The dough needs to chill then soften then chill again before baking, but in the end it is all worth it.
PINWHEEL COOKIES
1-1/2 cups butter, softened 2/3 cup sugar
1 cup icing sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup cocoa
• Cream the butter until light and fluffy
• Stir in the sugars and vanilla extract.
• In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder.
• Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture gradually, stirring after each addition.
• Divide the dough in two.
• With clean hands kneed one half of the dough smooth and then set aside.
• Add sifted cocoa to the remaining cookie dough.
• Kneed the cocoa dough smooth and until cocoa is fully incorporated.
• You now have two clumps of soft dough; one vanilla and one cocoa.
• Place two sheets wax paper on the counter.
• Sprinkle both sheets lightly with flour.
• Position the vanilla dough on one of the wax papers.
• Lightly flour the top and roll the dough into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle.
• Repeat with the cocoa dough, making sure both rectangles are similar in size.
• Leaving on the wax paper lay both dough on a cookie sheet and transfer to the fridge.
• Let them stiffen for 40 minutes. This will make the inversion easier.
• With the vanilla dough on the bottom, invert the chocolate dough on the top.
• Remove the wax paper from the cocoa dough.
• Now let the dough soften for 30 minutes or so.
• Starting at the opposite side, lift the vanilla dough with the wax paper underneath and try to roll it from the long side of the rectangle in jellyroll fashion. If the dough cracks, let it soften some more.
• Then snugly roll up both layers into a log, peeling away the wax paper as you go.
• Wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 2 hours or place it in the freezer for half an hour or so.
• Cut the log into 3/8 inch thick slices.
• Lay the cookies on prepared cookie sheets and bake at 350F for 13 minutes.
• Leave the cookies on the baking sheet until they can be safely transferred to a wire rack.
Yields 4 dozen cookies
Yields 4 dozen cookies
