Recipes for Shabbat

Rugalach

By Eileen Goltz

Rugalach (or rugelach if you prefer to spell it that way) is a must have treat on just about every grandmothers cookie plate. Every family I know seems to have their own SECRET special recipe of butter/cream cheese dough crescents wrapped around nuts, spices, and sugar and rolled into tiny, flaky melt in your mouth crescents. (They are especially "apropos" at Chanukah as each cookie is virtually a gift to your taste buds). While classic rugalach can have fillings ranging from raisins (or other fruit) and nuts to poppy-seed paste or jam I'm all for adding chocolate and little bits of toffee just to keep things interesting.

Probably the most well know of the specialty cookies associated with Judaism, this rolled treat was first made in Europe with only butter in the dough. The addition of cream cheese to the mix is a purely American tradition. Since unbaked rugalach freezes well, you can prepare all the cookies you think you'll need and bake only what you need when you need it. Wrap and freeze what you don't need and pull them out of the freezer for fresh homemade cookies any time you like. There are slight variations in every dough recipe but mine is so popular I've even started using it to make some of my hamantashen.

TIP: When preparing the dough, use soft cream cheese so that it blends into the other ingredients, but use cold butter to form the little butter pockets that make the pastry flaky. This rich dough is sticky when mixed, but firms during chilling and rolls out easily.

TIP: For longer storage, package unfrozen crescents in freezer-safe container or bags and freeze until ready to bake.

TIPS: Be sure to work on just one circle at a time and keep others refrigerated. Don't overdo the jam and cinnamon/pecan filling because they tend to overflow and will burn quickly on your baking sheets.

HAZELNUT RUGELACH (dairy)

Sugar Topping
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
9 tablespoons apricot jam

In a bowl combine the flour and salt. Mix well and set it aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer or food processor combine the butter and cream cheese and beat until the mixture is creamy, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Gradually beat in the flour mixture just until blended, occasionally scraping bowl. Divide the dough into 3 equal pieces and then flatten each into a disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until dough is firm enough to roll. (Or place dough in freezer for 1 hour if using butter, 1 1/2 hours if using margarine.) While the dough is chilling prepare the fruit and nut filling.

In medium bowl, combine the hazelnuts, prune, cherries and brown sugar. Mix to combine and set aside. In a smaller bowl combine the sugar, cinnamon, cloves and jam. Preheat oven to 350. Line a large cookie sheet with foil; grease the foil. Sprinkle the surface you plan to work on with 2 tablespoons of the sugar topping. Place 1 piece dough on top of sugar and press down slightly to make sure the sugar mixture adheres. Turn the disc of dough over to coat on the other side. Roll the dough into a 12-inch round, turning round over a few times and sprinkling work surface with 2 more tablespoons of the sugar mixture to coat both sides evenly. Spread top of round with 3 tablespoons jam, then sprinkle with about 3/4 cup filling, leaving 1/2-inch border around edge. With a knife, cut dough into 24 equal wedges. Starting at curved edge and rolling toward the point, roll up each wedge, jelly-roll fashion. Place the rugalach, 1 inch apart, on cookie sheet, point side down. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bottoms are browned. Remover the rugalach from the cookie sheet Immediately to a wire rack to cool. Repeat the procedure with the remaining dough and filling. Makes approx. 5 to 6 dozen cookies. Store cookies in tightly covered container at room temperature up to 1 week, or in freezer up to 3 months.

COTTAGE CHEESE RUGALACH WITH WALNUTS (dairy)
The surprise ingredient in this version is cottage cheese. The dough is just as tender and rich as when you use cream cheese.

In the bowl of an electric mixer or food processor combine the cottage cheese and 2/3 cup margarine and mix until combine. Add in the flour and knead until dough is smooth, about 1 minute. Do not over mix. Divide the dough into 2 balls. Flatten the balls into disks. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and freeze until the dough is firm enough to roll, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor combine the brown sugar, walnuts, cinnamon, vanilla and 3 tablespoons margarine. Process until the mixture a smooth paste forms.

