Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are a fun and festive addition to your holiday cookie plate. These mesmerizing and colorful holiday sugar cookies are rolled in sweet sprinkles for extra crunch.
These classic old fashioned Snickerdoodle cookies and these Mexican Wedding Cookies are always on my must bake list during the holidays!
This recipe is sponsored by Adams Extracts and Spices. As always opinions are 100% mine.
These Pinwheel cookies are sure to stand out at your next cookie exchange or holiday party. Made with sweet and buttery sugar cookie dough, this Christmas cookie recipe is easy to make and no cookie decorating is involved!
These simple sugar cookies are made with one cookie dough and in one mixing bowl. After the cookie dough is made, it’s divided into thirds and colored in red and green, leaving the third piece of dough as is. Of course, you can use any colors to fit the season or the occasion. Orange and black, green and purple are Halloween friendly colors and pink and red are beautiful together for Valentine’s day.
After coloring the cookie dough, each color is rolled out individually and then stacked and rolled like a cinnamon roll. That is how the swirl or pinwheel cookies are formed. All that is left to do is roll the dough in nonpareil sprinkles and cut-out the cookies.
As you can see, these rolled cookies are not hard to make at all! They are actually quite fun and simple.
- These sugar cookies are slightly crisp with soft interiors and a buttery crumb. They definitely taste amazing!
- This Christmas cookie recipe can be made in advance!
- There is no need to roll out and decorate individual cookies.
- If you are looking for unique Christmas cookies, look no further! These rolled sugar cookies are definitely a show stopper!
- These pinwheel cookies are so versatile. You can flavor the dough with vanilla extract, almond extract, lemon and even rum extract!
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Butter
- Granulated and confectioners sugars
- Vanilla Extract (Adam’s Extract)
- Food Coloring (Adam’s Extract)
- Nonpareil sprinkles
For detailed instructions, check the recipe card below.
Make the Dough
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or hand mixer), beat the butter, granulated sugar, and confectioners sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.
- Gradually add the flour mixture and mix until the dough just comes together.
Divide And Color The Dough
You can color the dough by kneading the dough by hand or by mixing it in the bowl of an electric mixer.
- Divide the dough into three even sized pieces. You can weigh the dough for accuracy.
- Return one of the pieces of dough to the mixing bowl and add red food coloring to the bowl. Mix until the dough is evenly colored. Remove the dough and clean the bowl.
- Place another piece of dough and add the green food coloring. Mix until the dough is evenly colored. Keep the third piece of dough as is.
- Flatten each ball of dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for 1 hour.
Assemble And Bake
- Roll out each disc of dough, one at a time, on a piece of parchment paper to create rectangles that are roughly the same size and shape. Stack the thin layers of dough on top of each other with white in the middle and red and green on the top and bottom. Trim the long sides so that the edges are even. The shorter ends can be trimmed later after you roll the dough into a log.
- Using the parchment paper to assist you, carefully roll the dough into a tight log.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours.
- Once the dough is chilled, roll the log in nonpareils to coat the outside of each cookie. Press the dough firmly into the sprinkles to get them to stick and give good coverage. At this point, you can slice and bake the cookies, or wrap them up and store them in the fridge for up to 1 week to slice and bake as needed.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Unwrap the roll of cookie dough and cut off the uneven ends, then slice into 1/4-inch cookies using a sharp knife and space them 1-2 inches apart on the parchment paper.
- Bake the Christmas Pinwheel cookies for 10-12 minutes until set, then cool completely on a wire rack.
- The unbaked cookie dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to a week. Freeze the unbaked cookie dough for up to 3 months.
- The baked Christmas Pinwheel cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
To Make These Easy Christmas Cookies I used Adams Extracts and Spices Vanilla Extract and Food Coloring
- Don’t roll the cookie dough too thin.
- The vibrancy of the dough will depend on the amount and type of food coloring you use.
- Rolling the dough into a log may seem a bit intimidating but it’s really a very easy and simple process – also, it doesn’t have to be perfect! We are talking about festive and delicious cookies, relax!
- If the dough feels too sticky, sprinkle some flour on your working surface and put a bit of flour on your hands as well.
Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are a fun and festive addition to your holiday cookie plate. These mesmerizing and colorful holiday sugar cookies are rolled in sweet sprinkles for extra crunch.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup confectioners sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons Adam’s Extract vanilla extract
- Adam’s Extracts red & green gel food coloring
- Holiday colored nonpareils
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or hand mixer), beat the butter, granulated sugar, and confectioners sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape the bowl as needed.
- Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.
- Gradually add the flour mixture and mix on medium-low speed until the dough just comes together.
- Divide the dough into three even sized pieces.
- Return one of the pieces of dough to the mixing bowl and add 5-10 drops of red gel food coloring to the bowl. Mix until the dough is evenly colored. Remove from the mixing bowl and clean the bowl and paddle attachment.
- Place another piece of dough and add the green food coloring. Mix until the dough is evenly colored. Keep the third piece as is.
- Flatten each ball of dough into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap. Chill in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Roll out each disc of dough, one at a time, on a piece of parchment paper to create rectangles that are roughly the same size and shape. Stack the thin layers of dough on top of each other with white in the middle and red and green on the top and bottom. Trim the long sides so that the edges are even. The shorter ends can be trimmed later after you roll the dough into a log.
- Using the parchment paper to assist you, carefully roll the dough into a tight log. Then wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours.
- Once the dough is chilled, roll the log in nonpareils to coat the outside of each cookie. Press the dough firmly into the sprinkles to get them to stick and give good coverage. At this point, you can slice and bake the cookies, or wrap them up and store them in the fridge for up to 1 week to slice and bake as needed.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Unwrap the roll of cookie dough and cut off the uneven ends, then slice into 1/4-inch cookies using a sharp knife and space them 1-2 inches apart on the parchment paper.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until set, then cool completely on a wire rack.
Notes
- Don’t roll the cookie dough too thin.
- If the dough feels too sticky, sprinkle some flour on your working surface and put a bit of flour on your hands as well.
- The vibrancy of the dough will depend on the amount and type of food coloring you use.
Nutrition
Calories: 115 kcal, Carbohydrates: 16 g, Protein: 1 g, Fat: 5 g, Saturated Fat: 3 g, Cholesterol: 23 mg, Sodium: 84 mg, Potassium: 23 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 8 g, Vitamin A: 158 IU, Calcium: 7 mg, Iron: 1 mg
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