Rainbow swirls
Makes 24-30 biscuits
Rainbowy, swirly and biscuity, these cookies are simple in flavour but striking in design. The rainbow swirls look complicated but they’re actually quite simple to make.
Make sure you chill the cookies well before baking and slicing to make it easier to get clean cuts.
Time required: 40 minutes prep, 20 minutes chilling, 10 minutes baking
You’ll need:
● 200g (7oz) butter, softened
● 125g (4½oz) caster sugar
● 1 egg
● 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
● ½ teaspoon salt
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 160˚C fan (350˚F/gas 4). Line two baking trays with baking paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugar with an electric whisk until light and fluffy.
3. Stir through the remaining ingredients – except the colours, egg white and sprinkles – until the mixture begins to form clumps. Use your hands to press and gently knead the mixture into a ball of dough.
4. Split the dough into two portions. Roll one piece of dough out between two sheets of baking paper in a rough rectangle about 26cm x 22cm (10in x 8½in).
5. Split the second portion of dough into six pieces. Add one colour of gel food colouring to each piece and work through with your hands over a sheet of baking paper to have a rainbow of doughs. Wash your hands quickly after using the colours so you don’t have stained rainbow hands for days!
6. Roll each portion of dough into a log a couple of centimetres shorter than the length of the plain dough rectangle.
Make this gluten-free:
● 350g (12½oz) plain flour
● Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple gel food colours
● 1 egg white
● 50g (1¾oz) rainbow sprinkles
7. Remove the top layer of baking paper from the plain dough and lay the rainbow logs over the dough. Flatten them slightly with your hands.
8. Place a sheet of baking paper over the dough and roll out until the coloured dough reaches the edges of the plain dough.
9. Remove the top layer of paper from the dough. Roll the dough into a tight spiral from one of the long sides. If the dough gets stuck to the paper, place it in the fridge for 3–5 minutes before trying again.
10. Brush the outside of the log with a light layer of egg white and roll it in the rainbow sprinkles. Wrap in baking paper and leave it in the fridge for at least 20 minutes to firm up.
11. Cut ½cm-¾cm (¼in-⅓in) slices from the dough. Place on baking trays with a bit of space in between them and bake for 10–12 minutes or until they are browning a little on the top edges. Allow to cool completely on the baking trays. They will firm up as they cool.
Replace the plain flour with gluten-free plain flour and teaspoon xanthan gum. Ensure the sprinkles you use are gluten-free.