My mom made RUGELEH every Christmas as far back as I can remember. I’m sure it’s a recipe she got from her mother or grandmother and, knowing mom, she tinkered with it and made it her own. RUGELEH originated in Central Europe as a pastry made with sour cream and when it made its way to America the sour cream was replaced with cream cheese. I love these rich little roll ups and have tried many different recipes over the years but always come back to this one. Partly because it’s familiar to me and mostly because it is amazingly delicious.
Most of the RUGELEH recipes I have tried over the years are similar: cream cheese, butter, flour and sugar. It’s the filling that differs from one baker to the next . My mom used finely chopped walnuts…I like hazelnuts and use HAZELNUT MEAL combined with sugar, currants and cinnamon. If you have never baked with currants I urge you to buy a box and experiment with them. Currants are about one fourth the size of raisins and have a slightly tart intense fruity flavor. Their tiny size makes them an ideal ingredient in recipes like this RUGELEH where a larger raisin would overwhelm the other ingredients. **see note below
To make RUGELEH roll out the dough into 10-inch circles. Spread with apricot jam ( raspberry jam is another choice) and sprinkle on the hazelnut meal, sugar, cinnamon topping. Add currants and gently press into the pastry. With a knife or pizza cutter cut the pastry into 12 wedges. Carefully roll up the triangles starting at the wide end. Try to keep as much nut mixture on the pastry wedge as possible. Brush roll-ups with heavy cream, sprinkle with sanding sugar, and bake in a 375 degree oven.
During baking the jam and nuts make a sweet, caramalized fruity filling accented with bits of sweet-tart currants. RUGELEH is a beautiful addition to cookie trays and is a delicious pastry to serve with coffee or tea any time of day. Stored in an air-tight container, the cookies will keep for 5-6 days. Mine never last that long.
- FILLING:
- 1 cup ground nuts (I used hazelnut flour/meal available in my web store) Walnuts and pecan are delicious too.
- 1 cup currants
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ½ cup apricot jam
- DOUGH:
- ½ pound cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- Flour
- ¼ cup whipping cream
- sanding sugar
- FOR FILLING:
- Combine nuts, currants, sugar and cinnamon is a small bowl.
- FOR DOUGH:
- Combine cream cheese, flour, butter and sugar in a large bowl and blend well. Divide dough into three pieces. Dust each with flour, shaking of excess. Roll each between sheet of waxed paper into 10-inch circle. Refrigerate 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment of a silpat. Spread each circle of dough with apricot jam. Divide filling among the circles, spreading evenly. Pat gently into the jam. Cut each circle into 12 wedges. Carefully roll up each wedge from the wide edge to the point. Arrange on prepared sheet, point side down. Brush with heavy cream and sprinkle with sanding sugar if desired.
- Bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cook. Store in airtight container.
-
**note:
- Raisins are dried white grapes. They are dried to produce a dark, sweet fruit. The grapes used are usually Moscatel.
- Sultanas are also dried white grapes but from seedless varieties. They are golden in color and tend to be plumper, sweeter and juicier than other raisins. Also referred to as Golden Raisins in the US.
- Currants are dried, dark red, seedless grapes. They are dried to produce a black, tiny shrivelled, flavour-packed fruit. The grapes were originally cultivated in the south of Greece, and the name currant comes from the ancient city of ‘Corinth’.
Cathy: This is a treat that we enjoy here and I’ve never made it. My husband is from eastern Europe (Poland) and it was always a part of their holiday goodies. I’m happy to have a recipe.
Best,
Bonnie
Bonnie recently posted..Candied Citrus
My Mom also made a variation of these using left over pie dough. She never threw anything away. I loved them more than the pies. Appreciate you sharing your Mother’s recipe.
Penny recently posted..Salmon Cakes
My family made something similar but simply called them ‘nut rolls’ 🙂 This looks delicious and reminds me of Christmas at my Gram’s.
Rhonda (@diningalone) recently posted..Favorite Things #40 – Cupcakes
I am going to give your recipe a try this year. It is a little different from mine and sounds delicious. Your rugelach are beautiful!
Kate recently posted..Chicken and Cheddar Stuffed Poblanos
I have always wanted to make these but never had a recipe that was recommended until now. I can’t wait to get baking. They look wonderful.
Karen Harris recently posted..The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook, Giveaway and Recipe: Duchess Potatoes
These do indeed looks delicious! Bet they taste as good as they look!
Jeannie recently posted..Oatmeal cookies and an onion bread….
Sounds delicious.
Oh I love this, Cathy—I haven’t had rugeleh in years! The hazelnuts are a perfect touch, they are my favorite!
