Chocolate Swirl Sugar Cookies

It's still the holiday season, so how about a fun twist on the cookie classics in preparation for New Year's?

We all love our chocolate crinkle cookies, and of course, the classic sugar cookie, but how about combining the two in a simple and fun method?

These Chocolate Swirl Sugar Cookies integrate a method for making cookies in which you roll the cookie dough into a log, and then cut them, just as you would cinnamon rolls. This results in uniform rounds of cookie dough that can easily be transferred to a baking sheet and baked.

The difference with this particular recipe is that we will be making two different cookie doughs and layering them before rolling the dough into a log, resulting in a nice spiral (see picture).

You can also find this recipe coming soon to my blog Michael's Test Kitchen !

Enjoy!

Chocolate Cookie Dough:

1 cup chocolate chip cookies

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 1/2 teaspoons maple syrup

2 eggs

Sugar Cookie Dough: (click to see the original recipe on my blog)

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla (or substitute for 1 teaspoon of maple syrup)

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

Heat the 1 cup of chocolate chips in the microwave for one minute on high. Stir to break it up, and heat for another 20 seconds to completely melt.

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl..

In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla extract until completely combined. Add the eggs and melted chocolate to the butter mixture, and beat well to combine.

Chill dough in fridge for 10 minutes before rolling out.

(Check out my original sugar cookie recipe on my blog).

Cream butter and powdered sugar in a stand mixer. Add egg, vanilla, almond extract, and anise, and stir until combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and the baking soda. Pour flour mixture into wet ingredients while stirring, until combined. Chill in fridge for 10 minutes.

Roll out both doughs separately as shown, in segments roughly the same size as each other.

Layer the segments of rolled out cookie dough, one on top of the other, as shown. Then cut around the edges to make an even rectangle.

From the width end, roll the layered dough into a compact log.

Cut these cookies out with a serrated knife. They shouldn't be too thick. (See picture)

Bake these cookies in the preheated (350 F) oven for 10 minutes.

Cool the cookies before consuming.

Enjoy!