RAINBOW COOKIES
Submitted by: Joyce Bacon

These colorful bar cookies delighted the judges at our 1st Annual Cookie Baking Contest so much so that they were awarded 1st Place!

Ingredients:
8 ounces almond paste
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs, separated
2 cups all-purpose flour
6 drops red food coloring
6 drops green food coloring
¼ cup seedless red raspberry jam
¼ cup apricot jam
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line three 9x13 inch baking pans with parchment paper or grease pan, line with waxed paper and then grease waxed paper. If necessary, using only one pan and one cooling rack, bake in pan one layer at a time.

In a large bowl, break apart almond paste, mash with a fork, and cream together with butter, sugar, and egg yolks. When mixture is fluffy and smooth, stir in flour to form a dough. In a small bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites into the dough. Divide dough into 3 equal portions (about 1 1/3 cups). Mix one portion with red food coloring, and one with green food coloring. Spread each portion into one of the prepared baking pans.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned. Carefully remove from pan by covering with rack and flipping over on to rack. Carefully remove paper and cool completely on rack(s).

Place green layer onto a piece of plastic wrap large enough to wrap all three layers. Spread green layer with raspberry jam, and top with uncolored layer. Spread with apricot jam, and top with pink layer.

Transfer layers to a baking sheet, and enclose with plastic wrap. Place a heavy pan or cutting board on top of wrapped layers to compress. Chill in the refrigerator 8 hours, or overnight.

Remove plastic wrap. Top with melted chocolate chips, and refrigerate 1 hour, or until chocolate is firm. Trim all 4 edges to even up and the slice into one inch by 2 inch bars to serve.

Keep in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

Makes 48 1” x 2” bars