Say goodbye to boring and hello to sprinkles and color! These Spiral Cookies are fun! Red for Christmas, pink for a girl party or blue for pool-side snacks. They’ll make any occasion brighter and more fun!
Original post: December 2011 | Updated: December 2020
I first made these colorful spiral cookies from Sprinkle Bakes back in the wee early years of my blog. Not only are these spiral cookies pretty, but they are also deliciously tasty.
And you can imagine how much kids enjoy them! I heard someone say once after I made them, “Ooo, look! A Grinch cookie!” The green swirls do strangely remind me of the Grinch’s long, swirling fingers.
How To Make Sprinkled Spiral Cookies
These cookies are versatile because they are great year round and easy to adapt with fun colors. They promise to be a hit!
Prep The Dough
STEP 1
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugars in a food processor and process to mix. Add butter and process until the mixture has a cornmeal consistency. Add the vanilla and process until mixture just forms a ball.
STEP 2
Divide the dough in half and return one half to the food processor. Add almond extract, gel food coloring and 2 Tbsp flour to the food processor until just incorporated.
STEP 3
Roll out each half of the dough between sheets of wax paper into an 8×11-inch(ish) rectangle, with a 1/4-inch thickness. Leaving the wax paper on the dough, stack on a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours.
Assemble The Cookies
STEP 4
Pour 1 cup of multi-colored sprinkles in a shallow dish.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and peel off the top pieces of wax paper from each half of dough. Flip the colored dough half over onto the white dough half so that dough is touching dough.
Remove the top sheet of wax paper and trim the long edges with a sharp knife so that the sides are straight and parallel with one another.
STEP 5
When the dough becomes just pliable, roll it into a log beginning with a long edge. Gently curl the edge with your fingertips and do your best to avoid creating air pockets.
Carefully lift the log into the sprinkle-filled dish. Gently roll it around until the outside is completely coated with color.
Wrap the dough log in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to slice, about 4 hours.
Bake The Cookies
STEP 6
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.
Slice the cookie log into 1/4-inch-thick discs and bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 15 to 17 minutes, or until the cookies are no longer shiny. Move the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Notes
- If you have any scraps of dough leftover, just roll them out in worm like strips, bake them and enjoy a treat! They won’t need to bake as long so keep an eye on them.
- The green swirl is fun for Christmas, but any color would be just as fun. Bright yellow for a spring-time cookie? Orange for a Halloween cookie? A swirl of colors for a birthday cookie?
- Use a piece of 8.5×11 paper as a guide when rolling out and measuring the dough rectangle.
To Sprinkle or Not To Sprinkle
If you’re not usually a sprinkles kinda person – just wait! These cookies need the sprinkles for two reasons.
- You will enjoy the crunch it gives to each bite of your cookie because they are a soft sugar cookie on their own.
- The extra pretty look it gives these cookies (and only these if that’s what works for you) make them more festive, and are worth picking up a bottle and rolling these cookies into them!
Gel vs Liquid Food Coloring
This recipe calls for you to use gel food coloring. Could you use liquid food coloring? Sure. But here’s a few reasons to switch over to gel.
- It is thicker, it has a viscous texture.
- Gel food coloring is concentrated and helps achieve a more vibrant color.
- It does cost a little more but you won’t use as much and achieve a more true color that you were hoping to attain.
- Gel food coloring will stain your fingers, so you might want to wear plastic gloves.
Storing Spiral Cookies
You made these tasty show-stopping cookies so be sure after they have completely cooled to place them in a air-tight container or a ziploc bag. You can enjoy them over the next few days if you can keep your hands off them!
Best Dessert Recipes
- No bake strawberry pie is a great dessert for gatherings of any kind. It is super easy to prepare and it is packed with delicious strawberry flavor!
- Gingerbread Poke Cake = the marriage of Gingerbread Cookies and cake! This cake is beyond delicious and a total crowd pleaser.
- Creamy banana cheesecake is the perfect way to use up ripe bananas. So delectable and satisfying! Top it off with caramel sauce for good measure!
- This carrot cake recipe made without nuts is the way to go! It is moist, flavorful, perfectly spiced and topped with yummy cream cheese frosting!
- Snack bites take less than 10 minutes to make and you probably have all of the ingredients sitting in your pantry. Kids adore them! Great after school or anytime snack with no preservatives or unknown ingredients.
- Almond Cookies are melt-in-your-mouth delicious and super easy to make! They are topped with an almond glaze and a touch of orange zest that will leave you wanting more (and more and more)!
- Monkey bread with cream cheese hiding inside! Stuffing the dough with gooey-ness makes a delicious treat. Prepare to WOW your guests!
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Sprinkled Spiral Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter cubed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 tube gel food coloring any color
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup multi-colored nonpareil sprinkles
Instructions
- Combine the 2 cups of flour, baking powder, salt and sugars in a food processor and process to mix. Add butter and process until the mixture has a cornmeal consistency. Add the vanilla and process until mixture just forms a ball.
- Divide the dough in half and return one half to the food processor. Add the almond extract, food coloring and 2 Tbsp flour and mix until just incorporated.
