Rugelach

Ideal as a Hanukkah dessert or a cookie any time of year, this easy Rugelach recipe starts with a cream cheese cookie dough and is filled with apricots, raisins, and walnuts. These buttery, customizable Rugelach cookies are a yearly baking tradition in my home.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Israeli

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 40

Chilling time 1

Total Time 50

Servings cookies

Calories 108kcal

Author Meggan Hill

Ingredients

For the dough:

1/2 cup butter softened (1 stick)
4 ounces cream cheese softened (see note 1)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup all-purpose flour (5 ounces)

For the filling:

1/3 cup granulated sugar (2 1/3 ounces)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup apricot jam
1 cup walnuts chopped fine, or walnut meal (4 ounces, see note 2)
1/2 cup raisins chopped (2 1/2 ounces)
2 tablespoons butter melted

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

To make the dough:

In a stand up electric mixer fitted with the paddle, or a large mixing bowl with a hand-held electric mixer, beat the butter, cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until it is thoroughly combined, light, and fluffy, about 3 to 6 minutes.
Scrape down the bowl and beaters as necessary. Reduce the speed and slowly mix in the flour, about 30 seconds.
On a floured working surface, turn the dough out and divide into 2 equal pieces. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 60 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon together.

To assemble the cookies:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and place the racks at the upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out each piece of dough into an 11-inch circle, about 1/4-inch thick. On each round, spread 1/4 cup of jam and sprinkle 1/2 cup of the nuts and 1/4 cup of the raisins. Then, evenly sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Cut each round into 16 even wedges using a knife or pizza cutter. Beginning at the wide end, roll each wedge up into a cookie. Place each cookie on the prepared sheet ensuring the pointed end is underneath the cookie. Space the cookies about 2 inches apart.
Using a pastry brush, brush the melted butter over the cookies and sprinkle the remaining cinnamon-sugar over the top. Bake the cookies until they have slightly puffed and are a pale gold, about 20 minutes, rotating and switching the position of the baking sheets halfway through.
Transfer the hot cookies immediately to a wire rack and allow to cool completely before serving, about 60 minutes.

Video

Notes

Cream cheese: You'll need half of a plain full-fat block of cream cheese. Slice it into cubes to speed up the softening time; room temperature is ideal so the cream cheese incorporates well into the cookie dough.
Walnut meal: In a food processor, place 1 1/3 cups of whole walnuts. Process until walnuts are finely ground. Will yield about 1 cup of walnut meal.
Yield: This Rugelach recipe makes 32 cookies.
Storage: Rugelach will keep at room temperature for 3 days (wrapped tightly) or 1 to 2 weeks longer in the refrigerator.
Freezer: Freeze the discs of dough for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before proceeding with the recipe. Or freeze the shaped Rugelach cookies for up to 3 months. Freeze individually before combining in a freezer-safe bag. Bake straight from the freezer, adding a few minutes to the baking time if necessary.

Nutrition