These spectacular Neapolitan Cookies come to us from Italy where they represent the color of the Italian flag and are guaranteed to be eaten first on a cookie tray . Also known as Rainbow Cookies here, they look complicated but are, in fact, really easy to make. A single almond paste dough is divided into three bowls and colored red and green with the last bowl left plain. Cementing the layers together are two different jams.
These cookies just get better while the sit. The jam, almond paste, and rum wash mellow out so one fantastic flavor graces your palate.
Other European cookies you might enjoy include: Viennese Whirl Cookies, Serbian Walnut Cookies, Pryaniki - Russian Honey Spice Cookies, French Butter Cookies - Petit Beurre, French Macarons with Chocolate Raspberry Filling, and the fantastic German cookie, Murbteig.
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Why these cookies are special
Enhancing the cookie with a rum wash serves two purposes. It adds a depth of flavor to the cookie and secondly, it ensures it will remain moist. By combining the ingredients and bringing them to a boil, the alcohol dissipates leaving only the taste of rum behind.
Besides the wash, which isn't in the original recipe I changed one other important item. Every recipe I have seen finishes the top of these cookies, by simply melting chocolate and spreading on. There's a couple of problems with this.
The chocolate will set up for sure but in most cases it will shatter when you cut them - not a pretty look. It will also quickly get streaked because it isn't tempered.
To overcome this, I have added a deeply chocolate thin frosting to the top that drys well, won't crack, looks better, is easier to put on and most importantly it tastes better.
Recipe Ingredients
Tri Colored Cake
FRONT ROW: Red and Green Gel coloring, baking powder, salt, almond extract
MIDDLE ROW: Unsalted butter, almond paste
BACK ROW: Granulated sugar, all-purpose flour and eggs
Rum Wash and Jams
FRONT ROW: Water, Meyer's Dark Rum
BACK ROW: Seedless red raspberry jam, granulated sugar, jam
Chocolate Frosting
FRONT ROW: Instant coffee,corn syrup, vanilla
MIDDLE ROW: Water, Dutch Cocoa
BACK ROW: Powdered sugar
Key Ingredients
The almond paste can be purchased or home made. See my post on How To Make Almond Paste - or Not. It's super simple, works well here and is less expensive than bought.
Gell Food Coloring is important because the colors are stronger. Additionally, less is needed than liquid which can add liquid to the item. Be sure to get a strong color in the raw batter as it can fade somewhat when baking. I used Betty Crocker Gel Colors that are easily obtainable at grocery stores.
The Red Raspberry Jam should be seedless. Just stir it vigorously to loosen it up so it spreads easily.
I've never seen Apricot Jam only Apricot Preserves. The difference between jams and preserves is that jams are smooth with no pieces of fruit in them. Preserves on the other hand do include fruit pieces. To get them perfectly smooth, I run them through my food processor.
Meyer's Dark Rum is my favorite and the one I use. It imparts a deep flavor the lighter ones don't. It is made non-alcoholic by boiling it with the other ingredients. The alcohol evaporates and only the flavor is left. Small airline or individual serving bottles can be purchased which is exactly enough for the recipe.
Dutch Cocoa that is 24 to 25% is the best choice here for a darker, deeper, richer looking taste and finish although natural cocoa can also be used.
The slight amount of Corn syrup insures a shine to the finish frosting.
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients & instructions.
Step by Step Instructions
Tri Colored Cake
Step 1. On the left is the purchased almond paste, on the right the one on my post, How to make Almond Paste - or Not. Both are fine in this recipe. Step 2. Place the sugar and almond paste, cut in pieces, in the food processor, Step 3. Process until the mixture is very fine. Step 4. Place the almond/sugar mixture in a mixing bowl with the 3 sticks of softened butter. For the importance of how much to soften the butter, please see my post on Softened Butter.
Step 5. Beat the almond/sugar/butter mixture until very light. Step 6. Add the eggs and almond extract. Step 7. Beat until fluffy. It may curdle and that's fine. Step 8. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda together.
Step 9. Mix in ⅓ of the flour mixture at a time. Step 10. The first third of the flour is in. Add the remaining two, one at a time. Step 11. All of the flour has been added. Step 12. Divide the batter into 3, about 500 grams each and color one red, one green and leave one plain.
Step 13. Spread each of the batters in a separate 9x13 pan. Step 14. When ready to assemble the Neapolitans, combine the rum wash ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. There should be 1 cup of liquid. If there isn't, add water to make up the difference. Step 15. After the layers have been baked and cooled, turn the green one upside down on a cake board. Step 16. Spread the seedless raspberry jam evenly over the layer.
Step 17. Place the plain layer on top of the raspberry jam. Step 18. Spread the apricot preserves, which have been processed to smooth them out, on top of the cake. Step 19. Place the red layer on top of the preserves. Step 20. Cover the top and sides with plastic wrap.
Step 21. Place a pan or tray on top of the cookies, preferably the same size. Place a 10 pound bag of flour in the tray. Two 4 pound bags work well also. Refrigerate overnight to cement the layers together. 22. Sift the flour and cocoa together in a medium size bowl. Step 23. Make sure they are mixed well. Step 24. Place the water in a measuring cup or bowl. Dissolve the coffee in the water. Add the remaining liquid ingredients and mix well so the corn syrup doesn't sink to the bottom. Remove the layers from the fridge take off the flour, pan and plastic wrap. Pour the liquid over the powdered sugar/cocoa and stir well with a spoon until smooth and completely combined. If it is too runny, sift in a bit more powder sugar to stiffen it up just a bit. You want it to flow. If it is too tight, add water a teaspoon or so at a time.
