Description
Understanding what makes this classic holiday dessert so beloved comes down to its unique dough structure and visual charm. A Christmas pinwheel cookies recipe is essentially an enriched sugar cookie dough that gets divided, colored, layered, rolled into a cylinder, and sliced into delicate round disks before baking.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2¾ cups (345 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- Red gel food coloring
- Green gel food coloring
- ¼ cup red or green sprinkles, optional
Instructions
- Make the dough: Beat the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients: Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually mix into the butter mixture until a soft dough forms.
- Divide: Divide the dough into 3 equal portions. Leave one portion plain. Tint one portion red and the other green using gel food coloring.
- Roll: Place each dough portion between sheets of parchment paper and roll into rectangles about ¼ inch thick, keeping all three rectangles similar in size.
- Layer: Carefully stack the colored dough layers, placing the red, plain, and green layers on top of one another. Trim the edges to make a neat rectangle.
- Roll into a log: Starting from one long edge, tightly roll the layers into a cylinder. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or until firm.
- Slice: Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Slice the chilled dough log into rounds about ¼ inch thick. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Add sprinkles if desired.
- Bake: Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are just beginning to turn golden. Do not overbake.
- Cool: Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: ~145 kcal
Keywords: holiday pinwheel cookies, holiday swirl cookies, Christmas spiral cookies, holiday icebox cookies