Vegan Pinwheel Cookies

These vegan pinwheel cookies are made with swirls of chocolate and vanilla dough baked until soft on the inside with golden crisp edges.

Why You’ll Love These Cookies

• Simple recipe. The vanilla and chocolate dough are made using common baking staples and are easy to make. Once they are done, all you have to do is stack, roll, slice, and bake.
• Flavor. Using Dutch-processed cocoa powder gives the shortbread cookies a deep chocolate flavor that melds perfectly with sweet vanilla.
• Texture. They are crisp on the outside but soft and crumbly on the inside.
• These cookies are so pretty! The festive spiral pattern makes them the perfect addition to your Christmas cookie collection and would be great for potlucks, bake sales, and parties.

Key Ingredient Notes

• Flour – Unbleached flour spreads less due to its higher protein level, giving the dough more structure. You can also use plain flour. Make sure to measure properly to get the perfect texture.
• Vegan butter or margarine – aside from giving the dough a richer flavor, this will also keep the cookies moist and tender. The vegan butter should be cubed and frozen before adding to the flour.
• Sugars – I used granulated cane sugar and confectioner’s sugar for this recipe. Powdered sugar will help in keeping the dough from spreading too much during baking due to the addition of cornstarch.
• Dutch-processed cocoa powder – this is processed with alkali to make it darker, less acidic, and less bitter. This is perfect for giving cookies an intense chocolate flavor!
• Plant milk – I used oat milk, but feel free to use almond or soy too. They are all great for baking.

How To Make Vegan Pinwheel Cookies

1. Make the vanilla dough by adding the flour, sugars and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 3 to 4 times to combine. Make sure to scrape the sides using a spatula to incorporate everything back into the mixture.

2. Add the vegan butter cubes and pulse until the mixture looks like fine crumbs.

3. Add the vanilla, then gradually stream in the plant milk while the food processor runs until a soft dough is formed. If the mixture is too dry, add more plant milk until the desired consistency is met.
4. Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it with cling film. Refrigerate it while you make the chocolate dough.

5. Make the chocolate dough by repeating the steps of the vanilla dough and adding the cocoa powder to the flour.

6. Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it with cling film. Place it in the refrigerator and remove the vanilla dough.

7. Roll out the vanilla dough between two sheets of parchment paper, lightly dusted with flour. Roll the dough to about 8 by 12 inches and ¼-inch thick. Remove the chocolate dough from the fridge and repeat the rolling step with another sheet of parchment paper.

8. Remove the parchment paper and carefully place the chocolate dough on top of the vanilla dough. Starting from the shorter side, tightly roll the dough together like a jellyroll, smoothing out any cracks.

9. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours or until firm. Place the dough in a cut-out paper tube to help maintain the rounded shape. If you are not in a hurry, I recommend chilling the dough overnight for better flavor and texture.
10. Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350°F/180°C. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

11. Slice the chilled dough into ¼-inch thick slices and place them on the cookie sheets spaced 1 inch apart.

12. Bake the cookies in batches for 8 to 10 minutes or until they are just set and crisp on the edges. Cool for 5 minutes on the tray before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Storage Tips

You can make the dough log ahead of time and keep it frozen for up to 3 months. Make sure it is tightly wrapped in plastic or foil to prevent freezer burns and loss of moisture. A freezer bag can also be used.

You can also slice them before freezing. Just make sure to layer them between sheets of wax paper so they do not stick.

Once the cookies are baked, keep them in a lidded jar or container at room temperature for 3 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also freeze the baked cookies for up to three months.

More Chocolate Cookie Recipes

• Vegan Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
• Vegan Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Vegan S’mores Cookies
• Vegan Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
• Vegan Chocolate Turtle Cookies

Vegan Pinwheel Cookies

4.75 from 4 votes

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 8 minutes mins

Total: 23 minutes mins

Calories:85

Servings: 35 cookies

Print Pin Rate

These vegan pinwheel cookies are made with swirls of chocolate and vanilla dough baked until soft on the inside with golden crisp edges.

Author: Jhanelle Golding

Recipes: For more accuracy, use Metric measurements & measuring spoons.

How To Measure Baking Ingredients Correctly

Ingredients

1x2x3x

Vanilla Dough

• ▢ 1½ cups (180 g) unbleached all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• ▢ ⅓ cup (67 g) granulated cane sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup (30 g) confectioner’s sugar
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ⅓ cup (75 g) vegan butter or margarine, stick or block, not unsalted, cubed and frozen
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 3 tablespoons plant milk, I used oat milk

Chocolate Dough

• ▢ 1¼ cups (150 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 tablespoons (10 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• ▢ ⅓ cup (67 g) granulated cane sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup (30 g) confectioner’s sugar
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ cup (56 g) vegan butter or margarine, stick or block, not unsalted, softened slightly
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 4 tablespoons plant milk, I used oat milk

Instructions

• Make the vanilla dough by adding the flour, sugars and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 3 to 4 times to combine.
  1½ cups (180 g) unbleached all-purpose flour ,⅓ cup (67 g) granulated cane sugar ,¼ cup (30 g) confectioner’s sugar ,⅛ teaspoon salt
• Add the vegan butter cubes and pulse until the mixture looks like fine crumbs.
  ⅓ cup (75 g) vegan butter or margarine
• Add the vanilla. Gradually stream in the plant milk while the food processor runs until a soft dough is formed. Add more plant milk if needed.
  1 teaspoon vanilla extract ,3 tablespoons plant milk
• Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it with cling film. Refrigerate it while you make the chocolate dough.
• Make the chocolate dough by repeating the steps of the vanilla dough and adding the cocoa powder with the flour.
  1¼ cups (150 g) unbleached all-purpose flour ,2 tablespoons (10 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder ,⅓ cup (67 g) granulated cane sugar ,¼ cup (30 g) confectioner’s sugar ,⅛ teaspoon salt ,¼ cup (56 g) vegan butter or margarine ,1 teaspoon vanilla extract ,4 tablespoons plant milk
• Shape the dough into a disc and wrap it with cling film. Place it in the refrigerator and remove the vanilla dough.
• Roll out the vanilla dough between two sheets of parchment paper, lightly dusted with flour. Roll the dough to about 8 by 12 inches and ¼-inch thick.
• Remove the chocolate dough from the fridge and repeat the rolling step with another sheet of parchment paper.
• Remove the parchment paper and carefully place the chocolate dough on top of the vanilla dough. Starting from the shorter side, tightly roll the dough together like a jellyroll. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours or until firm (overnight is recommended).
• Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350°F/180°C. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Slice the chilled dough into ¼-inch thick slices and place them on the cookie sheets spaced 1 inch apart.
• Bake the cookies in batches for 8 to 10 minutes or until they are just set and crips on the edges. Cool for 5 minutes on the tray before transferring them to a cooling rack.

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Nutrition Facts

Vegan Pinwheel Cookies

Serving Size

 

1 cookie

Amount per Serving

Calories

85

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

3

g

5

%

Saturated Fat

 

1

g

6

%

Trans Fat

 

1

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

1

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

1

g

Sodium

 

41

mg

2

%

Potassium

 

17

mg

0

%

Carbohydrates

 

14

g

5

%

Fiber

 

0.4

g

2

%

Sugar

 

6

g

7

%

Protein

 

1

g

2

%

Vitamin A

 

6

IU

0

%

Calcium

 

6

mg

1

%

Iron

 

1

mg

6

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition Disclaimer

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian