by: Kate McMillan
Cook Time
12 minutes
Prep Time
35 minutes
Refrigeration Time
90 minutes
Yield
28 cookies
Total Time
12 minutes
Prep Time
35 minutes
Yield
28 cookies
summary
Neapolitan ice cream is an oldie but a goodie: vanilla, strawberry and chocolate ice cream all in one scoop. We’ve taken this favorite and turned it into a charming and nostalgic cookie perfect for the holidays. (For a wonderfully delicious and pretty version, try dipping the edges into chocolate.) There is some necessary chilling time involved with this Neopolitan cookie recipe, so plan ahead!
ingredients
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup freeze-dried strawberries
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
directions
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar on medium for 1 minute, until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated, and then the vanilla. Transfer the dough to a work surface and divide into three equal parts.
- Place the freeze-dried strawberries in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse until you have a very fine powder, about 20–25 times. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the strawberry dust and add the rest to the stand mixer bowl along with 1 section of dough. Mix until completely combined and set the dough aside.
- Wipe out the bowl and paddle attachment and add another section of dough along with the cocoa powder. Mix until completely combined. Set aside. You should now have plain, strawberry and chocolate balls of dough. Wrap each separately in parchment paper and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.
- On a work surface, shape each of the doughs into a rectangle measuring 10 inches x 3½ inches. It is easiest to use a combination of a rolling pin and your hands to make this shape. Place the strawberry dough on the bottom layer, top with the plain dough and finish with the chocolate layer. Transfer this to a small sheet pan and chill in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the freezer and place on a cutting board. Trim ⅛-inch from each side so you have even edges. Cut cookies into ⅓-inch slices and place, an inch apart, on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until just barely golden on the edges, 12–14 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat this process with all of the dough.
- If desired, place the chocolate chips in a small microwavable bowl. Melt the chocolate, stirring every 20 seconds, until completely smooth, about 1 minute and 20 seconds total.
- Dip the short end of each cookie into the chocolate and place back on the wire cooling rack. Before the chocolate dries, sprinkle the reserved strawberry dust on top of each.
notes
For best results with this Neopolitan cookie recipe, make sure you have room temperature butter.
The easiest way to evenly divide the dough into 3 parts is to turn out the dough onto a work surface and form it into a rectangle (it doesn’t need to be perfect). From there, you can evenly cut it into 3 equal pieces.
If you want a darker chocolate color, you can use black cocoa powder.
If you want the strawberry layer to be a brighter pink, you can add a drop of red food coloring.
You can find freeze-dried strawberries at Trader Joe’s in the nuts and dried fruit aisle.