Preheat oven to 350. On a lightly floured surface roll out 1 dough disc to 10-inch circle... Spread half of brown sugar mixture evenly over the disc. Cut the disc into 16 wedges. Starting at the curved edge and rolling toward the point, roll up the wedges. Bend ends in, forming crescents. Place on ungreased baking sheet (you can use parchment paper) point side down. Repeat rolling, filling and shaping with remaining dough disk.

In a small bowl combine the egg and milk and beat to blend. Brush the milk glaze over the crescents. Bake until cooked through and light brown, about 25 minutes making sure to reverse the baking sheets after 10 minutes, front to back and top to bottom, to ensure even browning. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and cool immediately. (Can be made ahead and stored in airtight containers at room temperature or frozen for several weeks.) Makes 3 dozen.

APRICOT OR CHOCOLATE RUGALACH (dairy)

Place the cream cheese, butter, confectioner's sugar, salt, lemon juice, and vanilla in a food processor or the bowl of and electric mixer. Add the flour and pulse or mix until a very soft dough is formed. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least an hour. For the Apricot Filling: In a small combine the jam, bread crumbs and walnuts. Mix to combine. For the Chocolate Filling: In a small bowl combine the chocolate and sugar, mix to combine. Preheat oven to 350. After you have mixed the ingredients for the filling of your choice divide the dough into 4 balls. Roll the balls out into 4 circles, about 1/2 inch thick and spread with apricot filling or chocolate filling. Top with the apricot or chocolate filling. Cut the disc into 16 wedges. Starting at the curved edge and rolling toward the point, roll up the wedges. Bend ends in, forming crescents. In a small bowl beat the egg and then using a small pastry brush; brush it on the top of the rugalach. Sprinkle the top of the egg wash with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Place the cookies on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and cool immediately. (Can be made ahead and stored in airtight containers at room temperature or frozen for several weeks.) Makes about 50 rugalach

Joan Nathan: Jewish Cooking In America

ALMOND HONEY RUGELACH (dairy)

In the bowl of an electric mixer or food processor cream together the butter and cream cheese until the mixture is fluffy. Add 3 tablespoons of honey and mix well. Mix in the flour just until the dough holds together. Form the dough into a ball, wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or longer. Divide dough into 4 pieces. On a floured board roll each portion into a 9-inch circle. In a bowl combine 2 tablespoons of honey and the lemon juice; mix well. Brush dough with honey mixture; sprinkle 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon over entire surface. Combine almonds and dried cherries; drizzle remaining honey over mixture and mix well. Spread 1/4 of almonds mixture onto circle of dough, stopping 1/2-inch from outer edge. Cut into 8 triangular pieces. Roll from wide outer edge toward tip. Gently bend both ends to form a crescent. Place on oiled parchment paper-lined baking sheet and refrigerate 20 minutes or longer. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. While the cookies are cooling in the refrigerator preheat oven to 350. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown making sure to reverse the baking sheets after 10 minutes, front to back and top to bottom, to ensure even browning. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and cool immediately. Makes 3 dozen rugalach.

CRANBERRY ORANGE AND ALMOND RUGELACH (dairy)

In the bowl of a food processor or mixing bowl combine the almond paste, flour and salt and mix to combine Add the cream cheese and butter and mix until mixture looks like a coarse corn meal. Pour dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Press and knead into a ball and divide into 4 equal balls. Shape each ball into a flat disk, about 5", and wrap well. Refrigerate while making filling. In the bowl of a food processor combine the almonds, cranberries and rind. Process until very finely chopped. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or foil. On a lightly floured table, roll one of the disks into a 9" circle, keeping other disks refrigerated until ready to roll out. Use an inverted 9" plate or cake pan for a guide and trim edges neatly. Save trimmings for 5th circle. Spread 3 tablespoon of marmalade over dough. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of filling over marmalade. Press firmly into dough. Cut circle into 12 equal pie shaped wedges. Beginning with the curved edge of the wedge, roll cookie to the point. Shape into a crescent and place on cookie sheets. Brush rugalach with egg and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden making sure to reverse the baking sheets after 10 minutes, front to back and top to bottom, to ensure even browning. Cool on wire rack.

