Rainbow Swirl Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 200°F (95°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Add the sugar to a baking sheet and bake for 7 minutes. The edges may begin to caramelize - this is good! Remove the sugar from the oven and leave the oven on.
• In a large clean, dry bowl, whip the egg whites with an electric hand mixer on low speed until foamy, then add the salt. Continue whipping on high speed until medium peaks form.
• Add the toasted sugar to the egg whites 1 tablespoon at a time, increasing the mixer speed gradually as you add more sugar. Once all of the sugar is incorporated, continue whipping for 5-7 minutes, until the meringue is very thick and shiny.
• Add in vanilla, just whipping until incorporated.
• Prop open a piping bag or zip-top bag in a tall drinking glass. Using wooden skewers, lightly paint 2 thin stripes of different-colored gel food coloring on opposite sides of the bag. Paint additional bags with more colors, if desired.
• Fill each bag with the meringue batter, dividing evenly amongst different colors, if using.
• Pipe 1-inch (2-cm) wide "kisses" of meringue onto a baking sheet about ½ inch (1 cm) apart.
• Bake for about 1 hour, or until you can easily lift a kiss off of the paper.
• Cool the meringues on the baking sheet at room temperature until no longer warm.
• To fill, pipe buttercream icing around the edge of a cookie and place a small dollop of jam in the center. Sandwich with another cookie.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F (350°F for dark or nonstick cookie sheet). In large bowl, stir cookie mix and flour until blended. Add butter and egg; stir until dough forms.
• Divide dough into 4 portions; place in separate small bowls. Add a few drops blue food color to 1 bowl; stir until dough is evenly tinted, adding more food color as necessary. Repeat with remaining 3 bowls of dough and food colors.
• On lightly floured surface, roll each portion of tinted dough into 24 grape-size balls. Press together 4 balls (1 ball of each color) to look like a miniature beach ball. Roll ball into 5-inch rope, then coil rope into spiral shape. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough. Top cookies with sprinkles.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely before storing.

Steps:

• For the cookies: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl until combined.
• Beat the butter, granulated sugar and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks and almond extract until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, as needed. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and gradually beat in the flour mixture until the dough just comes together.
• Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces and place each in a separate small bowl. With gloved hands or a rubber spatula, use the food coloring to tint one piece red, one yellow and one green. Starting with the green dough on a piece of parchment, shape it into a rectangle that's about 10 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide, using the parchment and a bench scraper to make the dough as rectangular and even as possible. Repeat with the yellow and red dough on separate sheets of parchment. Using the parchment to help lift the dough, carefully invert the yellow rectangle on top of the green, pressing gently to adhere. Remove and discard the parchment. Finally, use the parchment to carefully lift and invert the red rectangle on top of the yellow, pressing gently to adhere; remove and discard the parchment. Use the bench scraper to even out all the sides. Wrap the entire log of dough in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment.
• Trim the ends of the dough log with a sharp knife, then slice crosswise into 3/8-inch-thick rectangles. Arrange about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets and refrigerate until ready to bake, at least 15 minutes.
• Bake one baking sheet at a time until the cookies are just set around the edges and golden on the bottom, about 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the chocolate icing: Once the cookies have cooled, combine the chocolate, cream and butter in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the bowl touch the water). Stir with a small silicone spatula until melted and smooth, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir in the raspberry extract; let cool 5 minutes.
• Dip each cookie at an angle into the chocolate icing and coat about one-third of the way up, letting any excess drip back into the bowl. Once all the cookies are dipped, wiggle a small offset spatula through the chocolate coating on each to create ripples. Let set, about 35 minutes. The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Steps:

