I’ve been making homemade cookies from SCRATCH, which means that there are CAKE MIXES IN MY COOKIES, for the last 29 years…it’s something I enjoy doing.

One of my first “Cookie” cookbooks was 153 pages of nothing but COOKIE RECIPES.  I have made so many delicious cookies from that book.  Like these Rainbow Slices, this cookie was so good…the pink layer had cherries…chocolate layer had walnuts…white layer had coconut…there was no other cookie like it.

That was until about 3 years ago that I COULD NOT find this book anywhere.  I looked everywhere…and it was NO WHERE TO BE FOUND…I was heartbroken.

My husband had to listen to listen to my complaints for years.  Then last year he looked online…it wasn’t easy but after months of trying to locate this cookbook he finally found one!

It was Christmas time, and the last present I opened was this cookbook.  Well, I scream…jumped around…I was so happy that he found this cookbook. When he told me what he had to go through to get that book…it was unbelievable! It was the best gift I have ever received!

Well, my sincere thanks go out to ‘HPBooks for this Cookies’ cookbook, and whatever my husband had to do to locate this book, thank you…thank you…thank you!

1 cup butter or margarine, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
Pinch of salt
4 drops red food coloring
1/4 cup finely chopped red candied cherries
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces, melted
1/3 finely chopped walnuts
1/2 tsp. rum extract
1/3 cup shredded coconut

Directions:

Line an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan with waxed paper or foil.  In a large bowl, beat together butter or margarine, sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy.  Add flour, baking powder and salt, beating until blender.

Divide dough into 3 equal portions.  To 1 portion, blend in red food coloring.  Then add candied cherries.  To another portion, add melted chocolate and walnuts.  To the remaining portion, blend in rum extract.  Then add coconut.

Press pink dough in an even layer in bottom of lined pan.  Cover evenly with chocolate dough.  Top evenly with white dough.  Cover and refrigerate until firm, several hours or overnight.

To bake cookies, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Invert pan of chilled dough on a board; peel off waxed paper or foil.  Cut into 3 crosswise slices.  Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are golden brown.  Remove cookies from baking sheets; cool on racks.

Makes about 84 cookies

I should note by the way, that you can deviate from this recipe in any way you want, use different colors, add colors, nuts… whatever. For instance, I really like the colors used in this recipe from Crazy for Crust that actually makes little rainbows. In fact, that’s where I got the above picture. You can head there now for that recipe and the full instructions for them if you like. Either way, I hope you enjoy!