Christmas is around the corner, and what better time to bake some specialty cookies! Rugelach cookie recipe has been on my "to-bake" list for quite a long time now. I guess finally, all the stars aligned for me to bake these fancy, tender cookies.
Let me tell you one thing, though. It feels like a lot of work for these dainty little cute cookies, but all the effort is absolutely worth it when you take a bite of the rugelach.
I started with the rugelach cookies with cranberry-pistachio filling. The whole counter was a mess, the dough was getting sticky, I didn't know what I was doing, and I all wanted was to get it done as quickly as possible and relax.
But by the time I got to the cookies with peanut butter chocolate filling, I got the hang of it and this version was done in no time. So I have changed my mind about not baking rugelach cookies again and want to try a variety of fillings now, especially since the kids loved it.
I combined three recipes in total to develop my version of rugelach cookies. First, the basic rugelach recipe was from my favorite and most trusted recipe site, Taste of Home. Then, I got the idea for the chocolate rugelach recipe from The Kitchn.
The cookie dough doesn't have sugar, and it's a bit salty. If you have a sweet tooth, be sure to make the filling sweeter and drizzle the rugelach with some icing or ganache. I didn't do either because I'm trying to watch our sugar consumption.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here is the step-by-step instruction on how to make delicious Chocolate/Pistachio Rugelach cookies from scratch:
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Recipe
Chocolate Rugelach
Ingredients
Rugelach Recipe:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 8 oz cream cheese softened (1 packet)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
Peanut Butter Chocolate Filling:
- ½ cup peanut butter
- 1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips
Cranberry-Pistachio Filling:
- ½ cup dried cranberries coarsely chopped
- ½ cup pistachios finely chopped
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¾ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ cup butter melted
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese until smooth.
- Combine flour and salt; gradually add to cream cheese mixture and mix well.
- Divide dough into fourths. Wrap each portion; refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.
- Meanwhile, prepare the cranberry-pistachio filling. In a small bowl, mix together all the ingredients except butter.
- I wanted to use 2 discs of dough for each flavor. I started with the cranberry-pistachio filling. Just remove 2 discs of dough from the fridge. Working with one portion of dough at a time, roll each into a 12-in. circle on a lightly floured surface. (See My Notes)
- Brush with some of the melted butter. Sprinkle with half of the cranberry mixture, pressing lightly to adhere. Cut dough into 12 wedges. Roll up wedges from the wide ends; place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets, point side down.
- Repeat the same for the second disc of dough too. Finally, make the rugelach and place it on a baking sheet/s.
- Bake at 350F/180C for 22-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove cookies from oven to cooling rack and brush warm cookies with melted butter.
- While the first flavor of rugelach is baking, you can start preparing the peanut butter chocolate rugelach. Warm ½ cup peanut butter in a microwave until it liquefies but isn't boiling.
- Roll the 3rd disc of dough into a 12-inch circle and spread about ¼ cup of peanut butter over the rugelach dough; sprinkle with ½ cup miniature chocolate chips.
- Cut dough into 12 wedges. Roll up wedges from the wide ends; place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets, point side down. Repeat the same for the 4th disc of dough and bake at 350F/180C for 22-25 mins.
- Remove cookies from oven to cooling rack and brush warm cookies with some melted butter.
My Notes
- While rolling the dough into a circle, I first tried rolling the dough in between two wax papers, but that didn't work out for me. Dusting the flour with some flour and then rolling the dough made it easier. See which method works for you because it might vary.
- As mentioned in the Taste and Texture section, these cookies are not too sweet, so you might have to increase the quantity of sweetener if you prefer sweeter cookies. You might also try dusting some icing sugar on the rugelach cookies or drizzle some icing.
- Spreading Nutella instead of peanut butter might be another wonderful option.
Taste & Texture
- This rugelach cookie is one of the most tender cookies that I have ever baked. The cream cheese gives that lovely texture to these cookies. It had a similar texture to these Italian ricotta cheese cookies.
- The cookie dough doesn't have any sugar absolutely, so it was not as sweet as the usual cookies we are used to, which was not an issue for my family except my mom, who has a very sweet tooth. If you are like my mom, you may have to increase the quantity of sugar in the filling and also drizzle some icing on top of the cookies once it is cool enough.
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