Perfect Christmas Pinwheel Cookies — Chocolate + Vanilla Swirl

Pinwheel cookies are showstoppers — chocolate and vanilla doughs rolled together, sliced thin. Looks impressive, surprisingly simple.

The recipe

Ingredients (makes 36)

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp milk

Method

1. Cream butter, sugar; beat in egg, vanilla
2. Mix in flour, baking powder, salt
3. Divide dough in half
4. Stir cocoa + milk into one half
5. Chill both 30 minutes
6. Roll each into 8x12 inch rectangle on parchment
7. Stack rectangles; trim edges
8. Roll up tightly into log
9. Chill 2 hours; slice 1/4 inch
10. Bake 350°F for 10-12 minutes

Festive variations

• Red food coloring + vanilla = red/white
• Green food coloring = red/green/white tri-color
• Sprinkles rolled into outside of log

Storage

• Dough log: refrigerator 3 days, freezer 3 months
• Baked: airtight 1 week

Cross-references

For Best Christmas cookies — broader.

For Sugar cookies — adjacent.

For Cookie exchange — adjacent.

Perfect pinwheels are dough swirled and sliced. Looks impressive. Easy technique. Festive Christmas trays.