Flaky Rugelach with Two Fillings
I don't wanna make any dramatic claims or anything, so I'll simply state that these flaky cream cheese rugelach are everything I've ever dreamed of and more. You know, just keeping it real.
Cuz like, you guys already know how much I love cookies. And rugelach are cookies on steroids. They're way up there for me, along with these chocolate chip cookies.
And I'm not talking about those soft, mushy rugelach that come in buckets at your local kosher bakery, if you've got one of those. I'm talking about those flaky, buttery, crispy yet melt-in-your-mouth cream cheese rugelach that are found in the dairy section only. Those rugelach. These rugelach.
I tried very hard to make my rugelach as neat and perfect looking as possible. I didn't do a very good job. I don't think I can say I succeeded on the looks front.
These rugelach insisted on looking rustic (that's a nice way of saying messy and imperfect). I guess that's what I get for wanting the flakiest rugelach possible with as much filling stuffed into them as possible.
I should have known that I can't have my rugelach and eat them too.
Most rugelach recipes out there call for more flour for the ratio of cream cheese and butter that I used. But I found that those rugelach with more flour were a bit too soft for my liking. And they also kind of made me nauseous after eating a couple. They were too heavy. And we don't want that.
This rugelach recipe uses less flour than usual, yielding lighter and flakier rugelach. Rugelach that are waaaay easier to eat. Which is also kind of a problem, because I've been making these cream cheese rugelach on repeat for the past few weeks, and, like I said, they are VERY easy to eat.
So what actually are rugelach, eh?
They're cookies, made from a very lightly sweetened (or not sweetened at all) dough. The dough is similar to a pie dough, but it's softer and richer thanks to the cream cheese. The soft dough is rolled out and filled with a sweet filling such as jam and sugar and cinnamon and nuts and raisins or a filling such as chocolate and sugar and cocoa powder or a filling such as cinnamon and sugar.
After being filled, the dough is either sliced into wedges and rolled up croissant-style, or rolled up into a log and sliced cinnamon roll-style. The latter method is depicted here. Then the rugelach are baked. And then they are ingested. In vast quantities.
Of course, I prefer a chocolate filling to any other filling in my flaky rugelach. A rich, very chocolaty filling. But you've got options.
I've provided two filling recipes below. One full of chocolate. And one full of jam and nuts and raisins (I find that the traditional people i.e. the older people i.e. my parents prefer the jam filling).
There's also a third filling you can go with, an even richer chocolate filling, the filling from this kokosh cake. I was going to make that kokosh filling the default filling for this recipe, but I actually prefer the chocolate filling I provided below a little more.
But if you're after a super-rich and gooey chocolate filling, go with the kokosh filling. Just go easy - too much and the filling will explode out of the rugelach. That same rule applies for the other fillings as well - be generous, but not TOO generous.
Rich. Buttery. Flaky and crispy on the outside and soft and melt-in-your-mouth on the inside. Packed with a sticky, chewy, jam, cinnamon, nut, raisin filling or a rich, chopped chocolate, brown sugar, cocoa filling.
Flaky rugelach with two fillings - where did you go oh right I finished all of you have to go make another batch k bye.
Flaky Rugelach with Two Fillings
Yield: about 28 rugelach
Dough:
1 1/4 cups packed flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 oz. cream cheese, cold and cubed
6 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) butter, cold and cubed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Jam Filling:
1/2 cup thick jam
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped nuts of choice
1/4 cup raisins
Chocolate filling:
5 oz. semisweet chocolate, shaved or very finely chopped
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
Another filling option: a thin layer of the rich chocolate filling from this kokosh cake
-Egg, for glazing
-Powdered sugar, for dusting
1. In a food processor (or in a bowl by hand or in a stand mixture with a paddle attachment), pulse the flour, sugar, and salt until combined. Add in the cubed cream cheese, cubed butter, and vanilla extract and pulse until mixture is crumbly like cottage cheese and sticks together when pressed between fingers.
2. Divide dough into 2 and flatten each piece into a disk. Wrap disks in parchment paper and refrigerate for minimum 1 hour (you can freeze for 25 minutes but dough will be harder to work with).
3. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Keep 2nd disk of dough in fridge while working with 1st one. Unwrap the parchment, lift the dough off it, and flour it. Roll dough out on the parchment paper into a thin rectangle. Spread filling onto dough.
-For jam filling: mix the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Spread the jam in a thin layer (make sure it's not a runny jam) onto the dough. Sprinkle cinnamon mixture on top, followed by the nuts and raisins. Press filling into dough to stick.
-For chocolate filling: mix together all the filling ingredients. Spread onto dough in thin layer, pressing in to stick.
4. Roll dough up tightly from longer end, forming a log. Transfer log onto prepared baking sheet. Repeat with second piece of dough.
5. Slice 3/4" deep slices at 1" intervals throughout the log (you're not cutting the slices all the way through, the pieces should still be attached to the log). Chill log in fridge if too soft to slice.
6. Brush logs with a beaten egg. Place baking sheet with logs into freezer for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 F.
7. Bake rugelach for 22-28 minutes, until they're golden brown on top and bottom. Let cool a bit before slicing logs all the way through. Dust rugelach with powdered sugar if you'd like them a bit sweeter.
8. Rugelach last for a week at room temperature. I actually prefer them on the 2nd and 3rd day as opposed to just baked, because I find that the texture and taste improve!
