer of parchment as you go.
Slice the dough into slice 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick. Place them the baking sheet about an inch apart.
Transfer baked cookies to a wire rack to cool. Repeat with slicing and baking the remaining dough. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
