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Rainbow Sugar Cookies

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Rainbow Sugar Cookies are easy to make and deliciously sweet. Full of colorful layers and so much fun, this sugar cookie recipe is perfect for St. Patrick’s Day or any day! Simply layer rainbow colors of sugar cookie dough to create gorgeous rainbow swirl sugar cookies.

Rainbow Sugar Cookies stacked on pedestals.

Rainbow Sugar Cookies

 

These colorful slice and bake Rainbow Sugar Cookies are so much fun! Everyone raves about them – from their bright and happy colors to their delicious flavor.

Rainbow Sugar Cookies are a big hit for St. Patrick’s Day!

A really easy sugar cookie recipe that only takes a small amount of extra time to create. Believe me, this extra time is worth it! Your friends and family will ooh and awe of these gorgeous sugar cookies.

Grab all the classic gel food colors because these delicious rainbow sugar cookies have six colors of the rainbow.

Add these easy buttery marshmallow Rainbow Rice Krispie Treats to keep the rainbow theme going! And serve up an amazing dinner recipe for St. Patrick’s Day with this tender Dutch Oven Corned Beef and Cabbage dish.

Why You’ll Love Rainbow Sugar Cookies

  • These are not only perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, you can serve them up for a unicorn theme party, rainbow birthday themed party and even a Hawaiian themed party.
  • This rainbow cookies recipe creates the perfect slice and bake cookies.
  • These rainbow swirl sugar cookies are a little crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside.
  • They are show stopping gorgeous!

So… Let’s get to making them!

Close up of one rainbow sugar cookie.

 

Should You Chill Sugar Cookies Before Baking?

Absolutely! These sugar cookies need to be chilled in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.

This will help these colorful sugar cookies hold their shape when in the oven. A very important step, so don’t skip over it in the recipe below.

Kitchen Tools Needed

  • Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
  • Large Mixing Bowl
  • 6 Small Bowls
  • Wax Paper
  • Parchment Paper
  • Rolling Pin
  • Sharp Knife
  • Cookie Sheet
  • Cooling Rack / Wire Rack

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups All Purpose Flour
  • ¾ teaspoon Baking Powder
  • ¼ teaspoon Salt
  • 2 sticks Unsalted Butter (1 cup butter), room temperature
  • 1 cup Sugar
  • 1 large Egg
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • Powdered sugar for rolling
  • Gel Food Coloring (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple). You can get a full set on Amazon, which might be easier than finding all the colors at your local grocery store: Gel Food Color

Rainbow sugar cookie ingredients displayed on counter top.

 

Rainbow Cookies Instructions

STEP 1: Sift together the dry ingredients in a large bowl: flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.

STEP 2: In a separate large mixing bowl beat butter and sugar until fluffy.

STEP 3: Mix in egg and milk to the butter mixture.

Butter and sugar beaten together in a large bowl.

 

STEP 4: Use the low setting on the electric mixer to gradually mix in the dry ingredients. Mix until completely blended and the cookie dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Adding flour mixture into mixing bowl.

 

STEP 5: Divide the cookie dough in 6 equal parts. Add food coloring – a different color into each portion of sugar cookie stir until well combined.

Collage photo of sugar cookie dough in each gel food color.

Collage of rainbow sugar cookie dough.

 

STEP 6: Wrap each dough separately in wax paper and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

STEP 7: Sprinkle powdered sugar on your rolling surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough pieces out to about a 12 inch circle.

STEP 8: Next, stack each circle of dough on top of the other. See just below for the order of the colors I used.

rolled out cookie dough.

 

Here’s the order of the rainbow colors:

  1. Start with the purple dough on bottom
  2. Then layer on top with blue dough
  3. Next is the green dough
  4. Then yellow dough
  5. Orange dough
  6. Lastly, add the red dough on top.

Each color dough rolled and laying on top of one another.

 

STEP 9: Carefully roll the layers of dough together into a log shape (like a jelly roll). Make the roll tight as possible and press together any cracks.

Rolled rainbow sugar cookie dough into a log.