Step 25. Pour the frosting in the middle of the cake layer. Step 26. Spread it evenly over the layer allowing it to run down the sides as necessary. Let the frosting set up at room temperature. This may take several hours. Step 27. Trim the edges. I usually end up with 8" by 11". Step 28. Measure the long and short side of the layers. If you have the same measurements I have cut the short side into 8 even pieces of 1" each. Cut the long side into 4 pieces of 2 ¾" each yielding 32 bars or 64 smaller cookies.
Recipe FAQS
The Italian cookie is spelled with an "a" - Neapolitan. The 3 flavored ice cream is spelled with an "o" - Neopolitan. They are not interchangeable.
Yes, but it can't be called a Neapolitan then. The Italian Neapolitan cookie colors are the colors of the Italian flag.
Yes, that is the defining taste of the cookie. It is also and important ingredient in the dense almond flavored cake.
Expert Tips
- The baked dough is dense and rises to about ½".
- Make sure to use gel colors to color the dough as the colors are more intense and gels do not add liquid to a dough.
- Color the doughs brighter than you want them as they often fade slightly when baking.
- These cookies stay moist and taste better the day or so after making.
- Stir the powdered sugar/cocoa and liquid ingredients together to avoid air bubbles. If it is too thick, thin with a bit of water, if too thin, sift in a bit of powdered sugar. It should flow over the sides when covering the top.
- Pour the boiled ingredients for the rum wash into a 1 cup measure so it will be easy to use ⅓ at a time.
- Don't skip the weighting down of the layers. It important as the jams cement everything together so the cookies don't separate.
- Process the apricot preserves to smooth them out. There shouldn't be any pieces of fruit when spreading out. It needs to be smooth.
More European Pastries to Consider
If you love these Neapolitan Cookes, It would be hugely helpful and so appreciated it if you would take a moment to leave a rating below. Thank you.
Italian Neapolitan Cookies
Equipment
- 3 9x13" pans (quarter sheet pans)
Ingredients
Tri Colored Cookie Batter
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar (250 grams)
- 10 ounces almond paste (280 grams)
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened (340 grams)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 tablespoons almond extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (350 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Red Gel Food Coloring
- Green Gel Food Coloring
Rum Soaking Syrup
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- ¼ cup dark rum
Assembly
- ½ cup seedless red raspberry jam
- ½ cup apricot preserves
Chocolate Frosting
- ⅓ cup water
- 1 tablespoons corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon instant coffee
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 ½ cup powdered sugar (200 grams)
- ½ cup cocoa, Dutch preferred (45 grams)
Instructions
Tri Colored Cookie Batter
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 3 9x12 baking pans (quarter sheet pans) with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Place the sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Cut or tear the almond paste into pieces and add to the processor. Process until the mixture looks like sand.
- Remove the mixture to a mixing bowl and add the softened butter. Beat until very light.
- Add the eggs and almond extract and beat until fluffy, scraping several times.
- In the meantime, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set the mixer to low and add the flour mixture to the butter ⅓ at a time, mixing just to combine. The batter will be very thick.
- Divide the batter into 3 bowls of about 500 grams each. Color one bowl green, one red and leave the third bowl plain.
- Spread each bowl evenly in one of the three parchment lined baking sheets.
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes. They will be barely browned ad a tester will come out clean. Do over bake. The layers will be about ½" each thick and dense.
- Cool each pan completely.
Rum Soaking Wash
- Combine all the ingredients in a small pan. Bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Place in a 1 cup measure. If it doesn't measure 1 cup, add water. Cool completely.
Assembly
- Place the apricot preserves in the bowl of a processor and process until smooth. Set aside.
- Place the green layer on a quarter sheet cake board upside down. Brush with ⅓ cup of the rum wash.
- Spread the raspberry jam evenly over the layer.
- Top with the plain layer, spread with another ⅓ cup of the rum wash, and spread with the apricot preserves.
- Place the red layer on top and brush with the last ⅓ cup of the rum wash. Wrap the layers in plastic wrap.
- Place a clean 9x13 or quarter sheet pan on top of the red layer. Place a 10 pound bag of flour in the pan and refrigerate overnight. Two 4 pound bags of flour will work also.
Chocolate Frosting
- Sift the powdered sugar and cocoa together. Stir together completely.
- Dissolve the coffee in the water. Add the corn syrup and vanilla, stirring well to incorporate the corn syrup.
- Add it to the powdered sugar/ cocoa mix. Stir with a spoon until completely combined. Do not be too vigorous with stirring to prevent air bubbles.
- If the frosting is too loose or runny, sift in a bit more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add water a teaspoon or so at a time. It should barely run down the sides when applied.
- Spread it evenly over the top layer. It should run down the sides as seen in the photo. Let it sit at room temperature for several hours to set up.
Cutting the Cookies
- Trim the sides of the cookies. Measure the short long side. Mine were 8"x11" If yours are the same cut 8 1" srips across the short side and 4 2 ¾" down the long side to make 32 bars. These may be cut in half again to make 64 smaller cookies.
- Store the cookies in a single layer to prevent marring the finish. They get better as they sit. The cookies will hold for 7 or more days if covered.
- To make ahead, assemble through layering and weighing down the layers. Do not add the frosting. Wrap well and freeze for a couple of months after they have been weighted down. Thaw in refrigerator if possible. Finish as above.
Notes
Nutrition
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