Chocolate Pinwheel Food

CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add the sugar, salt, eggs, cream cheese and 2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; divide in half. Roll each portion into a 12x8-in. rectangle. For the filling, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and cocoa until smooth. Spread over each rectangle to within 1/2 in. of edges. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side; pinch seam to seal. Place seam side down in 2 greased 9x5-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. , Brush tops of loaves with egg. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Cover loosely with foil. Bake 15-20 minutes longer or until loaves sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

BASIC CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix well. , Divide dough in half; add cocoa to one portion. Divide each portion in half. On a baking sheet, roll out each portion between waxed paper into a 12x10-in. rectangle. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. , Remove waxed paper. Place one chocolate rectangle over a plain rectangle. Roll up tightly, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; wrap in plastic. Repeat with remaining dough. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Unwrap and cut into 1/4-in. slices. , Place 2 in. apart on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks to cool.

CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, butter and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour and salt. Divide dough in half. Stir cocoa into one half. Stir chocolate sprinkles into other half. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
• Roll half of plain dough into 9x8-inch rectangle on lightly floured surface. Repeat with half of chocolate dough; place on plain dough. Roll doughs up together tightly, beginning at long side. Repeat with remaining plain and chocolate doughs. Wrap and refrigerate at least 8 hours but no longer than 24 hours.
• Heat oven to 400ºF. Cut rolls into 1/4-inch slices. Place slices about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.
• Wrap cookies tightly, label and freeze up to 6 months.

LIZZIE'S CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream the shortening and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla, and egg yolk and mix well.
• Sift the flour into a separate bowl with the baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture and milk alternately to the shortening mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and mix to form a dough. Divide the dough into 2 halves. To one half, add the chocolate, mixing thoroughly. Wrap both sections of dough in separate pieces of plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 1 hour.
• Unwrap and roll each half of dough between 2 pieces of waxed paper. Roll to a 1/8-inch thickness. Remove the waxed paper from the top of each layer of dough. Place the white layer on top of the chocolate layer and roll up carefully as you would a jellyroll, using the waxed paper to roll smoothly. Wrap the roll with the waxed paper and chill overnight in the refrigerator.
• The next day, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Cut the roll into 1/4-inch slices (see Cook's Note) and place about 1/2 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for about 12 minutes. Do not brown. Remove carefully with a pancake turner and cool on racks.

CHOCOLATE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift the flour with the baking powder and the salt, set aside. In a large bowl, cream the shortening and the sugar with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla and egg yolk and mix well. Add the flour alternately with the milk. Mix until well incorporated. Divide dough in half. Place one half in another bowl and add the melted chocolate. Mix until well blended. Form both doughs into disks and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour. Remove one half of the dough from the refrigerator and on a lightly floured surface, roll into a 1/4 in thick rectangle. Set aside and do the same with the other dough. Place one sheet of dough on top of the other and tightly roll up. Refrigerate another 30 minutes. Meanwhile heat the oven to 400 degrees. Take the dough out and slice it thin, about 1/4 in thick. Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet, 1 in apart, and bake for 5-8 minutes or until lightly browned.

CHOCOLATE ORANGE PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, cream cheese and sugar.
• Add the eggs, orange rind, and vanilla; mix well.
• Combine flour, salt and baking powder; add to the creamed mixture and blend well.
• Cover and chill for at least 4 hours; make sure dough is firm.
• In the mean time, combine all filling ingredients in a small saucepan. Cook and stir over low heat until smooth. Set aside to cool.
• On a floured surface, divide dough in half; roll each half into a 12"x11" rectangle. Spread filling over rectangles of dough. Carefully roll up into tight jelly roll logs. Wrap logs in waxed paper.
• Chill overnight.
• Remove waxed paper; cut rolls into 1/4" slices. Place slices on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Remove cookies to wire racks to cool.

CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT PINWHEEL COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light and fluffy. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. The dough will be very stiff and crumbly at this point alost like a shortbread. Don't worry, you are adding liquid in the next steps.
• Divide the dough in half and add chocolate and vanilla to 1 half and incorporate with hands. Add egg yolk, peppermint extract, and crushed candy to other half of dough and incorporate with hands. (If you like you can add a drop or two of red food coloring to make the dough a pppermint pink.) Cover both with plastic and chill for approximately 5-10 minutes.
• Roll out doughs separately to approximately 1/4-inch thickness. Place peppermint dough on top of chocolate and press together around the edges. Using waxed paper or flexible cutting board underneath, roll dough into log. Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for 2 hours or more. (I let my logs cool for 6 hours and they were very easy to slice.).
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Remove dough from the refrigerator and cut into 1/4-inch slices. Place cookies 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat and bake for 12 to 13 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through cooking time. Remove from oven and let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.