Rugelach

Name: Rugelach
Cook time: 150 min
Total time: 150 min
Yield: 16 servings
Cuisine: Eastern European
Ingredients: 225g Full-Fat Cream Cheese; 225g Unsalted Butter, cold; 250g All-purpose Flour; 30g Granulated Sugar; 1/2 tsp Salt, fine; 200g Apricot Preserves; 120g Walnuts, finely chopped; 80g Raisins; 50g Granulated Sugar; 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon; 1 Egg; 15ml Milk; 20g Granulated Sugar, or coarse; 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon; Some All-purpose Flour, for dusting

Rugelach are tender, flaky crescent cookies filled with sweet apricot jam, warm cinnamon, and crunchy nuts — perfect with tea or coffee. This version uses a cream cheese–butter pastry for a rich, melt-in-your-mouth texture and a classic filling of apricot, walnuts, and raisins. The result is golden, slightly crisp exterior with a soft, jammy interior studded with cinnamon-scented nuts and fruit.

Rugelach are tender, flaky crescent cookies filled with sweet apricot jam, warm cinnamon, and crunchy nuts — perfect with tea or c... Show more

Traditional Eastern European Recipe

Health Grade

D- · Occasional

Rating

4.7

Time

2 hrs30 min

Price

0,60 €

Calories

342 kcal

vegetarian

kid friendly

comfort food

potluck

Method

Make the dough

Cut the Full-Fat Cream Cheese and Unsalted Butter into small chunks and place them in a large bowl. Add the All-purpose Flour, Granulated Sugar, and Salt, then work everything together with your fingertips, a pastry cutter, or two knives until you have a shaggy dough with a few small buttery bits still visible. Gently press the dough together just until it holds, knead it 2 or 3 times at most, divide it into 2 discs, wrap well, and chill for 1 hour.

Mix the filling

Finely chop the Walnuts. If the Raisins are large, give them a rough chop too so the filling rolls more evenly. Stir them together in a bowl with the remaining sugar and the Ground Cinnamon until the mixture looks evenly combined and sandy.

Preheat the oven

Heat the oven to 350° F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Roll and shape

Lightly dust your counter and rolling pin with flour. Roll one disc of dough into a circle about 10 to 12 inches wide and about 1/8 inch thick, keeping the second disc chilled until you need it. Spread half of the Apricot Preserves over the dough in a thin, even layer, leaving a small bare edge, then sprinkle on half of the walnut-raisin mixture and press it down very lightly so it sticks. Cut the circle into 8 wedges, like a pizza, and roll each wedge up from the wide end to the point. Set them point-side down on the prepared baking sheets, then repeat with the second disc and the remaining preserves and filling.

Chill the crescents

Refrigerate the shaped rugelach until firm, about 15 minutes. This quick chill helps them keep their shape and gives you flakier layers once they bake.

Brush and top

Beat the Egg with the Milk until smooth. Brush the tops of the chilled rugelach lightly with the egg wash, then mix the remaining sugar with the remaining ground cinnamon and sprinkle it over the pastries for a crisp, sweet finish.

Bake until golden

Bake the rugelach until golden brown with slightly darker edges and bubbling filling in a few spots, 20 to 25 minutes. Rotate the pans halfway through if your oven browns unevenly.

Cool and serve

Let the rugelach cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a rack. Serve them warm or at room temperature, once the filling has set enough that the cookies hold together neatly.