Jammy Rugulah Recipes

RUGELACH

Steps:

• To make the dough: Let the cream cheese and butter rest on the counter for 10 minutes - you want them to be slightly softened but still cool.
• Put the flour and salt in a food processor, scatter over the chunks of cream cheese and butter and pulse the machine 6 to 10 times. Then process, scraping down the sides of the bowl often, just until the dough forms large curds - don't work it so long that it forms a ball on the blade.
• Turn the dough out, gather it into a ball and divide it in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap the disks in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day. (Wrapped airtight, the dough can be frozen for up to 2 months.)
• To make the filling: Heat the jam in a saucepan over low heat, or do this in a microwave, until it liquefies. Mix the sugar and cinnamon together.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. (Silicone baking mats are great for rugelach.)
• To shape the cookies: Pull one packet of dough from the refrigerator. If it is too firm to roll easily, either leave it on the counter for about 10 minutes or give it a few bashes with your rolling pin.
• Working on a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a 11- to 12-inch circle. Spoon (or brush) a thin gloss of jam over the dough, and sprinkle over half of the cinnamon sugar. Scatter over half of the nuts, half of the currants and half of the chopped chocolate. Cover the filling with a piece of wax paper and gently press the filling into the dough, then remove the paper and save it for the next batch.
• Using a pizza wheel or a sharp knife, cut the dough into 16 wedges, or triangles. (The easiest way to do this is to cut the dough into quarters, then to cut each quarter into 4 triangles.) Starting at the base of each triangle, roll the dough up so that each cookie becomes a little crescent. Arrange the roll-ups on one baking sheet, making sure the points are tucked under the cookies, and refrigerate. Repeat with the second packet of dough, and refrigerate the cookies for at least 30 minutes before baking. (The cookies can be covered and refrigerated overnight or frozen for up to 2 months; don't defrost before baking, just add a couple of extra minutes to the baking time.)
• Getting ready to bake: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• To finish: Stir the egg and water together, and brush a bit of this glaze over each rugelach. Sprinkle the cookies with sugar.
• Bake the cookies 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point, until they are puffed and golden. Transfer the cookies to racks to cool to just warm or to room temperature.

WALNUT RUGELACH

Steps:

• Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together onto a sheet of waxed paper.
• Beat 1/4 cup white sugar, butter, and cream cheese together in a bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla.
• Stir flour mixture into butter mixture until dough is just combined. Divide dough into 3 equal portions; shape each portion into a disk, wrap disks in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Beat egg white in a bowl with an electric mixture until frothy. Mix walnuts and 1/2 cup white sugar into egg white.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Remove dough from plastic wrap and roll each disk out into a 7-inch circle. Spread 1/3 the egg white mixture onto each dough circle, leaving a 1/4-inch border around the edge of each circle. Cut each circle into 12 wedges. Roll up each wedge from the edge to the point and place, point-side down, on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool and dust with confectioners' sugar.

JAMMY RUGULAH

Steps:

• First, make pastry.
• Place flour in a bowl, and add cold butter pieces; using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour.
• Add cream cheese and also cut in.
• You can do the above in a food processor, if you don't wish to do it by hand.
• When butter and cream cheese have been cut in, knead with your hands until dough forms a ball (or process in food processor until mixture just forms a ball; don't over-process or dough will toughen).
• Cut dough in half, wrap each half in plastic wrap, and refrigerate (you can do this ahead of time, if you wish, and then make the cookies the next day).
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F; line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Place jam in a small bowl and stir it until it is spreadable.
• In another small bowl, combine the white sugar with the nuts and lemon zest.
• Remove one batch of dough from the fridge and roll out on a floured surface into a circle, at least 9 inches in diameter-- thinner/bigger is good, too, and will result in a crispier cookie.
• Spread half the jam over the circle, them sprinkle on half the nut mixture.
• Cut each circle into 12 wedges and tightly roll up each wedge, starting at the outside edge; bend/curve in each end so cookie resembles a crescent roll.
• Place cookies one inch apart on a cookie sheet.
• Repeat procedure with remaining dough, remaining jam, and remaining nut mixture.
• Beat the egg, and brush beaten egg on top of all cookies; sprinkle with coarse sugar.
• Bake until cookies are golden, about 20 to 25 minutes.
• Cool on racks; dust with sifted icing sugar if desired.

