Cookie combines two treats in one

These easy-to-make sugar cookies have the flavor of a cinnamon roll, but the portability of cookies (no sticky fingers to clean).

The recipe comes from Dessert Mash-Ups: Tasty Two-in-One Treats Including Sconuts, S’morescake and Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie by Dorothy Kern.

The recipes in the book are perfect for those times when you want to make a dessert — for, say, a potluck or family get-together — but have no idea what to make or you can’t decide between two favorites.

A few months ago I wrote about Kern’s recipe for brookies — a chocolate brownie baked on a peanut butter cookie crust. As a hardcore chocolate lover I can’t say these are better than the brookies, but they are quite good. And they would make a delicious treat for Santa in a few weeks.

Cinnamon Roll Cookies ½ cup butter, softened ⅔ cup granulated sugar ½ cup packed brown sugar, divided use 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon,

divided use

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, granulated sugar and ¼ cup of the brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and ¼ teaspoon of the cinnamon and mix well. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture and beat until dough just comes together.

Divide the dough into two equal portions. Place a sheet of wax paper on a cutting board. Place half of the dough on the

wax paper and flatten slightly with your hands. Top dough with a second sheet of wax paper. Roll dough, between the sheets of wax paper, into an 8-inch square.

In a small bowl, combine the remaining brown sugar and cinnamon.

Remove the top sheet of wax paper from the dough. Sprinkle with half of the cinnamon-sugar. Roll dough into a tight cylinder. Repeat with remaining dough and cinnamon-sugar. Wrap cylinders in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats.

Slice dough logs into ¼ - to ½ -inch thick cookies. Place on prepared baking sheets spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to brown around the edges. Cool on pans for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.