Sugar-Coated Sundays: Colorful Spiraled Cookies

I'm turning 29 in July.  It's true.  I'm fine with it.  I have two kids, a job, a degree, a dog, a fish, I bought my first car from a dealership, I have a boyfriend/husband, and I'm planning to buy a house in the next year.  I'm basically an adult by conventional standards.  I had a first this week.  Mom and I both got stuck working Mother's Day - I still think there's a law against that somewhere - so we went out to breakfast on Wednesday morning.

There's a local place we love called The Gilbert House Restaurant.  It's simple and the food is always good.  My favorite to order is a ham, cheese, and avocado omelet with hash browns and a mimosa.  But Wednesday I finally did it.  I ordered Eggs Benedict.  For the first time...ever.   Mike looked at me like I was crazy for never having had it before.  
Haha.

I've meant to get an order for years.  At breakfast with my aunt in California.  Out with Mike and the boys for a breakfast date.  I even wanted to make it myself.  I knew the basic dish composition, but had never actually tasted Hollandaise sauce.  I was so happy I finally got off my butt and had this amazing dish.  I'm extra amped up to make my own Eggs Benedict at home now, like ASAP.

Since I'm trying new recipes, I think it's about high time I bust out my SprinkleBakes cookbook!  I had already cookie plans for this week,  but I just couldn't talk myself into making them.   They sounded good and all.  I don't know.  It was just a no go every time I thought about starting them.  Heather to the rescue.  fThese super colorful cookies caught my eye the very first time I flipped through Heather's cookbook.  Most of my log cookies have a flat side, but I want these ones to  finally be perfectly round.  Here goes nothin'!

Colorful Spiraled Cookies
From SprinkleBakes - Makes about 3 dozen cookies

Heather uses a food processor for her recipe.  If you want to go that route, please click over to her site and see her method. My food processor isn't big enough so I went with my stand mixer and everything came out just fine.  

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cups unsifted powdered sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into cubes and kept cold
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon strawberry (or other clear) extract  {I used almond}
1/2 teaspoons (or more) Rose food coloring  {or any other color you want, we did orange}
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups multi-colored nonpareil decors

Directions:

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer.  With the whisk attachment in place, mix together dry ingredients.  Add in the butter pieces.  Using the tines of a fork, quickly break down the butter into the dry ingredients.  There will still be large chunks of butter; this is just to get things started for the mixer.  Place mixing bowl back onto mixing stand and whisk everything together on medium speed until dough is in a crumb state.  Scrape bowl sides as needed.  Add the vanilla and whisk until the mixture just forms a ball.  Be sure not to over mix the dough!
2. Divide dough in half.  Return one half to the mixing bowl; set the other half (vanilla) aside in the fridge.  Add your clear extract, food coloring, and 2 tablespoons of flour and whisk until just incorporated.
3. Roll out each half of the dough between sheets of  waxed paper.  You want a rectangle about 11" x 8 1/2" and 1/8" thick.  Leave the dough between the waxed paper and slide onto a baking sheet.  Refrigerate until firm, for at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.
4. Remove dough from fridge.  Pour nonpareils into a shallow rectangular baking dish.  
5. Peel of the top sheet of waxed paper from both doughs.  Brush the vanilla dough very lightly with water.  Using the waxed paper, lift the colored dough and flip it onto the vanilla dough so they are stacked.  Using your fingers press to seal the doughs together.  Remove the top sheet of waxed paper and trim the edges so they are even.
6. When the dough is just pliable (but still cold), roll up the dough (starting with the long side) like a jellyroll.  As you begin to roll, curl the edge in with your fingertips so you don't get any air pockets as you roll the dough into a log.  As you roll, the vanilla portion may want to tear, pinch tears together as they happen and keep rolling.
7. After forming the dough into a log, discard waxed paper.  Gently lift the dough log on top of the nonpareils in the dish and roll until the log is completely coated with sprinkles.  Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to slice (from 4 hours to a week, or freeze for up to 2 months; defrost in the fridge overnight before slicing).
8. Heat oven to 325 degrees F.  To bake, slice the log into 1/8" to 1/4" thick cookies and bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 15 to 17 minutes,until the cookies are no longer shiny on top and the bottoms of the vanilla portion are golden.

Cookies are always more fun to make when you bake with a friend.

Thing 1 had a great time making these cookies and picking out the swirl color.

He says they're "nummy."

He's right!

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