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Today you’re in for a treat because I’m showing you how to make this Rugelach Recipe step-by-step. This is one of my favorite holiday cookie recipes that I actually make all year. I’m showing you TWO versions today and you’re going to love them.
Why We Love This Recipe
When I was a teenager one of my best friends would have a Hanukah party every year. We’d grate potatoes for latkes and eat cookies. His mom would make some of the best cookies ever, and one of them was a classic rugelach cookie.
I’ve loved making these little bites forever and I’m finally sharing my favorite recipe with you. These are a classic and can be made so many different ways!
What is Rugelach?
These cookies are a filled pastry that originated in the Jewish communities of Poland. Traditionally they are made in the form of a crescent with a pastry dough and a delicious filling.
The dough is kind of like a pie dough, but with cream cheese. It’s flaky and and so yummy when paired with all sorts of fillings. The cookies are like little bites of pie, which speaks to my heart. I’m showing two versions today: Classic Brown Sugar Walnut with Raisins and my favorite version with chocolate chips.
Ingredients Needed
- Flour and Salt: I use all-purpose flour
- Unsalted Butter: I always use unsalted, make sure it’s at room temperature
- Cream Cheese: also make sure it’s at room temperature
- Walnuts: you can toast them if you want
- Brown Sugar: sweetens the filling
- Cinnamon: A must in the traditional filling
- Raisins: don’t worry, even if you don’t like raisins you’ll like these!
- Mini Chocolate Chips: in place of raisins, for our second flavor variation
How to make my Rugelach Recipe
There are a few steps and lots of chilling, but it’s worth it!
- Make the dough: Cut butter and cream cheese into small pieces. In a large food processor, pulse the flour and salt, then add the butter and cream cheese and pulse until mixture is crumbly.
- Divide the dough: Divide dough into 4 sections and shape each into a disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours.
- Make the filling: Finely chop the raisins (easiest in a food processor). Stir together the walnuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Stir in either finely chopped raisins OR mini chocolate chips.
- Filling dough: Roll each disk of dough into a 9-inch circle, keeping each disk chilled until ready to roll and fill them. Sprinkle or spread the round with the filling using an offset spatula and press it lightly into the dough.
- Cutting rugelach dough: Cut each round into 12 wedges with a sharp knife (like you’re cutting a pizza). Roll the wedges from the wide end to narrow, like you do a crescent rolls.
- Chill: Place the cookies with points tucked under onto cookie sheets lined with parchment or silicone baking mats. Chill 30 minutes.
- Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat egg with milk to create an egg wash. Brush each cookie with the egg wash and sprinkle the outside with the granulated sugar. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.
Variations
You can fill rugelach with almost anything you want. Here are some other ideas:
- Spread the dough with your favorite flavor jam (apricot jam or strawberry are traditional)
- Use lemon curd as the filling (like little lemon hand pies)
- Spread the dough with peanut butter and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips
- Use other nuts, like pecans or almonds, instead of walnuts
- Spread the dough with Nutella or any other chocolate spread
- Skip the nuts and just fill them with cinnamon sugar (like pie crust cookies)
FAQ
Did you measure the flour correctly? Make sure to spoon and level the flour. If you aren’t using a food processor to form the dough then it’s going to take awhile to get it completely worked together. You want the dough cohesive like a cookie dough not like a done-by-hand pie dough.
Make sure you have chilled the dough as directed! It’s a soft dough when it’s out of the refrigerator so don’t skip that step – and be sure to keep each disk chilled while you work on the others.
You do not need to refrigerate it and you definitely can freeze it. Learn how I freeze desserts!
The easiest way is to use a pizza cutter. Simply cut it like a pizza!
Classic Rugelach Recipe
Ingredients
Dough:
- 1 cup (226g) unsalted Butter at room temperature
- 8 ounces (226g) Cream Cheese at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ¼ cups (279g) all-purpose flour
Filling:
- 1 cup walnuts finely chopped
- ½ cup (100g) brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- ½ cup raisins finely chopped OR mini chocolate chips
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon milk
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
Instructions
Make the Dough
- Cut butter and cream cheese into small pieces.
- In a large food processor, pulse the flour and salt, then add the butter and cream cheese and pulse until mixture is crumbly.
- Divide dough into 4 sections and shape each into a disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours.
Make the Filling
- Note: I find it easiest to finely chop the nuts and raisins in the food processor, but you can also do it by hand.
- Stir together the walnuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Stir in either finely chopped raisins OR mini chocolate chips. (Tip: divide the mixture in half and add 1/4 cup finely chopped raisins to half 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips to the other half.)
Assemble & Bake
- Roll each disk of dough into a 9-inch round, keeping each disk chilled until ready to roll and fill them. Sprinkle the round with the filling and press it lightly into the dough. Cut each round into 12 wedges (like you’re cutting a pizza). Roll the wedges from wide to narrow, like you do a crescent rolls.
- Place the cookies with points tucked under onto cookie sheets lined with parchment or silicone baking mats. Chill 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Beat egg with milk to create an egg wash. Brush each cookie with the egg wash and sprinkle the outside with the granulated sugar.
- Bake 15-20 minutes, or until lightly browned.
- Cool at before removing from cookie sheets. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days or freeze for up to a month.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
Tips
- Make sure to spoon and level the flour. If you aren’t using a food processor to form the dough then it’s going to take awhile to get it completely worked together. You want the dough cohesive like a cookie dough not like a done-by-hand pie dough.
- Make sure you chill the dough as directed! It’s a soft dough when it’s out of the refrigerator so don’t skip that step – and be sure to keep each disk chilled while you work on the others.
- Easiest way to cut the dough is using a pizza cutter!
Variations
- Spread the dough with your favorite flavor jam
- Use lemon curd as the filling
- Spread the dough with peanut butter and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips
- Use other nuts, like pecans or almonds, instead of walnuts
- Spread the dough with Nutella or any other chocolate spread
- Skip the nuts and just fill them with cinnamon sugar (like pie crust cookies)