APPLE RAISIN RUGELACH (dairy)

Put the flour, sugar, and salt in the large bowl of an electric mixer and mix on low speed just to blend. Add the cream cheese and butter and mix until all of the flour is combined, about 45 seconds. With the mixer running, add the sour cream and vanilla and mix until all of it is incorporated, about 15 seconds. The dough will be soft and sticky. Divide it into 4 equal pieces, form each piece into a ball, then flatten to a 4" disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Prepare the Apple Raisin Filling: Put the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and stir together. Stir in the apples and cinnamon. Preheat the oven to 375. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the disks from the refrigerator and unwrap them. If the dough has become cold and hard, let it sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes or until it is easy to roll. Lightly flour the rolling surface and rolling pin. Roll 1 disk into a 10-1/2"-diameter circle and trim the edges even. Leaving approx a 3/4" plain border at the edge of the circle, use a thin spatula to spread 1 tablespoon of apricot preserves evenly over the dough, removing any large pieces of apricot. Sprinkle a fourth of the filling (a scant 1/3 cup) evenly over the preserves. Press the filling into the dough. Use a large knife to cut the dough into 12 wedges. Roll each wedge up tightly from the wide edge to the point. Place, point side down, 1" apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bend the ends slightly to curve each rugalach into a crescent shape. Repeat with the remaining. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown. Reverse the baking sheets after 10 minutes, front to back and top to bottom, to ensure even browning. Transfer the rugalach immediately to a wire rack to cool thoroughly.

SUGAR FREE RUGALACH (dairy)
A delicious cream cheese pastry, naturally sweetened with raisins, nuts, and cinnamon.

Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl of an electric mixer combine the margarine and cream cheese. Blend in the vanilla extract. Mix in the flour. Chill dough at least 1 hour. Filling: In a bowl combine the chopped raisins, walnuts and cinnamon. If you have a food processor, place the whole walnuts and raisins into the bowl, sprinkle with the cinnamon and chop them together by processing in short pulses. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Roll out each portion into a 10- to 12-inch circle, 1/8-inch thick on a lightly floured board or between two sheets of waxed paper. Spread a light layer of spreadable fruit (approx. 2 Tablespoons) onto each dough circle. Sprinkle each circle with approximately 1/4 cup of the chopped raisin-nut mixture. Cut each circle into 16 wedges. Roll each wedge from curved edge toward the point. Place point down on lightly greased or parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden making sure to reverse the baking sheets after 10 minutes, front to back and top to bottom, to ensure even browning. Remove the rugalach to wire racks to cool. Dietary Exchanges: 1/2 Starch; 1/2 Fat.

RUGALACH WITH SOUR CHERRIES (dairy)

In a medium size bowl combine the pecans, cherries, sugar and cinnamon. Mix well and set aside. In a bowl of a mixer or processor combine the cream cheese, flour, butter and sugar and blend well. Divide dough into 4 pieces. Dust each with flour, shaking off excess. Roll each piece between sheets of waxed paper into 10" circle. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease baking sheets. Spread each circle of dough with jam. Divide filling among circles, spreading evenly. Cut each into 12 wedges. Roll up each wedge from bottom to point. Arrange on prepared sheets, point side down. Bake until golden, about 16-17 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool. Store cookies in airtight container.

Remove at once from the baking sheet to cool on racks when they turn golden brown on top. After rolling out between waxed paper, one hour of cooling is perfect to cut out, but they may be made ahead and refrigerated longer. Just leave them out a bit before cutting out so dough won't be so stiff to handle properly and roll well. Makes 3 dozen.

Eileen Goltz, a professional chef and caterer, is the author of the new cookbook, Perfectly Pareve.