Oh..my...god!! I did it! I did it! Rainbow cookies are something I always wanted to challenge myself with and I finally gathered up the courage to do so...and it took 48 hours! Woo hoo!
Rainbow cookies have been my absolute favorite for as long as I could remember. Seven layer cookies, as they are also called, contain rich almond cake layers sandwiched with apricot or raspberry jam and topped off with a hard chocolate shell. New York is known for these cookies and they are hard to find elsewhere in the country. As most of you know, I have relocated down south to Memphis, TN for the time being and for the life of me, I can't find any rainbow cookies. My problem was solved when I decided to make them from scratch.
I had heard that the act of making rainbow cookies isn't so much difficult as it is time consuming--and I heard correctly. You need a solid 2 days to make these cookies between the chilling, the sandwiching, etc and let me tell you, it is worth every second. The cake layers are super easy to make, requiring almond paste, amongst other basic cake ingredients. The batter is separated into three separate bowls, each being colored red, green, and one left plain white.
In my case, apricot jam is heated and strained and then spread between each layer. A baking pan is used to weight the layers overnight and then the chocolate layer is spread on the top and the bottom to finish off the cookies. After reading many reviews, I froze the completed, unsliced cookies for several hours before slicing them with a chef's knife dipped in hot water. This method worked perfectly and none of the chocolate cracked on top. I cut them into thin slivers which produced several dozen. You can choose to cut them into 1 inch squares as well, however, traditionally these cookies are served in thin rectangles.
I encourage you all to try your hand at this recipe at least once in your lifetime! It's not as difficult as it seems and if you have the time to spare, go for it! Next time I think I will go with raspberry and apricot jam in between the layers.
Check out smitten kitchen's recipe for these cookies found here.
Oh my god! I must make these cookies! They look amazing.
ReplyDeleteKatie xox
those look great! i am also a new yorker who has moved south recently. i was missing good pizza and bagels but I didn't think of these. i am home for the holidays so i'll have to grab some before i leave. that or make some myself!!!!
ReplyDeletei cant beleive you actually made these! your so brave. ive always wanted to make these but they looked way too hard. anyway, yours look lovely
ReplyDeleteoh YUM YUM YUM!
ReplyDeleteWow!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in the Bronx, and now live in FL.
NYC cookies are the BEST! My mom accredits it to the dirty water ;)
Glad to fall aopn your blog!
these look beautiful!! i'm so glad i found your blog - love all your stuff!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on taking the plunge, and making these! They look amazing! Well worth all the time they took, it seems. How do they taste?
ReplyDeleteWow! These are fantastic, love the colours :)
ReplyDeleteWould love to try these
SL
ibakecupcakes.com
those look so dreamy! i want them NOW!
ReplyDeleteThose look incredible, perfect even layer.
ReplyDeleteMimi
I make these all the time (and I live in NY) - and I must do them wrong - because they only take a few hours. Maybe I'm impatient. I make them for a couple reasons - they are so expensive and most times they are stale - but when you make them yourself - you know you are getting quality. Yours look great!
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