Reviewed: May 23, 2011

I don't actually eat these cookies but I make them for my sister and she loves them! With the almond paste I would definitaly recoomend using canned instead of the hard tube. I also add a dash of almond paste. Where I have problems is the baking prep. Greasing the parchmant paper always gets really messy and hard to manage but I've been working on it. Haven't found anything really useful yet.

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4 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

dtcpr

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: May 19, 2011

Interesting. I have to admit, I tried this recipe purely out of curiosity because I have never heard of rainbow cookies before. I wasn't too wild about the flavors combination. These definitely need at least a day after assembling for the flavors to develop. In response to other reviews, yes these are a bit time consuming but no more than decorating sugar cookies or filling and frosting a cake. Isn't that what baking is all about...Patience, creativity and adding love? With that said, the most difficult part I found was spreading the batter in the pans. But I just treated it like I was frosting a cake and just spread it slowly with a rubber spatula. I didn't even really need to smooth it with a frosting spatula, it smoothed out just fine in the oven. I used almond filling because I couldn't find almond paste. I shouldn't have used such a heavy item to compress the cookies because they ended up too flat and dense, my own fault. I found the chocolate to be too overpowering in flavor and took away from the other flavors of the cookie. If I ever make these again (probably not) I would use less chocolate. Oh and I did add 1/4 c heavy cream and 1.5 tbsp butter to chocolate to prevent cracking and it worked. After coating in chocolate, I refrigerated for 40 min and cut. No cracks!

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7 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

love2eat

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: May 15, 2011

This recipe is perfect! I have to admit - I had very low expectations because I'd never made these cookies before. I will never buy them at the bakery again. Thanks for sharing.

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5 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

tsmorgan

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: New York, New York, USA

Reviewed: May 9, 2011

tried this receipe for a party- everyone loved them- unfortunately I couldn't taste test them because I am allergic to almonds!. Anyone have any suggestions for something else to substitute the alomd paste/extract?

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5 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

susan

Reviewed: May 9, 2011

i have made these cookies alot as they are my favorite italian cookie and for the record apricot is true italian not raspberry. the bakeries in NY always have apricot though can also get raspberry. these are food of the gods

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6 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

layla13

Cooking Level: Expert

Reviewed: May 9, 2011

Iv been making these cookies for years. I first found the recipe in a Holidays Womans Day magazine. Then a few years ago I lost the magazine. I googled it and found it again on the internet and then found my magazine. I also dont use the apricot jam or separate the eggs. I use more chocolate by coating the top of each later with melted chocolate then spreading on the jam. The top only gets the choclate. After its all put together I cover with wax paper and place heavy books on top and set in a cool place. We always called them Italian Christmas Cookies.

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7 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

BRoberts

Reviewed: Apr. 24, 2011

This is an amazing recipe! All of the previous reviews are precisely accurate. I am an beginner- intermediate level baker and found this recipe very manageable. Although it is a little time consuming, I didn't find it overwhelming. The end product is worth every second! Adaptations: I used 12 ounces of almond filling instead of the 8 ounces of paste, added 1 tablespoon of pure almond extract, used food coloring gel, only seedless raspberry jam, and mixed the melted chocolate with 1/4 cup of heavy cream and 2 tablespoons of butter. The cookies look and taste professional.

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17 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Lauren Hanson

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Reviewed: Mar. 24, 2011

this is similar to my family's secret recipe. it's delish

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6 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Gessica

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Moreno Valley, California, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 13, 2011

The first time I made this recipe, it was a little too dry. I now use a full tube of gel food coloring to give it a vibrant color and add a little more moisture. I also add 2 tbsps of almost extract to enhance the almond flavor. The chocolate alone also gets a little too thick to spread evenly alone, I add 4-6 ounces (roughly half a large can) of evaporated milk to make the chocolate spreadable. I don't think apricot jam adds much to the recipe so use only raspberry jam. When I made it with these revisions, I ended up winning a bake-off at work.

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7 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Stacey R

Home Town: New York, New York, USA

Reviewed: Feb. 23, 2011

These are the BEST!! Substituting with almond filling does make them moister. Adding almond extract makes them more tasty. For those who dont see a difference in seperating the eggs and beating the whites, there is a difference. Whipping up those whites makes it more "fluffy", and easier to spread in the pan. For those who are using regular cake mix (?) or omitting the almond filling/paste - and using different flavors on each layer (??) Your "cookie" may be tasty - but it is in NO WAY a rainbow cookie!! You do NOT KNOW what you are missing until you try this made the RIGHT way. As far as using raspberry only or raspberry and apricot, thats your own taste preference really. Thank you so much for this recipe, I have made it dozens of times. I also made the mistake of giving some to neighbors who fell in LOVE woth them, so I have to make them quite frequently to please all family and friends!! These are not just a "Christmas" cookie, can be made for any occassion or no occassion at all! I do recommend using only the amount of jam in the recipe, it is not as good with too much jam. The amount in the recipe is PERFECT! I made that mistake the first time I made these. Really, thank you so much!!!

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16 users found this review helpful