Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies (click on the link below)

I got this recipe from Myrecipes.com.  Whenever I look at their recipes, I always read the ratings first.  Unless a recipe gets five stars, I generally delete it without reading it.  But these cookies were so cute that I took a chance on them.  When I read the ratings, one of the raters suggested some changes, and I decided to do it her way.  It worked out well, and so I'll add a note at the bottom about what I did.  But first, I'll tell you about the cookies.

These are supposed to be a sandwich cookie (think Oreos), but I thought they baked up too thick for that.  I'm afraid it would be like eating a too-large sandwich to put two together with frosting to boot.  So I decided against the frosting.  Without it, you end up with a very pretty little shortbread cookie.  If you like cookies that aren't too sweet, then this is a good choice for you.  They have a good flavor as is.  Some people might like their cookies sweeter though.  If you're not fond of shortbread, then you probably won't like these.

I like them for gift giving because they are so cute.  They require a little messing with, and so I wouldn't put them in the "easy" category; however, they are do-able with the changes I'm suggesting below.  Also, they require at least four hours in the freezer.  You can keep them up to a month though, and so this is something you can make ahead and then bake off later.

A Note about the recipe:  Several raters stated they had problems with the dough.  A suggestion was made to double the amounts of both butter and flour.  That would make the amount of butter 1 cup and the amount of flour 3 1/2 cups (yes, a lot of flour).  I had no problems working with the dough, but it was a bit of a hassle.  I thought it was worth it for such a cute, gifty-looking cookie.

Second, the recipe calls for "red food coloring paste," and I've never seen that.  I just used food coloring and kept adding more until I got the dough to the color I wanted.  I ended up adding 1 1/2 teaspoons of red food coloring for a nice red color.  You can try adding five drops at a time, which is what I did, and stop when you get enough.  Fifteen drops equals 1/4 teaspoon.  One rater didn't like the idea of adding food coloring.  If you're worried about your health, the sugar and butter must be at least as bad for you as food coloring.  If you are against food coloring, I suggest not making the cookies at all; but that's just me.  If you still want to make them without food coloring, I would suggest adding tiny amounts of Gerber baby food beets.  That should give you color without adding too much flavor.  (Baby food is pretty bland to begin with.)

All-in-all, I can recommend this cookie if you're looking for something good to give as a food gift.  But they're good for eating at home too!