RUGELACH

Steps:

• Cut cold butter or margarine and cream cheese into bits. In food processor pulse flour, salt, butter or margarine, cream cheese and sour cream until crumbly.
• Shape crumbly mixture into four equal disks. Wrap each disk and chill 2 hours or up to 2 days.
• Combine sugar, cinnamon, chopped walnuts, and finely chopped raisins (may substitute miniature chocolate chips for raisins).
• Roll each disk into a 9 inch round keeping other disks chilled until ready to roll them. Sprinkle round with sugar/nut mixture. Press lightly into dough. With chefs knife or pizza cutter, cut each round into 12 wedges. Roll wedges from wide to narrow, you will end up with point on outside of cookie. Place on ungreased baking sheets and chill rugelach 20 minutes before baking.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• After rugelach are chilled, bake them in the center rack of your oven 22 minutes until lightly golden. Cool on wire racks. Store in airtight containers...they freeze very well.
• Variations: Before putting the filling on the dough, use a pastry brush to layer apricot jam as well as brown sugar. Then add the recommended filling. You may also make a mixture of cinnamon and sugar and roll the rugelach in this prior to putting them on the cookie sheets.

RUGELACH

Steps:

• Cream the cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light. Add 1/4 cup granulated sugar, the salt, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and mix until just combined. Dump the dough out onto a well-floured board and roll it into a ball. Cut the ball in quarters, wrap each piece in plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• To make the filling, combine 6 tablespoons of granulated sugar, the brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, the raisins, and walnuts.
• On a well-floured board, roll each ball of dough into a 9-inch circle. Spread the dough with 2 tablespoons apricot preserves and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of the filling. Press the filling lightly into the dough. Cut the circle into 12 equal wedges?cutting the whole circle in quarters, then each quarter into thirds. Starting with the wide edge, roll up each wedge. Place the cookies, points tucked under, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Brush each cookie with the egg wash. Combine 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon and sprinkle on the cookies. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack and let cool.

MAIDA HEATTER'S RUGELACH (WALNUT HORNS)

Steps:

• Prepare the pastry the night before you are ready to cook.
• To make the pastry, put the butter, cream cheese and salt into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on medium, then high speed, until the mixture is creamy and smooth. Then beat on low speed while gradually adding the flour. If the dough starts to overly coat the beaters, scrape the dough off the beaters and continue adding flour, stirring it in with the hands until thoroughly and evenly blended. The dough will be extremely sticky.
• Scrape the dough off the hands and fingers. Rinse, wash and dry the hands. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board. Flour the hands and gather the dough into a short sausage shape. Cut this into three pieces of equal size. Flatten each piece slightly and wrap each piece in clear plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
• When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with aluminum foil and set aside.
• Combine the sugar and cinnamon for the filling and set aside.
• Place one ball of dough on a floured pastry cloth. Hammer the dough firmly to soften it slightly. Do not let it become warm. Quickly roll out the dough, turning it occasionally, with a floured rolling pin into a circle about 12 inches in diameter. Don't worry about a slighly uneven edge.
• Using a pastry brush, brush the dough with a tablespoon of the melted butter. Sprinkle the dough all over with one-third of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Sprinkle with one-third of the currants or raisins and one-third of the walnuts. Roll the rolling pin lightly over the top to press the filling slightly into the dough.
• Using a long, sharp knife, cut the circle into 12 pie-shaped wedges. Roll each wedge jellyroll fashion, rolling from the outside toward the point. Do not be dismayed if some of the filling falls out. Place each roll, point side down, about one inch apart on one foil-covered cookie sheet. Repeat with a second ball of dough and then a third, filling and rolling each as indicated.
• For the glaze, beat the egg yolk with the water. Brush the top of each walnut horn lightly and evenly with the mixture.
• Place each sheet on a rack in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Preferably at mid-point during the baking, you should reverse the sheets top to bottom and front to back, to insure even browning. When the horns are cooked, remove them with a metal spatula and transfer them to racks to cool.