Cathy, I will treasure this recipe. Hope you have a great, food-filled weekend. XXOO
great photo instructional on this yummy treat. thanks for sharing a family tradition
love for you to link up to friday food frenzy if you get a chance.
http://www.stayingclosetohome.com/2012/11/friday-food-frenzy-holiday-countdown.html
close tohome recently posted..Friday Food Frenzy– Holiday Countdown
Thanks so much for linking up to Friday Food Frenzy – I wanted to let you know that I will be featuring this tomorrow in my “What I Bookmarked This Week” post. I love rugelach but I always make a huge mess when I attempt it.
danielle recently posted..Friday Food Frenzy
Oh, that looks so delicious! I wish I had some right now.
XO,
Sheila
So pretty Cathy. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten Rugeleh. How fun that your mother and grandmother made this recipe. Family recipes are the best because they and loaded with memories.
Your green bean salad a couple of posts ago inspired me to make one for Thanksgiving with mushrooms and I forgot to thank you. Have a lovely weekend.
Sam
Sam @ My Carolina Kitchen recently posted..Homemade mayonnaise in the food processor + some of our favorite mayonnaise sauces
Oh my Cathy, what a wonderful treat to make for the holidays, and so wonderful that your recipe is a tribute to your mother!!!! You had asked when my new WP site will be up and running . . . looks like February-ish. Sorry for the delay. I hope that you’re having a wonderful holiday season!
Roz
Roz recently posted..Special Announcement!
Gorgeous cookies and they sound great! I’ve bookmarked the recipe Cathy, thanks for sharing:@)
These would have made Gramma proud! They were delicious!
Erin @ Making Memories recently posted..We Wish You a Merry KISSmas and a CHAPPY New Year
Cathy, what a delicious recipe to share with us. I bet you missed your mom even more.
Have a great weekend.
Blessings, Kristy
kristy recently posted..Love It Or Hate It ~ Durian Yogurt Mousse Cake
Wow your Rugeleh look perfect. Great tutorial. I’ll be stopping by again. Nice blog!
I’ve never had homemade rugelach – they look wonderful!
Karen recently posted..Pumpkin Scones with Spiced Glaze (like Starbucks)
I didn’t make rugeleh last year. Must bake some soon. Yours look absolutely fantastic.
[email protected] ’s Recipes recently posted..Wholewheat Bread with Walnuts
These look delicious! I’m hosting a Christmas Cookie blog hop and would love to have you link these up!!
Jess @ Flying on Jess Fuel recently posted..12 Days of Christmas Cookies: Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies
I’ve always heard of Rugeleh and have to admit I really didn’t know what it was until now. Beautiful Cathy. I’d love to give this a try. I’ve never seen boxed currants, but know Whole Foods has them in bulk.
Lea Ann (Cooking on the Ranch) recently posted..Rotisserie Chicken Soup with Lime and Hominy
What a treasured recipe, Cathy! They look beautiful and must be delicious. I have never tried making rugeleh myself – it wasn’t something that my mother made since we always had Danish Kringle in the house 😉 I love to try it!
Susan recently posted..Roasted Dry-Brined Turkey
Oh my goodness those look so good!
These look really good Cathy – my mom made something similar.
Larry recently posted..Saturday Humor
I love Rugeleh! This recipe looks wonderful and delicious! I am going to make this recipe tomorrow to see how they come out. If they turn out as good as I hope, I plan to make batches for my friend’s party they are having next weekend!
These are my all time favorite cookie!!! My recipe has sour cream in it, and I roll it in a rectangle then roll it up and slice it in chunks……brush with milk and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon…..and I always use currants and finely chopped walnuts.
That looks so yummy! I like how these are rolled up like croissants!
Jeannie recently posted..Cream Scones
One of my all time favorite cookies. There is no way that I can eat just one.
Karen (Back Road Journal) recently posted..Chicken Piccata With Spaghetti
These look good, something I’ve never had.
Gorgeous rugelach, they look delicious. My grandma made similar, they were a favorite.
Carol @ Always Thyme to Cook recently posted..Wordless Wednesday: Colorful Swiss Chard
Now my mouth is watering. These look so delicious!
Marilyn recently posted..The Great Tree Hunters
I’m happy to say I made Rugelach for the first time a few months ago in Baking With Julia. It was a delightful experience. I really stepped out of my comfort zone and tried something very new. And we loved it! It was rich and delicious and wonderful. I was so proud of myself.
cindy recently posted..Gingerbread Baby Cakes TWD/BWJ