Julie Clark
Updated:
Patriotic Pinwheel Cookies
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Classic, slice and bake soft sugar cookies get dressed up as a July 4 cookie! Patriotic pinwheel cookies have sweet swirls of red white and blue.
July 4th is coming quickly!! Do you usually make special patriotic desserts? Although we usually focus on summer berry desserts for our 4th celebrations, we do every now and then like to make a fun red, white and blue dessert.
If you’re looking for a treat the kids will FLIP for, try these Patriotic Pinwheel Cookies! They take the classic soft, rolled sugar cookie and turn it into a bright and cherry swirled pinwheel cookie.
What are pinwheel cookies?
Pinwheel cookies are an old fashioned icebox cookie that has swirls of at least 2 different colors. You color the dough into different colors, roll out each color, then roll the three colors together.
Roll up the cookies, then refrigerate them. When you are ready for a cookie, just slice and bake!
How to Make Patriotic Pinwheel Cookies
You will use basic cookie making techniques to get the dough ready for the patriotic pinwheel cookies.
- Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl first.
- Cream the butter and sugars in another bowl. Then mix in the egg and vanilla.
- Mix in the flour mixture, but mix only until just combined. Don’t overmix!
- The dough should come together and be soft, but not too wet.
- Divide the dough into three bowls. Leave one dough uncolored (that will be the white), then color one blue and the other red.
What kind of food coloring is best?
We find that gel food coloring works better than liquid food color. We don’t have to use as much color when we use gel and the colors are more intense.
You can find gel food coloring in most craft and hobby stores, or you can order it on Amazon.
How to Roll Pinwheel Cookies
- Place the red dough in between two pieces of wax paper and roll it into a rectangle about 1/8-inch thick. Repeat separately for white and blue dough.
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Peel the top layer of wax paper off of the red dough and then peel the wax paper off one side of the white dough and use the other side to transfer the white dough on top of the red dough.
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Peel off the wax paper from one side of the blue dough and use the other side to transfer it atop the white dough. Very lightly roll the three layers together.
- Because the dough is cold you shouldn’t have a problem with it sticking. If you do, dust it very, very lightly with flour.
- To get a perfect rectangle, take a sharp knife and cut off any edges that stick over a rectangle.
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Starting at the shorter end of the rectangle, roll the dough as tightly as possible into a log. Wrap the log in wax paper.
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Stand the roll up in a glass in the fridge for 4 hours or freezer for 30 minutes. By standing the roll up like this you prevent the cookies from getting a flat side.
How long do pinwheel cookies have to refrigerate?
At this point, you want to let the cookies refrigerate for at least 4 hours. The cookies will bake up best if you do this.
How far in advance can you make pinwheel cookies?
You can make this roll of cookies 3-5 days before you want to serve them. That makes these the perfect make-ahead cookie…and no mess on the day of your party!
How long to bake pinwheel cookies?
These cookies will take about 9-11 minutes to bake at 350º Fahrenheit. We try not to let ours get brown at all. You want the red white and blue to be vibrant! And they’ll be softest if they aren’t brown.
Do pinwheel cookies freeze well?
Yes! These patriotic pinwheel cookies freeze really well. Allow the cookies to cool completely before wrapping them or placing them in an airtight container.
When you are ready to serve them, allow them to defrost in the container before opening it. This keeps the cookies fresh and prevents them from drying out.
Other Patriotic Recipes
- Patriotic Taco Dip
- Cake Mix Cookies
- Patriotic Creamsicles
- Twizzler Cupcakes
- July 4th Cake
Other Sugar Cookie Recipes
- Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- Refrigerated Sugar Cookies
- Chewy Sugar Cookies
- Spiced Chai Sugar Cookies
- Buttermilk Sugar Cookies
Patriotic Pinwheel Cookies
Classic, slice and bake soft sugar cookies get dressed up as a July 4 cookie! Patriotic pinwheels have sweet swirls of red white and blue.
Servings 24
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Refrigerate Time 1 hour
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter room temperature (1 stick)
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Red food coloring
- Blue food coloring
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together until mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg and beat it in. Then add the vanilla and beat again.
- Add the flour and beat just until combined.
- Remove the dough and separate it into three equal pieces.
- Shape one piece of the dough into a 4x2 rectangle (approximate, just use eyes to guess close), wrap it securely in wax paper and place it in the fridge. (This will be the white portion of the cookies.)
- Add other two portions of dough to two separate bowls. Color one dough portion red and mix until it's incorporated. Color the other dough portion blue, mixing again until it's incorporated. Add enough dye to get the colors that you want. Remember that dye will deepen slightly as it sits.
- Form both red and blue dough into separate rectangles between wax paper as in step 6. Refrigerate all dough for 30 minutes.
- Place the red dough in between two pieces of wax paper and roll it into a rectangle about 1/8-inch thick. Repeat separately for white and blue dough.
- Peel the top layer of wax paper off of the red dough and then peel the wax paper off one side of the white dough and use the other side to transfer the white dough on top of the red dough. Peel off the wax paper from one side of the blue dough and use the other side to transfer it atop the white dough. Very lightly roll the three layers together using a rolling pin.
- To get a perfect rectangle, take a sharp knife and cut off any edges that stick over a rectangle.
- Starting at the shorter end of the rectangle, roll the dough as tightly as possible into a log. Wrap the log in wax paper. Stand the roll up in a glass in the fridge for 4 hours or freezer for 30 minutes. (I've included a picture of this. Standing them up prevents them from getting a flat side.)
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and slice each log into 1/4-inch rounds. You'll get between 18-24 cookies. Place the rounds about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets, as the cookies will expand when baked. You may need to do more than 2 batches.
- Bake the cookies for 9 to 11 minutes until pale golden. Try not to let them brown. Let sit on tray for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Store in an airtight container.
Notes
The calories shown are based on the recipe making 24 cookies, with 1 serving being 1 cookie. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**
Nutrition
Calories: 88kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 19mg | Sodium: 62mg | Potassium: 16mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 130IU | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0.4mg
Can I leave the rolled up dough in the fridge overnight and bake the next day?