Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (2024)

There is nothing better than a simple cream cheese cookie. Not just because of the cream cheese, but also the butter! These Apricot Pinwheel Cookies are so easy to make with only four ingredients and a little powered sugar for dusting. Chances are you will have all of these ingredients in your house already.

The only tricky part about these cookies is folding the first one. Once you have the first one done, the rest are a breeze. And the biggest time saver is using a pizza cutter.

What’s the difference between jam and jelly?

The biggest difference between jam and jelly is that jelly is made from fruit juice and jam is made from the fruit. Jam should have chunks of fruit, is think, and holds well for baking. Jelly will run when baking.

We do use jelly when cooking as an ingredient. Both jelly and jam are delicious spread well on bread and as glazes. It really comes down to your personal preference. But as a reminder – always bake with jam.

What is the difference between Neufchâtel and Cream Cheese?

In our home, we only have cream cheese. I consider it a whole food with all the goodness. Basically, Neufchâtel has less fat and a higher moisture content. I feel this effects the texture and thus, balance when baking.

As for taste, I feel that Neufchâtel is less tangy than cream cheese. We cannot, though, confuse the Neufchâtel that we have in America to the original Neufchâtel in France. The French version is a delicious mixture made of milk fat with a bloomy rind and is much like Brie.

Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (1)

When do you use salted vs unsalted butter?

I always use unsalted butter when baking. This allows you to control the taste of the final product. If you do use salted butter instead of unsalted butter, simply decrease the salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon per 1/2 cup of butter. This is not an exact measurement, but will give you a good start.

Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe

We just love these Apricot Pinwheel Cookies and while they call for apricot jam, you can certainly use another flavor or even mix them up! We like the apricot for the flavor and final color. The only thing you have to remember is to use jam in these and never jelly. They will not hold their shape if you use jelly.

The last thing to remember is that these cookies take just 15 minutes to make, but do require you to refrigerate for an hour.

Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (2)

Yield: 20 Cookies

Bake: 30 Minutes, plus one hour to rest in refrigerator

Ingredients:

  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
  • 3 cups flour, plus more for rolling cookies
  • 1 cup apricot jam
  • Powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Mix cream cheese and softened unsalted butter in a stand mixer. Add in three cups of flour. Mix well. Wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
  • Place a quarter of the dough on a dough board and roll out to a thin layer. Cut into 2 inch squares. Using a pizza dough cutter, slice the corners lengthwise into the center of the square. Do this on all four corners. Leave some uncut in the middle where the jam will be placed.Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (3)
  • Put a small amount of apricot jam into the center of the square. Fold in one end of each cut. Place one end into the center then skip the next then do the next one to the center and repeat. Use a little water to press all of them together in the center. This allows them to stay well when baking.
  • Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. Place the cookies on a cooling rack. Dust with powdered sugar. Store in airtight container.

Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (4)

Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe

Yield: 20 cookies

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Additional Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

There is nothing better than a simple cream cheese cookie. These scrumptious and gorgeous Apricot Pinwheel Cookies are so easy to make. There's only four ingredients, plus a little powered sugar for dusting.

Ingredients

  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
  • 3 cups flour, plus more for rolling cookies
  • 1 cup apricot jam
  • Powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
    2. Mix cream cheese and softened unsalted butter in a stand mixer. Add in three cups of flour. Mix well. Wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
    3. Place a quarter of the dough on a dough board and roll out to a thin layer. Cut into 2 inch squares. Using a pizza dough cutter, slice the corners lengthwise into the center of the square. Do this on all four corners. Leave some uncut in the middle where the jam will be placed.
    4. Put a small amount of apricot jam into the center of the square. Fold in one end of each cut. Place one end into the center then skip the next then do the next one to the center and repeat. Use a little water to press all of them together in the center. This allows them to stay well when baking.
    5. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. Remove cookies to cooling rack. Dust with powdered sugar. Store in airtight container.
If you’re looking for more cookie recipes, check out our holiday cookie roundup and our Fruitcake Cookies that can be made year round. We especially love these Shortbread Cookies from Lyuba Brooke at Will Cook for Smiles. They’re another only 4 ingredients recipe!

Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (5)

Dana Zucker

I am a home cook that does things my way. In my kitchen, I make breakfast, pack lunches, prepare snacks, and cook dinner. During the week, we eat real food that is homemade, organic, and local. On the weekends we do explore more of our local restaurants. I bake my own bread, juice fresh oranges every other day, and make my own kombucha and other weekly favorites.

If you liked this article, you may like these:

  • 5 Fall Cookbooks That Will Make You Want To Get Cozy
  • How To Make Turkey Sloppy Joes For Dinner Tonight
  • How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies in a Jar
  • 14 Favorite Podcasts That Make You Smarter
  • 10 Things Wedding Guests Don't Care About
  • 23 Easy Egg Recipes For Breakfast Or Anytime
Festive Apricot Pinwheel Cookies Recipe - LifeDoneWell (2024)

FAQs

What is the number 1 Christmas cookie? ›

Peanut Butter Blossoms are America's favorite Christmas cookie, based both on total number of pageviews from the U.S. population as a whole, and number of states that ranked it as their top cookie (which is six, by the way).

How to improve Pillsbury cookies? ›

If you use melted butter, you'll get denser, chewier cookies. If you cream softened butter and sugar before adding the other ingredients, you'll get lighter, fluffier cookies. Shortening: Substituting shortening for butter will give your cookies less flavor, but more texture, tenderness and moistness.

What is the most loved cookie in the world? ›

Oreo is the best-selling cookie in the world. It is now sold in over 100 countries. Oreo was first produced in 1912 by the National Biscuit Company, now known as Na-Bis-Co.

How far in advance should you make Christmas cookies? ›

As for the cookies—made for cookie swaps, church potlucks, household snacking, and Santa's plate—there is one little cheat: make now, freeze for later. You'll find that most of your favorite Christmas cookie recipes can be made anywhere from a month to six months before the 25th of December.

How many cookies do you need per person for Christmas? ›

A good rule to follow is for every guest to bake a half dozen cookies per each attendee. So, if 10 people attend, each guest would bring five dozen cookies to share.

Should Christmas cookies be soft or hard? ›

The very best sugar cookies are soft and tender. → Follow this tip: One of the keys to great sugar cookies is mixing the dry ingredients only until they're just incorporated, and not a second longer.

What is the most popular cookie for Santa? ›

Chocolate Chip cookies

You can never go wrong with these classic, delicious cookies. Santa himself lists these as his favorites, and he prefers them soft and gooey with lots of chocolate chips. If you decide to leave these out for him, make sure there's a glass of cold milk nearby!

What is the #1 cookie in the US? ›

Nearly 93% of all American households serve and enjoy cookies as treats or after meals. However, it's the chocolate chip cookie that's the most popular in the U.S. and around the world. How much do youknow about chocolate chip cookies?

What is the oldest Christmas cookie? ›

1) Gingerbread

During medieval times, gingerbread cookies shaped like different subjects were a staple at fairs in Germany, England, France, and Holland. In the late 17th century, gingerbread became associated with Christmas.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Arielle Torp

Last Updated:

Views: 6234

Rating: 4 / 5 (61 voted)

Reviews: 92% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Arielle Torp

Birthday: 1997-09-20

Address: 87313 Erdman Vista, North Dustinborough, WA 37563

Phone: +97216742823598

Job: Central Technology Officer

Hobby: Taekwondo, Macrame, Foreign language learning, Kite flying, Cooking, Skiing, Computer programming

Introduction: My name is Arielle Torp, I am a comfortable, kind, zealous, lovely, jolly, colorful, adventurous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.