• For the vanilla dough: Mix the 2 sugars and the salt together in a medium bowl. In another small bowl, whisk the egg and mint extract and set aside. With a hand held mixer beat the butter until smooth in a large bowl. While mixing, gradually add the sugar mixture, and continue beating until lightly colored and fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stop mixing and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg mixture and beat until smooth. Gradually add the flour, mixing slowly until blended.
• Turn the dough out of the bowl, divide in half. Place the halves between 2 pieces of lightly floured parchment or waxed paper. Roll into a 10 by 12 by 1/4 inch rectangle. Slide the sheets of dough/parchment sheets onto a baking sheet, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.
• For the chocolate dough: Whisk the sugar, cocoa, salt in a medium bowl. With a hand held mixer beat the butter until smooth in a large bowl. While mixing, add the cocoa mixture, and continue beating until lightly colored and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Stop mixing and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and beat until smooth. Gradually add the flour, mixing slowly until blended.
• Turn the dough out of the bowl, divide in half. Place the halves between 2 pieces of lightly floured parchment or waxed paper. Roll into a 10 by 12 by 1/4 inch rectangle. Slide the sheets of dough/parchment sheets onto a baking sheet, and refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.
• For a spiral cookie: Put 1 of the chocolate doughs on the workspace and remove the top sheet of parchment. Brush dough lightly with cold water. Place a sheet of vanilla dough on the workspace, and remove top sheet of paper. Using the bottom piece of the paper to lift the dough, place the vanilla dough on top of the chocolate dough. Take care to line up the edges of the 2 doughs and trim as needed. Lightly press to smooth and seal the doughs together. Remove the top piece of paper. Brush the surface of the dough lightly with cold water. Position the sandwiched doughs with the long edge facing you. Using the edge of the paper as a guide, roll the doughs into a tight cylinder, 2 inches wide. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour. Repeat with remaining 2 sheets of dough.
• Evenly position racks in the oven, and preheat to 325 degrees F.
• Slice the dough crosswise into 1/4-inch thick cookies. Lay about 1/2-inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until just golden - not too dark you'll lose the definition of the spiral, about 14 to 16 minutes.
• Roll and layer the two doughs into 15 by 18-inch rectangles, and 1/4-inch thick in the same way as the Spiral Cookies. Put 1 of the chocolate doughs on the work space and remove the top sheet of parchment. Brush lightly with a little cold water. Place 1 of vanilla doughs on the work space. Remove top sheet of paper, and use the bottom piece of the paper to lift the dough onto the chocolate dough. Take care to lining up the edges of the dough. Lightly press to smooth and seal the doughs together. Remove the top parchment.
• Trim the edges on the layered doughs with a pizza cutter using a ruler or other straight edge as a guide. Working with the short edge facing you, cut the layered dough in half vertically. Set 1 piece on top of the other and then turn the dough, to have the long side facing you. Cut the dough in half again and set 1 piece on top of the other. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2 hours before slicing.
• Trim any uneven edges with a sharp knife. Slice blocks into 1/8-inch thick rectangles and bake until the white dough is just beginning to brown, about 16 to 18 minutes.
• Copyright (c) 2004 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved.

Steps:

• Using a hand mixer or standing mixer, beat butter until creamy.
• Add powdered sugar and beat until combined. Add the eggs, vanilla, and salt. Beat until well combined.
• Gradually, add the flour until dough is moist and holds together, but doesn't stick to your hands.
• Place dough on a cutting board and form into a ball. Cut in half, then cover one half with plastic wrap and set aside.
• Divide the other half into 6 pieces. The outer layers of the rainbow will need a little bit more dough, so make two of them slightly larger than the others.
• Dye the dough with food coloring by placing a ¼ teaspoon of dye on the ball of dough and kneading it until it is one solid color. Gloves optional but suggested.
• Starting with purple, roll the dough into a log about 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) long. This will be the center of the rainbow.
• Next, roll out the blue dough with a rolling pin until it's about ¼ inch (6 mm) thick, slightly longer than the purple, and wide enough to wrap around the purple dough. Repeat with the green, yellow, orange, and red doughs. The further away from the purple you get, the wider the dough needs to be to go around the previous color, making the red dough the widest.
• Wrap the blue dough around the purple, pinching together any cracks that form, cutting off any excess dough. Repeat with the rest of the colors.
• Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
• Once chilled, remove the plastic wrap, and cut the dough in half to make 2 rainbow shapes. Set aside.
• Cut the reserved dough in half, roll out to ¼-inch (6 mm) thickness, and make it slightly longer than the rainbow log.
• Place the rainbow dough in the center and wrap the plain dough around it, again, pinching together any cracks and smoothing out the surface.
• Repeat with the other halves. Wrap with plastic wrap and chill for another 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350˚F (180˚C).
• Once chilled, remove the plastic wrap. Slice cookies about ½-inch (1 cm) thick and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the bottom has browned slightly.
• Cool on a cooling rack.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar with a hand mixer until light and fluffy.
• Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated.
• Add the flour, baking soda, and baking powder, and mix until the dough is crumbly, but holds together when squeezed.
• Split the base dough in half, add your desired mix-ins, and incorporate them fully.
• We used chocolate hazelnut spread and cocoa powder for one half and peanut butter for the other.
• Roll out each dough between two sheets of parchment paper until it's ¼-inch (6-mm) thick. Chill both doughs for 30 minutes.
• Place one half of flavored dough on top of the other and start to roll up the doughs into a swirl. Wrap the roll in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge until solid, about 4 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Once chilled, unwrap the dough, slice into ½-inch (1 cm) thick coins, and place them on the baking sheet at least 2 inches (5 cm) apart, as the cookies will spread while baking.
• Bake the cookies for 10 minutes. Let cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
• Try additional combinations.
• Enjoy!