Best Spiced Prune Rugelach Recipes

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.

PRUNE RUGELACH

Steps:

• Mix butter, cream cheese, and salt in a large bowl with hands until crumbly. Add flour, and mix until just combined. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface, and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk; wrap each disk in plastic. Refrigerate until cold, about 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Stir together breadcrumbs and 1/2 cup sugar in a small bowl; set aside. Stir together remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon in another small bowl; set aside.
• To make filling: Put prunes and brandy in a small airtight container. Let soak at room temperature overnight. Drain prunes. Puree in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in breadcrumbs and sugar. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 1 day ahead.
• Roll 1 disk to 1/8 inch thick. Cut out a 12-inch circle. Brush beaten egg in a 1-inch border around circle. Put half the prune filling in center, and spread out to beaten egg border. Sprinkle 1/2 cup breadcrumb mixture over filling. Cut circle into 16 wedges. Starting at outside edge of each wedge, roll up into a crescent shape. Space 1 inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Repeat with remaining disk and filling. Refrigerate rugelach until cold, about 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Bake rugelach until golden brown and cooked through, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely on wire racks. Rugelach can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

CRANBERRY-PECAN RUGELACH

Steps:

• With electric mixer (beater), cream together butter and cream cheese. With mixer on low, gradually add in flour. Form into 3 squat disks. Wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, cover the cranberries with water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool. Drain. In a small bowl, combine pecans, brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll dough into a 10-inch circles. Paint with the melted butter. Sprinkle with the sugar/nut mixture and cranberries. With a pizza wheel, cut into 12 wedges. Roll up the wedges and line them up on a parchment lined or nonstick cookie sheet. Paint the rugelach with the egg wash. Bake for 15 minutes or set and light golden.

RUGELACH

Steps:

• For the rugelach: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Combine the flour and salt in a food processor and pulse to mix. Scatter the cubed butter and cream cheese over the flour. Pulse 10 to 12 times for coarse crumbs to form.
• In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolk and vanilla, then pour over the butter-flour mixture. Run the processor until the dough starts to clump together.
• Turn the dough out onto a counter and gather the pieces into a ball. Divide into 2 portions, wrap each in plastic wrap, press into a disc and chill for 8 to 10 minutes.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll each disc out like pie dough to a thin round about 1/8 inch thick.
• For the filling: Melt the butter and brush half over one of the rounds of dough. Sprinkle with half the brown sugar, and then drizzle with half the honey, pecans and lemon zest. Cut the dough like a pizza into 12 slices. If the dough is sticky, chill it for a few minutes.
• Roll up each slice into a crescent shape. Repeat with the second disc of dough and filling ingredients to make 24 rugelach total. Transfer them to 2 parchment-lined baking sheets.
• Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool, then squeeze lemon juice and sprinkle lemon zest over the tops.

GOLDEN RUGELACH

Steps:

• For the dough: Pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor until combined. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles coarse sand with some pea-size pieces of butter, about 20 pulses. Add the cream cheese and sour cream and pulse until it comes together in a rough dough, with some uneven pebble-size pieces. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and divide into four equal portions. Pat each portion into a flat square and wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for 15 minutes.
• For the filling: Meanwhile, chop the hazelnuts in a clean food processor. Add the preserves, raisins and salt and puree to make a very smooth paste.
• Roll a portion of dough into a 6- by 14-inch rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. (Don't worry about slightly rough edges; these will be rolled inside of the rugelach.) Spread one-quarter of the filling over the surface with a small spatula. Starting with a long side, roll the dough up into a tight cylinder, ending with the seam on the bottom. Press the top slightly to flatten and wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for another 15 minutes. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. (The cylinders can be frozen for up to a month.)
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and evenly position the racks. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
• Slice the cylinders into 1 1/2-inch pieces and place seam-side down on the prepared sheets. Whisk the egg yolks together and brush over the tops. Sprinkle with sugar and bake until pale golden and crispy on top, about 25 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let cool slightly on the baking sheets. Carefully transfer the rugelach to a rack to cool. Store in a tightly sealed container for up to 3 days.

PINEAPPLE RUGELACH

Steps:

• Whisk the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Beat the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, 3 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to low; beat in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Increase the speed to medium high; add 1/2 cup coconut and beat until well combined. Divide the dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap; shape each into a rectangle. Wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Roll out each piece of dough on a lightly floured surface into a 6-by-12-inch rectangle. Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate.
• Microwave the dried pineapple with the water until softened, 2 minutes. Transfer to a food processor; add the preserves, raisins, ginger and a pinch of salt. Pulse until smooth.
• Brush the dough rectangles with the beaten egg. Spread the filling over the dough rectangles, leaving a 1-inch border along 1 long side of each. Roll up the dough toward the clean border into a tight log; press to seal and position seam-side down. Brush the top with beaten egg and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons coconut. Refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes.
• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Slice the logs into 1-inch pieces; arrange on the baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely on the baking sheets.

RUGELACH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle blue and white coarse sugar on a work surface. Unroll the pie crust onto the sugar and press into the sugar.
• Spread the dough evenly with the jam. Cut into 16 wedges. Roll up each wedge, starting at the end opposite the pointy tip. Arrange on the baking sheet, pointy-tip down.
• Bake until the wedges are golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool completely.

SPICED PRUNES

Steps:

• In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the plums, water, cinnamon, cloves and ginger; bring to a boil. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand until cool. Stir in lemon juice. Store, covered, in the refrigerator.

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.

PRUNE RUGELACH

Steps:

• Mix butter, cream cheese, and salt in a bowl with hands until crumbly. Add flour; mix until just combined. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface, and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until cold, 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Stir together bread crumbs and 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl. Stir together remaining 3 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon in another small bowl.
• Roll one disk to 1/8 inch thick. Cut out a 12-inch circle. Brush beaten egg in a 1-inch border around circle. Put half the prune filling in center, and spread out to beaten egg border. Sprinkle 1/2 cup bread crumb mixture over filling. With a pizza wheel, cut circle into 16 wedges. Starting at outside edge of each wedge, roll up into a crescent shape. Space 1 inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Repeat with remaining disk and filling. Refrigerate rugelach until cold, about 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Bake rugelach until golden brown and cooked through, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely on wire racks. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.
• Soak prunes and brandy in a small airtight container at room temperature overnight. Drain prunes. Puree in a food processor until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl. Stir in bread crumbs and sugar. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 1 day ahead.
• Spread the center of a round of dough with pureed fruit filling, then top with bread crumb mixture. With a pizza wheel, cut round into wedges. Tightly roll triangles inward, tucking tails underneath.