Rugelach with jam and cinnamon
Small rolled crescents in a tender cream cheese dough, filled with jam, cinnamon, raisins, and walnuts. Golden, fragrant, just sweet enough.
Small rolled crescents in a tender cream cheese dough, filled with jam, cinnamon, raisins, and walnuts. Golden, fragrant, just sweet enough.
Rugelach, they were the cakes that were always somewhere in the house, in an old dented biscuit tin. You roll your dough out nice and thin, spread your jam, your cinnamon, your raisins, and roll them into little crescents. The trick is not to make them too big, otherwise they spill in the oven. With a strong cup of tea in the afternoon, it's perfect — I used to sneak two or three without anyone noticing.
- •Flour — a mixing bowl (dough)
- •Fresh cheese (like cream cheese) and butter — equal parts (tender dough)
- •Jam (apricot or raspberry) — as needed (filling)
- •Cinnamon and sugar — a mixture (flavor)
- •Raisins and chopped walnuts — a handful (filling)
Rugelach with jam and cinnamon
Small rolled crescents in a tender cream cheese dough, filled with jam, cinnamon, raisins, and walnuts. Golden, fragrant, just sweet enough.
Why this dish? A little flaky pastry roll from Ashkenazi Jewish baking, rugelach is the quintessential home-baked sweet — the one of childhood and afternoon tea. For a London Jewish family like Amy's, it's the everyday treat, to dip in the so-British tea.
Rugelach, they were the cakes that were always somewhere in the house, in an old dented biscuit tin. You roll your dough out nice and thin, spread your jam, your cinnamon, your raisins, and roll them into little crescents. The trick is not to make them too big, otherwise they spill in the oven. With a strong cup of tea in the afternoon, it's perfect — I used to sneak two or three without anyone noticing.
Ingredients (period version)
- Flour — a mixing bowl (dough)
- Fresh cheese (like cream cheese) and butter — equal parts (tender dough)
- Jam (apricot or raspberry) — as needed (filling)
- Cinnamon and sugar — a mixture (flavor)
- Raisins and chopped walnuts — a handful (filling)
Ingredients
- Flour — 250 g (dough)
- Softened butter — 115 g (dough)
- Cream cheese — 115 g (tender dough)
- Sugar — 50 g + 3 tbsp for filling (sweetness)
- Cinnamon — 2 tsp (signature spice)
- Apricot or raspberry jam — 100 g (filling)
- Raisins + chopped walnuts — 60 g + 60 g (filling)
- 1 beaten egg — 1 (egg wash)
Method
- Work together flour, butter, cream cheese, and 50 g sugar until a smooth dough forms. Shape into 2 discs, wrap, refrigerate 1 h.
- Mix remaining sugar and cinnamon. Chop walnuts and raisins.
- Roll each disc into a large thin circle. Spread with jam, sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture, raisins, and walnuts.
- Cut the circle into 12 triangles. Roll each triangle from the base to the tip to form a small crescent.
- Place on a baking sheet, brush with egg wash, sprinkle with a little cinnamon-sugar.
- Bake at 180°C for about 20-25 min until nicely golden. Let cool.
How it was made : Rugelach ('little twist' in Yiddish) is a pastry from Central and Eastern Europe. The classic old version used a yeast or sour cream dough; the cream cheese dough became widespread with Ashkenazi communities in America and England in the 20th century. It was served for holidays as well as simple afternoon tea.
The contemporary twist : A touch of orange zest in the cinnamon-sugar, Camden café style: it perfumes without changing the character.
Sources : Claudia Roden, The Book of Jewish Food (1996) · Gil Marks, Encyclopedia of Jewish Food (2010)
Amy Winehouse · Charactorium