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Two-Tone Festive Sugar Cookies Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 51 reviews
  • Author: Isabella
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes (including chilling and baking multiple batches)
  • Yield: Approximately 36 cookies 1x
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

These Two-Tone Festive Sugar Cookies are a delightful treat featuring a beautiful inlaid design using classic vanilla and rich black cocoa doughs. Perfect for holiday celebrations or any special event, the cookies combine a tender, lightly sweetened vanilla base with a deep chocolate counterpart, creating a stunning visual and delicious flavor contrast. The recipe involves rolling, cutting, and inlaying dough rounds for an impressive effect, then baking to a tender, slightly crisp finish. These cookies can be customized with optional coarse sparkling sugar for a festive touch.

Ingredients

Scale

Dry Ingredients

  • 3 cups (360g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour or King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure for Measure Flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt
  • 1/4 cup (21g) black cocoa powder

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup (198g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon King Arthur Pure Vanilla Extract

Optional Topping

  • Coarse sparkling sugar, for topping (optional)

Instructions

  1. Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt until evenly combined, setting the foundation for the dough.
  2. Cream Butter and Sugar: Using a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater or a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes, which helps incorporate air for a tender cookie.
  3. Add Egg and Vanilla: Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until fully incorporated, about 1 to 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed to ensure even mixing.
  4. Combine Flour Mixture: Add the dry ingredients to the wet mix and stir on low speed until a stiff dough forms, about 1 to 2 minutes, scraping the bowl to combine thoroughly.
  5. Roll Vanilla Dough: Transfer half of the plain dough (approximately 1 1/2 cups or 420g) onto a sheet of parchment paper. Place another sheet on top, press down gently, and roll the dough to about 1/4-inch thickness forming a roughly 10-inch round.
  6. Add Cocoa to Remaining Dough: Mix the black cocoa powder into the remaining dough on low speed until uniformly combined, about 30 to 60 seconds, scraping the bowl as necessary.
  7. Roll Chocolate Dough: Transfer the chocolate dough to another parchment sheet, top with a second sheet, gently press, and roll to 1/4-inch thickness to form another 10-inch round.
  8. Chill Dough: Place both doughs still sandwiched between parchment sheets on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight to firm the dough for easier cutting.
  9. Preheat Oven: Heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and position a rack in the center to ensure even baking.
  10. Prepare Baking Sheets: Remove dough from the refrigerator, peel off the top parchment sheets, and use them to line two separate baking sheets for cookie transfer.
  11. Cut Out Cookies: Use a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out rounds from each dough sheet. Then, cut out smaller shapes from the centers of these rounds with a 1 3/4-inch mini cutter.
  12. Inlay Cookies: Swap the cut-out shapes between the vanilla and chocolate rounds, inserting each into the negative space of the opposite dough rounds to create the two-tone design.
  13. Arrange on Baking Sheets: Transfer the assembled cookies to the prepared baking sheets using a small offset spatula, spacing them evenly with up to 12 cookies per tray. Optionally, sprinkle with coarse sparkling sugar for decoration.
  14. Bake: Bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges of the vanilla cookies just begin to brown. If dough was refrigerated overnight, baking might require a few extra minutes.
  15. Cool Cookies: Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely, ensuring they set properly without breaking.
  16. Reuse Dough Scraps: While baking, gather the dough scraps, reroll them after chilling if necessary, and repeat the cutting and inlaying process. Continue until all dough is used, baking each batch as directed.
  17. Store: Keep baked sugar cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or freeze for extended storage to maintain freshness.

Notes

  • Use King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure for Measure Flour to make these cookies gluten-free without compromising texture.
  • Black cocoa powder has a very dark color and intense chocolate flavor, which creates the striking contrast in these cookies.
  • Chilling the dough improves handling and prevents spreading during baking, which is important for maintaining the inlaid shapes.
  • If the dough becomes too soft to work with during the process, refrigerate scraps before rolling and cutting again.
  • These cookies can be decorated with coarse sparkling sugar for a festive sparkle, but they are delicious plain as well.
  • Store cookies in an airtight container to maintain their soft yet slightly crisp texture.
  • Freezing the dough or baked cookies extends shelf life without losing flavor or texture.
  • Prep Time: 25 minutes
  • Cook Time: 12 to 14 minutes per batch
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American

Keywords: Two-Tone Sugar Cookies, Festive Sugar Cookies, Vanilla and Cocoa Cookies, Holiday Cookies, Inlaid Sugar Cookies, Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies

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Find it online: https://isabellavance.com/two-tone-festive-sugar-cookies-recipe/