Two-tone Swirl Cookies (Embrace): Easy and Tasty Recipe
The two-tone cookie craze continues! After the success of the classic checkerboard cookies, I present to you an even easier to make, eye-catching, and irresistibly flavored version: the swirl cookies (or “pinned”) with an incredibly hypnotic effect, don’t you think?
A fun and relaxing recipe to prepare even with the kids, perfect for breakfast, snack time, or a birthday buffet.
Main Ingredients and Taste Secrets
This recipe is based on a two-tone dough split in half: a neutral part and a cocoa part.
Flavor Balance: The secret to making them “irresistible” is that pinch of salt added to the dough. It gives the right savoriness that enhances the sweet taste of cocoa, creating a perfect contrast on the palate.
A classic shortcrust, well-tested, with slight adjustments to the dosages to ensure the right consistency for the “wow” swirl effect.
Why Will You Love These Two-tone Cookies?
Besides being nice to look at (the visual effect is really intriguing and original), these cookies offer numerous advantages: ease of execution compared to checkerboard cookies, making them ideal even for beginners in baking. The versatility, because they will be suitable for all special occasions or times of the day like children’s snacks or breakfast. The combination of the two flavors, almost like a sweet embrace, will create a unique visual and sensory experience with every bite. They will leave everyone amazed!
Other cookie recipes you might like:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 28
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
⚠ THIS RECIPE CONTAINS ONE OR MORE AFFILIATE LINKS. The products I recommend are the same ones I use in my recipes; purchasing them through my blog helps support me and my work, while it won’t cost you anything extra!
- 2 cups All-purpose flour
- 6 oz Butter (cold)
- 1 egg
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 1/2 tbsps Unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp milk
- as needed water (for brushing)
- 1 pinch salt
Tools
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 2 Plastic wrap
- 3 Parchment paper
- 1 Rolling pin
- 1 Knife
- 1 Pastry wheel
- 1 Baking tray
- 1 Cooling rack
Preparation
In a large mixing bowl, work the cold butter from the fridge cut into cubes with the flour.
You should obtain a sandy mixture, but without working it for too long, to avoid excessively warming the butter. Then add the egg, the pinch of salt, and the sugar.
Knead everything very quickly with your hands, trying not to heat the mixture too much. Form a smooth and compact dough.
Once you have a uniform mixture, divide it into two equal parts, adding the cocoa with a tablespoon of milk to one of them*.
Knead quickly with your hands to fully absorb it.
Wrap the dough portions separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. After this time, roll out the first dough between two sheets of parchment paper to a thickness of about 1/8 inch and dimensions of about 11×13 inches.
Do the same with the second dough. Brush the surface of the first with water, so that it acts as a glue, then transfer the cocoa one on top of it, making sure they adhere well.
With a plain pastry wheel, straighten and trim off the excess dough from the rectangle. Brush the surface with more cold water.
When the dough has reached room temperature for greater elasticity, roll it up using the parchment paper at the base.
You will obtain a roll, which should be allowed to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or 15 minutes in the freezer wrapped in plastic wrap.
After the chilling time in the fridge, using a sharp knife, cut the roll of shortcrust pastry into slices about 3/8 inch thick.
Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated static oven at 356°F for about 12-13 minutes.
Once baked, remove from the oven and let cool on a cooling rack for desserts.
And voila… the pinwheel cookies are ready to be enjoyed!
Serve them lined up on a buffet, they will make a great impression!
Enjoy from La Cucina di FeFè!
With the leftover shortcrust scraps, by roughly re-kneading them, you can obtain a marbled effect dough, from which you can make other equally beautiful and tasty cookies.
Storage
👉To preserve the crispness of the crust and the aroma of cocoa, store the cookies inside a tin box or a glass container with an airtight seal. This way, they will keep perfectly for 7-10 days. Make sure the cookies are completely cool before sealing them, to prevent residual moisture from softening them.
You can store the raw dough block in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 48 hours, or freeze the blocks (or already formed rolls) for up to 2 months. When you want to bake them, just let them thaw slowly in the refrigerator.
Tips, notes, variations, and suggestions
🔵* The cocoa shortcrust is drier because cocoa absorbs more liquids than flour, so the advice is to add a tablespoon of milk or cold water.
🔵For a “deep black” visual effect (Oreo-style cookies), you can use extra dark black cocoa, which will create a striking contrast with the neutral dough. The contrast can also be accentuated in terms of taste by adding 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the shortcrust before it is divided into two parts.
1. How to achieve a perfect swirl effect without smudges?
The secret is the chilling in the refrigerator. Once the layers (white and cocoa) are stacked, wrap the roll in plastic wrap and let it firm up in the freezer for 10 minutes before slicing. This will allow for clean cuts and well-defined colors.
2. Can I substitute the butter to make the cookies lighter?
Yes, you can use vegetable oil (80g of oil for every 100g of butter) or a high-quality vegetable margarine. Remember that with oil, the shortcrust doesn’t need to rest in the fridge, but it will be slightly harder to shape into perfect and complex geometric shapes.
3. What to do if the two-tone cookies lose shape during baking?
If the cookies “sink” or lose the two-tone design, it means the butter was too warm before baking. Put the baking sheet with already cut cookies back in the fridge for 10 minutes while the oven reaches the temperature (356°F static). The thermal shock will maintain the perfect shape.
4. Are these cookies suitable for dipping in milk?
Absolutely yes. The rich shortcrust and the pinch of salt make these two-tone cookies ideal for breakfast. Their compact structure withstands dipping without immediately crumbling.
