Rainbow Cookies

While we are on the topic of cookies, my friend Natalie wanted me to share this recipe and idea for rainbow cookies.  And so, here we go again with the cookies.

It all started because I was teaching the letter R to Hallie and Hanna's little group of friends.  Thus, rainbows.

I did the requisite pinterest and google searches, and wasn't coming up with very many activities that I was excited about.  In the car I came up with this idea, and Devin helped me make it work.  I give you, rainbow cookies.

Recipe:

4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Sift dry ingredients into bowl, set aside.  Cream butter and shortening.  Add sugar, mix until smooth.  Add eggs one at a time, beat a little after adding each one.  Add vanilla extract, beat.  Add dry ingredients gradually and blend well.  Divide dough evenly into four bowls.  Add food coloring to make colors. (I did red, blue, yellow and green.) Cover and chill 2 hours.   Break dough into pieces of equal size and roll into balls.  Return dough to fridge until ready to make into rainbows.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

I let the kids do this part.  I gave them each a red cookie dough ball and told them to roll it like playdough into a snake.  Then I gave them a yellow one, then the green, then the blue.  When they had rolled them all into "snakes", I told them to line them up and curl them around like a horseshoe.  Then I carefully put them all on the baking sheet.

Bake on cookie sheet 4-7 minutes, check often to see when cookies stop looking wet on top.

 The kids LOVED doing it themselves, and they thought they were so fun to eat.  Score.