Get the Recipe: Nutella Rugelach, Two Ways
Ingredients
For the Rugelach Cookie Dough
(makes around 32 cookies)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 4 ounces cold cream cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes
For the Nutella and Speculoos Filling
(enough for 16 cookies, or half the batch)
- 1/4 cup Nutella
- 1/4 cup Speculoos
For the Nutella and Dried Cherry Filling
(enough for 16 cookies, or half the batch)
- 1/3 cup Nutella
- 1/4 cup dried cherries, cut into 1/2 and 1/4 their size (you want them the size of chocolate chips or smaller)
For the Rugelach Glaze
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon cold water
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Equipment
- A food processor
- a pizza slicer
Instructions
For the Rugelach Cookie Dough
- In the bowl of a food processor with the blade in, combine 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt. Pulse for a few seconds until the flour and salt are fully incorporated. Scatter 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cubes and 4 ounces cold cream cheese cubes and pulse the machine for 1 to 2 seconds at a time, 6 to 10 times. Pulse just until the dough forms large curds, but don't work it so long that it forms a ball on the blade. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, and pulse one more time to get rid of any excess flour/inconsistencies.
- Turn the cookie dough out on a clean, lightly floured surface and use your hands to gather it into a loose ball. Use a bench scraper or a sharp, serrated knife to divide the ball in half. Shape each half into a disk, before wrapping the disks in plastic wrap and refrigerating for at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day.
To Fill, Shape, Glaze and Bake the Cookies
- When the dough has thoroughly chilled and you're ready to bake the cookies, centering 2 racks in the upper and lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 (F). Line two baking trays with parchment paper, or, preferably, a Silpat mat.
- Start with one disk of dough from the refrigerator. If it is too firm to roll easily, leave it on the counter for 5 to 10 minutes before you begin rolling. Lightly flour your surface and roll the dough into a 12-inch circle, before using an offset spatula to spread 1/4 cup Nutella and 1/4 cup Speculoos over the surface of the circle.
- Once the Nutella and Speculoos have been spread evenly, use a pizza slicer to cut the dough into 16 wedges, starting by cutting the dough into quarters, and then cutting each quarter into 4 triangles. Starting at the base of each triangle, roll the dough up so that the cookie becomes a little crescent shape. Arrange the crescents on one baking sheet, making sure the points are tucked underneath the cookies, and refrigerate the baking sheet containing the cookies while you roll out the second disk of dough.
- Repeat steps 2 and 3 for the second disk of dough, this time spreading the remaining 1/3 cup of Nutella over the dough circle as well as scattering 1/4 cup dried cherries evenly over the surface.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1 large egg and 1 teaspoon cold water. Use a pastry brush to spread the eggwash glaze over each crescent, before sprinkling 2 tablespoons granulated sugar over the cookies.
- Bake the cookies for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the cookie sheets from top to bottom at the midway point (I rotated mine at 12 minutes). Bake until they are puffed and golden, before turning out on to wire racks to cool. The cookies are best served warm, around 20 minutes or so from the oven.
Notes
Dough Adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours
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