Cinnamon Pinwheel Cookies

5 from 7 votes

Cinnamon Pinwheel Cookies

These Cinnamon Pinwheel Cookies are made with a simple sugar cookie dough rolled out, filled with cinnamon and sugar and sliced to resemble cinnamon buns. They are simple and delicious, and so good you can eat a dozen in one sitting.

Prep Time30

Cook Time10

Chill Time2 30

Total Time3 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: cookies

Calories: 240kcal

Author: Lauren Skardal

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks) 226g
¾ cup granulated sugar 148g
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
2½ cups flour 350g

Filling

2 tbsps butter, melted
3 tbsps granulated sugar 37g
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Instructions

Make the Dough: Using a handheld mixer (or by hand), combine the butter and sugar. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Add the salt and baking soda and combine. Add the flour and combine.
Chill for 30 Minutes: Shape the dough into a round flat disc, wrap with plastic wrap, and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll Out the Dough: Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface into an 11x14 inch rectangle. Be sure to roll the dough out with an even thickness so that the edges are not tapered. As you are rolling out the dough, pick up the dough and turn it, adding flour underneath so that it does not stick to the work surface. Do not add too much flour, or it will prevent the cookie from sticking to itself as you roll it later on.
Butter and Cinnamon Sugar: Brush the dough lightly with the melted butter. In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar evenly over the dough, leaving a ½ - 1 inch border at the end without any cinnamon sugar. This enables the dough to stick to itself at the end of the roll and does not come apart when baking/
Roll the Dough: Starting at the shorter, 11-inch end, roll the dough VERY TIGHTLY over the cinnamon sugar filling to create a log. Rolling tightly makes the biggest difference in the dough not coming apart when baking. Use your fingers to gently pinch the seam of the dough closed. Place it seam side down and press very slightly to encourage the seam to seal shut (do not flatten).
*Gaps when rolling the dough are what make the cookie layers fall rather than stay upright in a tight pinwheel shape while baking.
Wrap and Chill for 2 Hours: Wrap the log of dough with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
Slice and Bake the Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Slice the cookies into ½ inch slices. Place the sliced cookies on a baking sheet (9-12 per sheet) and bake at 350°F for 9-10 minutes. Do not allow the cookies to brown.
Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully.

Notes

Softening Butter: If you have not softened the butter ahead of time, add the butter to a large microwavable mixing bowl and microwave for 30 seconds at 20% power. Flip the butter over and add 30 seconds at 20% power as needed until the butter has softened slightly. It is important that the butter is at a cool room temperature, and not too soft.
Rolling Out the Dough: When rolling out cookie dough, start with your rolling pin in the center of the dough and roll outwards, rather than from the outside toward the middle. Do your best to apply pressure evenly so as to not create a thick middle and a thin edge. This is very important because when you roll the dough into a log, if the ends are tapered and the middle is thick, it will create gaps in the pinwheel, which will cause the cookie to fall apart when baking.
Chilling the Dough:
- 30 Minutes: Chilling the dough at two intervals is also very important for ensuring the cookies do not fall apart when baking. The dough needs to chill for 30 minutes prior to rolling out. This will enable you to roll the dough out cleanly and then roll the dough tightly around the cinnamon sugar filling. Once rolled, the dough should still be cool and firm, which means the log will stay in a log shape, rather than end up with a flat side while chilling again in the fridge.
- 2 Hours: After rolling the dough and creating the pinwheel log, the dough needs to chill again, this time for 2 hours. This chills the butter in the dough, which helps to cut clean slices of the dough for the pinwheel cookies and prevents spreading in the oven.

Updates: This recipe was updated in November 2026 with ingredient weights added in grams and new technique callouts to ensure that the cookies stay tightly rolled while baking in the oven.

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