Jello Sugar Cookies

I love playing with jello.

Not the jiggly, see though stuff that you set up in the fridge. I'm talking about the stuff in the package, before you turn it into jiggly color. Honestly, I think the last time I even ate jello in the form the makers intended was when I was in the hospital with my last child. That would be 10 years ago. I'm sure the only reason I ate it then is because it's all they would let me have. Just not a big fan.
But adding it to other recipes, love it! Jello mix has great flavors and colors. Just like the name, it's fun. I've added it to Cake mix and frosting to make Jello Swirled Cupcakes with Butter Cream Frosting and I've made Jello Popcorn.

Then I saw these Jello Cookies from I heart Naptime. It was only a matter of time.

I did choose to use my own recipe. I adjusted my Cinnamon Pecan Butter Cookie recipe to come up with these full of flavor cookies. Not only are they pretty to look at baked, but they can be fun to make as well.

Jello Sugar Cookies

5 cups all purpose flour
3 3/4 cups sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups cold butter (3 sticks)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon lemon extract-enhances the flavor of the Jello
5 tablespoons milk
1 cup jello mix **

** a small box of Jello equals about 1/2 cup, you can use as many flavors as you like, just divide your dough and your jello accordingly. I did 4 flavors so I divided my dough in fourths and used 1/4 cup of jello per quarter.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in your mixing bowl. Stir just to combine. Cut butter into pats and add to flour mixture. Blend in using a pastry blender or if using a stand mixer you can do this on the lowest speed. Takes about 4-5 minutes either way. Add in eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add in extract and milk, mix until well blended, making sure to scrape down sides of bowl.

Divide dough into however many flavors of jello you plan on using and place in large ziploc bags. Add Jello mix to each bag and knead into dough till color is smooth and mix is well blended in.

Roll dough into 1 inch balls then roll balls in sugar to coat. Place on baking sheet and bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 12-14 minutes.  Let cool on baking sheet before removing to racks to cool completely.

The flavors I used for these cookies were, Cherry, Lime, Lemon and Berry Blue. The berry blue was very pale so I added some blue food coloring to get the color I was looking for. 

I noticed this on the Jello popcorn as well, the Lime jello and the Berry Blue have a tendency to burn and discolor, watch them carefully. I had no trouble with the Lemon or the Cherry. 

And if you want to play around and make some swirls? Just take a bit of 2 different doughs, gently roll together into a ball and continue.