 

STEP 10: Wrap rainbow cookie dough log in wax paper and chill in freezer for 15 minutes.

STEP 11: Set dough on a cutting board. Trim off any excess dough on the ends. Slice the rainbow sugar cookies into 1/4 – 1/2 inch slices with a sharp knife.  This will make 12-14 cookies.

TIP: You can cut them into thinner cookies so you have more to serve, just make sure to adjust the cook time.

Cut all slices the same thickness so they require the same amount of baking time.

Rainbow cookie dough log sliced into cookies.

 

STEP 12: Place cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Sliced rainbow cookies on baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

 

STEP 13: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Once preheated, bake cookies for 8-10 minutes. If you want extra soft sugar cookies, remove cookies 1-2 minutes early and let them sit on the baking sheet for 2 minutes to continue to set up.

STEP 14: Let cool on a cooling rack and serve.

Rainbow pinwheel sugar cookies on serving plate.

 

Can I Make The Color Dough in Advance?

Absolutely. You can make the colorful dough up to 2 days in advance and keep it refrigerated.

Go ahead and slice your cookies and place a piece of parchment paper between each one so there is not chance they’ll stick to each other.

How to Store Rainbow Sugar Cookies

Just like regular sugar cookies, these can be kept in an airtight container for about 5 days at room temperature. To keep them from sticking to each other, place a piece of parchment paper in between layers of cookies.

If stored in the freezer, these cookies can last several months. Wrap in plastic wrap and then store in an airtight container.

Before cooking, let the cookies thaw for 10-15 minutes.

So, this means you can make Rainbow Sugar Cookies well in advance if needed.

 

Rainbow Sugar Cookies are the perfect way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! These soft, chewy cookies with an outer crunch are perfect for celebrating the holiday.

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

Yield: 12-14

Rainbow Sugar Cookies

Rainbow Sugar Cookies

Rainbow Sugar Cookies are easy to make and deliciously sweet. Full of colorful layers and so much fun, this sugar cookie recipe is perfect for St. Patrick's Day or any day! Simply layer rainbow colors of sugar cookie dough to create gorgeous rainbow swirl sugar cookies.

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Chill Time 2 hours 15 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 38 minutes

Ingredients

  • 3 cups All Purpose Flour
  • ¾ teaspoon Baking Powder
  • ¼ teaspoon Salt
  • 2 sticks Unsalted Butter (1 cup butter), room temperature
  • 1 cup Sugar
  • 1 large Egg
  • 1 tablespoon Milk
  • Powdered Sugar for rolling surface
  • Gel Food Coloring (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple)

Instructions

  1. Sift together the dry ingredients in a large bowl: flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
  2. In a separate large mixing bowl beat butter and sugar until fluffy.
  3. Mix in egg and milk to the butter mixture.
  4. Use low setting on electric mixer and gradually mix in dry ingredients. Mix until completely blended and the cookie dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
  5. Divide dough into 6 equal parts. Add food coloring - a different color for each portion of sugar cookie dough. Stir until well combined.
  6. Wrap each dough separately in wax paper and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
  7. Sprinkle powdered sugar on your rolling surface. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough pieces out to about a 12 inch circle.
  8. Lay each circle of dough on top of the other in this order: purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red.
  9. Roll the layers of dough together into a log shape. Roll as tight as possible and press together any cracks.
  10. Wrap rainbow cookie dough log in wax paper and chill in freezer for 15 minutes.
  11. Set dough on a cutting board. Trim off excess dough on the ends. Slice the rainbow sugar cookies into 1/4 - 1/2 inch slices with a sharp knife. Make sure to cut the same thickness for all slices so they bake at the same rate.
  12. Place cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet.
  13. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Once preheated, bake cookies for 8-10 minutes (depending on the thickness of your slices). If you want extra soft sugar cookies, remove cookies 2 minutes early and let them sit on the baking sheet for 2 minutes to continue to set up.
  14. Let cool on a cooling rack and serve.

Notes

See recipe post for extra tips.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

14

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 308Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 72mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 1gSugar: 23gProtein: 3g

Nutritional values are estimates and not exact.

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