- Roll out each portion of dough between sheets of waxed paper into an 8×11-inch rectangle, with ¼-inch thickness. Stack the dough, leaving in the wax paper, onto a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
- Pour the sprinkles into a shallow dish. Remove the dough from fridge and peel off the top pieces of wax paper from each dough half. Lift one and flip it over onto the other half so that the doughs are touching. Remove the top sheet of wax paper and trim the long edges with a sharp knife so that the sides are straight.
- When the dough becomes just pliable, roll the dough beginning with a long end into a log. Gently curl the edge with fingertips and try to avoid creating pockets of air. Carefully lift log into the dish with the decors and roll until outside is completely coated. Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm enough to slice, about 2 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.Slice the cookie log into 1/4-inch-thick discs and bake on parchment-lined baking sheets for 15 to 17 minutes, or until the cookies are no longer shiny. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- If you have any scraps of dough leftover, just roll them out in worm like strips, bake them and enjoy a treat! They won’t need to bake as long so keep an eye on them.
- The green swirl is fun for Christmas, but any color would be just as fun. Bright yellow for a spring-time cookie? Orange for a Halloween cookie? A swirl of colors for a birthday cookie?
- Use a piece of 8.5×11 paper as a guide when rolling out and measuring the dough rectangle.
Which attachment did you use in your food processor?
Hi Cassie! I used the standard s-shape blade for this. Hope that helps! Enjoy!
Megan
Thank you so much. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
Just made them and used extra vanilla instead of almond extract (nut allergy) and while they don’t look the same (practice makes perfect) my boys loved them and will definitely make them again. Thanks!!!
I made these for a Christmas cookie exchange and colored one dough ball green and the other red. They turned out great! These are amazing cookies. Thanks for the recipe
I’m so glad they turned out, Brandi! I love this recipe, too. YUM!
Megan
Do you think not putting confectioners sugar will make a huge difference? I realized I forgot to add it after the cookies went in the refrigerator.
Hi Addie! This might throw the recipe off by a bit, but please still give them a try and report back. I hope they turn out great!
Megan
I dampened outside of roll with pastry brush so the sprinkles would attach better, then froze dough for 30 minutes before slicing.
Hi, do you have measurements for this recipe in grams? I’m planning on doing these for my partner’s birthday, and I want to get them just right. They look gorgeous!
Did not work at all!!!!
I made these for the first time, I can’t taste anything, and they are greasy. Have and helpful ideas?
Oh no, Donna! I’m so sorry to hear it! One of my favorite things about these cookies is how delicious they taste. I’m not sure what to tell you except follow the recipe exactly. Give ’em another try!
Megan
Since I do not have a food processor, will the dough come out the same if I use a pastry cutter? The handheld ones?
I’ve never tried one with this recipe, but a pastry cutter might work fine! Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a try!
Megan
I didn’t have one either, and literally mixed by hand after using a pastry cutter (whisk! 🙂 ) They turned out beautifully!
I used a pastry blender and then my hand held and they turned out great!
I was a bit worried after I rolled them up but they worked great. I used the bits I cut off first batch to make another roll. I had to skip the almond extract so they were nut free but next time might try mint extract.
Would I be able to use a Kitchen Aid Mixer instead of a food processor for this recipe?
If you have a food processor, use that. If not, you could try a blender. A mixer might not get it to the right consistency. If you do try, please let me know how it turns out!
Megan
Oh how I wish these worked out, but the dough didn’t taste good at all! I followed the instructions to a tee, the cookies are bitter and the dough did’t ‘look’ right. I wish I had passed on this one!
Oh bummer, Kris! We absolutely LOVE the taste of these cookies! So sorry they didn’t work out. 🙁
M
Hello How much butter does 2.5 sticks measure to ?
Hi Jennifer! 2 1/2 sticks of butter equals 1 1/4 cups!
M
Hi, my son has a nut allergy so I would like to replace the Almold extract. Any suggestions?
Thx-Daniela
Hi Daniela! Vanilla extract would be great, too! Or a fruity extract of some sort. Really, anything would taste great. Let me know what you try!
Megan
Just made these and they are super yummy and oh so pretty. My only problem was that the cookies spread a lot and became much thinner than the pictured baked cookies. I had refrigerated the dough overnight before slicing and baking, and baked them on silpat lined cookies sheets. Any suggestions for fixing this?
Hi Zzanzibar! Did you maybe slice the cookies too thinly? They should be between 1/4 and 1/2 inch slices before cooked. I’m so bummed to hear that they thinned out too much! Glad you loved them still! 🙂
M
Can this dough be fozen?
Hi Ceci! Yes, this absolutely can be frozen! If you’re freezing for a few days or less, freeze after rolling into a log. If it’ll be longer than that, freeze before rolling out and be sure dough is at room temperature when you’re ready to use it. I hope this helps!
M
Can you freeze this dough so I can make it ahead for Christmas? Thanks
YES! This can definitely be frozen! I did it a few years ago and it came out great. Hope this helps!
M
So you freeze with the sprinkles on it?
Hi Amy! Refrigerate with sprinkles, but if you want to freeze it I would suggest wrapping the dough in plastic wrap before you do any rolling. I hope that helps!
Megan
woow great food
Hi I love the idea I want to do it but can you tell me what amount of butter it is please as it says sticks, I go by grams. Thanks
Scmoopy: 2 1/2 sticks of butter equals 1 1/4 cup.
Brenda: Oh no! I'm so sorry these didn't work for you. My family loves these! I hope you will give them another try.
Thanks for reading!!
Megan