Basic Chocolate Pinwheel Cookies Recipes

CHOCOLATE PINWHEELS

Steps:

• In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, butter and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour and salt. Divide dough in half. Stir cocoa into one half. Stir chocolate sprinkles into other half. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
• Roll half of plain dough into 9x8-inch rectangle on lightly floured surface. Repeat with half of chocolate dough; place on plain dough. Roll doughs up together tightly, beginning at long side. Repeat with remaining plain and chocolate doughs. Wrap and refrigerate at least 8 hours but no longer than 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 400°F. Cut rolls into 1/4-inch slices. Place slices about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

BASIC CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. , Divide dough in half; add cocoa to one portion. Divide each portion in half. On a baking sheet, roll out each portion between waxed paper into a 12x10-in. rectangle. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. , Remove waxed paper. Place one chocolate rectangle over a plain rectangle. Roll up tightly, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; wrap in plastic. Repeat with remaining dough. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Unwrap and cut into 1/4-in. slices. , Place 2 in. apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks to cool.

LIZZIE'S CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream the shortening and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla, and egg yolk and mix well.
• Sift the flour into a separate bowl with the baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture and milk alternately to the shortening mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and mix to form a dough. Divide the dough into 2 halves. To one half, add the chocolate, mixing thoroughly. Wrap both sections of dough in separate pieces of plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
• Unwrap and roll each half of dough between 2 pieces of waxed paper. Roll to a 1/8-inch thickness. Remove the waxed paper from the top of each layer of dough. Place the white layer on top of the chocolate layer and roll up carefully as you would a jellyroll, using the waxed paper to roll smoothly. Wrap the roll with the waxed paper and chill overnight in the refrigerator.
• The next day, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cut the roll into 1/4-inch slices (see Cook's Note) and place about 1/2 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for about 12 minutes. Do not brown. Remove carefully with a pancake turner and cool on racks.

CHRISTMAS PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a bowl. Resift again into another bowl.
• Beat the butter with the brown and white sugars in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until smooth. Gradually stir in the flour mixture until evenly blended. Gather the dough into a ball, and divide into two equal parts. Place one half in a second bowl. Add red food coloring to the dough in one bowl, and green food coloring to the dough in the other bowl. Use a fork or wooden spoon to blend the food coloring into the dough until evenly blended. Add additional drops of food coloring to make the desired shade.
• Roll out the red dough to 1/4 inch (5mm) thickness. Roll out the green dough to 1/4 inch (5mm) thickness, and place on top of the red dough. Beginning on one edge, roll the doughs to make a log so the two colors spiral inside each other. Wrap the log in waxed paper, then in a cotton towel, and refrigerate at least 8 hours.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease 2 baking sheets.
• Unwrap the dough log, and place on a clean, lightly floured surface. Slice the log into rounds 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick, and place on prepared baking sheets.
• Bake in preheated oven until set, 5 to 6 minutes. Watch carefully to prevent edges from browning. Remove from oven, and cool on racks.