Chocolate Peppermint Pinwheels
Submitted by happyzhangbo
Chocolate peppermint pinwheel cookies swirl cocoa-rich chocolate dough with crushed peppermint candy dough into a spiral slice-and-bake Christmas cookie. A holiday tin classic with bracing mint and deep chocolate.
YIELD
36 servingsPREP
48 minCOOK
15 minREADY
3 hrsChocolate peppermint pinwheel cookies are the showpiece on any holiday cookie tray. One buttery sugar-cookie base splits into two flavors: half gets unsweetened chocolate for deep cocoa bitterness, the other half takes peppermint extract and crushed candy canes for that bracing, cool-mint snap. Rolled together into a log, chilled firm, and sliced thin, each cookie bakes up as a crisp spiral of dark and cream.
The dough is forgiving as long as you respect the chill times. Two hours after mixing, two more after rolling the log. Warm pinwheel dough smears together into a blur when you try to slice it, and the pattern disappears. Cold dough cuts clean, holds its edges in the oven, and shows off the spiral.
Pro Tips
- Crush the peppermint candy in a zip-top bag with a rolling pin, not in a food processor. You want pea-sized pieces that keep their crunch, not powder that melts into the dough.
- Roll each dough between sheets of waxed paper to the same rectangle dimensions. Mismatched sizes cause the pinwheel to flare or pinch at the ends.
- Trim the ragged ends of the log with a sharp knife before slicing. The first and last cookies never swirl as cleanly as the middle.
Variations
- Swap unsweetened chocolate for cocoa powder plus an extra tablespoon of butter if you don’t keep baking chocolate on hand.
- Roll the finished log in more crushed candy canes before chilling for a sparkly, crunchy exterior on every slice.
- Use almond extract and cherry-flavored candy in place of peppermint for a Valentine’s Day riff on the same technique.
Ingredients
Directions
To make the sugar cookies:
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.
Add butter and sugar in a large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color.
Add egg and milk and beat to mix.
Turn mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl.
Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
To make the Pinwheels:
Divide the dough in half and stir in chocolate and vanilla to 1 half and knead with hands until incorporated.
Stir in egg yolk, peppermint extract, and crushed candy to the other half of dough and knead with hands until incorporated.
Cover both with waxed papper or plastic wraps and chill for about 5 minutes.
Roll out doughs on waxed papper separately to ¼ inch thickness.
Arrange peppermint dough on top of chocolate dough and press together around the edges, remove the waxed papper from chocolate dough on top.
Use waxed paper underneath peppermint dough to roll dough into log.
Wrap in waxed paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375℉ (190℃).
Remove dough from the refrigerator and cut into ½-inch slices.
Arrange cookies 1-inch apart on baking sheet covered with parchment, or silicone baking mat and bake for about 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through cooking time.
Remove from oven and let sit on baking sheet for 4 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
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