Peppermint Pinwheels and Giveaway

Yields about 2 dozen cookie sandwiches

Vanilla Sugar Cookies
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Red gel food coloring, as needed

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt, mixing until well combined.

Remove 1/2 of the dough and add red food coloring to the remaining dough, beating until well mixed. Gel food color will work best, dying the dough to a deep red. Water based food colors will most likely leave you with a pink dough, no matter how much coloring you add. Wrap each dough separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a half hour to an hour to firm up the dough.

Roll out one color of dough to 1/4-inch thick rectangle on a lightly floured non-stick baking mat or wax paper. Roll out the second color of dough to 1/4-inch thick rectangle of the same size on a lightly floured surface. Place the second rectangle on top of the first and trim the edges until even. Using the mat or wax paper, roll the dough into a log. Secure with rubber bands and place in the refrigerator for 4 hours to firm up.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper for best cookie removal.

Remove rubber bands from cookie log and place on a lightly floured surface. Cut cookies to 1/8-inch thick and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake cookies for 7-8 minutes; do not allow the edges to brown. Cool completely on a cooling rack before frosting.

Peppermint Frosting
8 tablespoon butter, room temperature
2-3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 tablespoons heavy cream
Pinch of salt

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter until smooth. Add 2 cups powdered sugar and continue beating on low until combined. Mix in peppermint extract, heavy cream, and salt. If frosting is too thick, add an additional teaspoon or two of heavy cream to smooth it out. If frosting is too thin, add additional cup of powdered sugar until desired texture is reached.

Using a pastry bag (or plastic bag with the corner cut out), pipe peppermint buttercream onto the bottom of a pinwheel cookie and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat this using all pinwheel cookies. Let buttercream dry before storing cookies in an airtight container.