Adapted from Shannon Sarna’s Modern Jewish Baker: Challah, Babka, Bagels & More, this Rugelach dough is quite simple to make. Briefly mix a few ingredients before chilling for 1 to 2 hours or overnight. To keep the rugelach delicate and flaky, the key is to not overmix.
Basic Sweet Rugelach
Yields 2½ dozen cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks; 227 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 8 ounces (225 grams) full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- ¼ cup (50 grams) sugar
- 1 teaspoon (1 gram) vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (250 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 egg (50 grams), beaten (for glaze)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add the sugar, vanilla, and salt and beat until combined. You can also do this by hand.
- Add the flour and mix just until dough comes together. Divide dough into four pieces. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in fridge for 1 to 2 hours or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
- On a heavily floured surface, roll each piece of dough into a large circle. Using an 8- or 9-inch round, cut the dough into a perfect circle. I recommend using a pizza cutter for this task.
- Spread each circle of dough with a thin layer of filling, such as raspberry jam or Chocolate Filling (recipe follows), leaving ¼-inch border all around.
- Using the pizza cutter, cut the dough into 8 even triangles. Starting at the longer end, roll up each triangle.
- Place the point side down on a baking sheet lined with a parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Brush each rugelach with beaten egg.
- Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool on a wire rack.
Chocolate Filling
Yields about 2 cups
Ingredients
- 6ounces (170 grams) dark chocolate, cut into pieces (or good-quality dark chocolate chips such as Ghirardelli)
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks; 170 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup (100 grams) sugar
- ⅓ cup (25 grams) cocoa powder (I recommend Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa powder)
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch fine sea salt
Instructions
- In a microwave-safe bowl, heat chocolate in 30-second intervals until completely melted, stirring vigorously in between with a small spatula. Allow to cool for 2 minutes.
- Beat butter and sugar until smooth. Add cocoa powder, melted dark chocolate, cinnamon, and salt. Use to spread inside babka, challah, or rugelach.
Shaping
Instructions state: Using an 8- or 9-inch round, cut the dough into a perfect circle. I recommend using a pizza cutter for this task. See page 104 for shaping. We don’t have page 104. What is this telling us?
Hi Pamela,
Thank you for catching this! I’ve just updated the post with shaping images.
Hope this helps, and happy baking!