Christmas Cookie Tray • Swirled Pinwheel Sugar Cookies
These festive Christmas Pinwheel Cookies are soft, buttery sugar cookies swirled with red, green, and vanilla dough. A colorful holiday treat perfect for cookie trays, gifting, and baking with kids.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2–3 hours
- Total Time: ~3.5 hours
- Yield: 36 cookies 1x
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Red and green gel food coloring
- Optional: sprinkles for rolling
Instructions
- Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to wet ingredients and mix to form dough.
- Divide into three parts: tint one red, one green, and leave one plain. Chill for 30–45 minutes.
- Roll each color into a rectangle between parchment. Stack, roll into a log, and chill 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Slice chilled log into 1/4-inch rounds.
- Bake 9–11 minutes until set. Cool on wire rack.
Notes
- Roll edges in sprinkles before chilling for extra festivity.
- Add peppermint or almond extract for flavor variation.
- Dough can be frozen and baked later.