Description
These Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies are festive and flavorful, combining classic buttery sugar cookie dough with refreshing peppermint and vibrant red and green colors. Rolled into a beautiful pinwheel design and coated with colorful nonpareil sprinkles, these cookies are perfect for holiday celebrations or any peppermint craving. Soft and tender with a hint of vanilla and a crisp bite from sprinkles, these treats deliver both visual appeal and delicious taste.
Ingredients
Scale
Dough Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup (90 grams) confectioners’ sugar
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) white sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 2 large eggs
- 4 cups (480 grams) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For Decoration
- 1/2 cup nonpareil sprinkles, red, white, and green
- Green and red food coloring
Instructions
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt until completely combined. Set this mixture aside for later.
- Cream Butter and Sugars: In another large bowl, beat the softened butter with confectioners’ sugar and white sugar on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, to create a smooth base for the dough.
- Add Flavorings and Eggs: Beat in the vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and eggs until the mixture is smooth and fully combined, ensuring the peppermint flavor is evenly distributed.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, beating until a soft but not sticky dough forms, stopping before the dough becomes too dense.
- Divide Dough: Separate the dough equally into three portions. Wrap one portion in cling wrap as the plain white dough and refrigerate it to set.
- Color Dough Portions: Add green food coloring to one portion and red food coloring to the other. Mix thoroughly using a hand mixer or gloved hands until evenly colored. Wrap each colored dough portion with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to firm up.
- Roll Dough Rectangles: After chilling, roll each dough portion individually on lightly floured parchment paper into a 9×12-inch rectangle, maintaining an even thickness throughout.
- Stack and Trim: Stack the rolled dough rectangles with green on the bottom, then plain white, and red on top. Use a sharp knife to trim the edges and create an even rectangle for rolling.
- Form Dough Log: Starting from the longer side, carefully roll the stacked dough tightly into a log shape, ensuring the layers stay intact.
- Coat with Sprinkles: Pour the nonpareil sprinkles into a shallow dish and roll the dough log over them, gently pressing to cover the entire surface evenly with sprinkles.
- Chill Dough Log: Wrap the sprinkle-coated log in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to firm completely before slicing.
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and prepare two baking sheets lined with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Slice Cookies: Remove the chilled dough log from the fridge and slice into 1/4-inch thick rounds using a sharp knife, keeping the pinwheel design intact.
- Bake Cookies: Place the sliced cookies on prepared baking sheets, spacing them to allow for slight spreading. Bake for 9-11 minutes, until cookies are set but still soft in the center.
- Cool: Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets briefly before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely, ensuring they firm up nicely.
Notes
- Be sure not to overwork the dough when mixing or rolling to keep cookies tender.
- Using gloves when coloring the dough helps prevent staining your hands.
- Chilling the dough log for at least 4 hours is essential to keep the pinwheel shape intact when slicing.
- If the dough gets too soft when working, refrigerate briefly to firm up before continuing.
- You can substitute peppermint extract with pure vanilla extract if peppermint flavor is not desired, though it changes the cookie profile.
- Use a very sharp knife or a dental floss strand to slice the dough log cleanly without squashing the cookies.
