Flakey cream cheese rugelach dough rolled crescent style surrounding a delicate filling of walnuts, cinnamon sugar, and sweet raisins are what help make this delicious Jewish pastry so well-loved!
Why this recipe works
Much like chocolate babka, rugelach is easily customizable with sweet or savory fillings like Nutella, fruit preserves, and nuts of all kinds which is why you’ve probably seen so many different and fun flavor variations of this classic Jewish cookie.
Today, we’re showing you how to make a sweet filling of brown sugar, raisins, and cinnamon with the addition of walnuts for crunchy texture. Butter and cream cheese are the two key ingredients to a soft and flakey rugelach dough that begs for the unique combination of fillings you see fit.
Ingredients you will need
Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.
Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions
DOUGH – Chill the dough well. Keeping the butter cold helps make flakey, pastry layers in the dough when it bakes. Do not skip or substitute the butter or cream cheese, this is what makes the perfect rugelach dough.
FILLING – You can substitute the raisins with chocolate chips, dried cranberries, currants, or cherries. Almonds or pecans will also work in place of the walnuts.
How to Make Rugelach
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
- Starting with making the dough, in the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, sugar, and salt and pulse to mix.
- Add the cold butter and cream cheese to the food processor and pulse until the mixture is broken down into pea-sized pieces.
- Add the egg yolk and mix just until combined. The dough should be crumbly, but hold together if you squeeze it in the palm of your hand.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and bring it together into a ball.
- Divide into four sections, wrapping each section with plastic wrap and pressing into a disc.
- Refrigerate a minimum of 2 hours until firm.
- Add all of the filling ingredients into the bowl of the food processor. Process until the nuts and raisins are broken down into very small pieces and the mixture is combined.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Working with one chilled disc of dough at a time, roll the disc out on a sheet of parchment paper to form a 10” circle.
EXPERT TIP – You can vary the size of the rugelach. Divide the dough into just 3 sections and then roll out into a larger circle if you’d like.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar (about 1⁄4 cup for each disc of dough) on your work surface – spread it enough that your 10” circle of dough can set on top of it.
- Place the dough on the cinnamon sugar and press down gently to help the cinnamon sugar stick to the bottom side of the dough.
- Sprinkle 1⁄4 of the filling over the top of the dough, spreading it out as needed, leaving a bit of space on the edges.
- Cut into 8 wedges like you are cutting a pizza.
- Starting at the outer edge, roll the wedge in to form a crescent roll shaped cookie.
- Place the cookies 1” apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake 22-25 minutes until cookies are light brown.
Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips
Yes, you can freeze either them both baked and unbaked. Wrap and place the baked cookies in an air-tight container or sealed ziptop bag in the freezer for up to 2 months. For unbaked cookies, prepare the crescent cookies completely without baking. Place them on a baking sheet and flash freeze until frozen. Once frozen, remove the cookies to a large ziptop bag or air-tight container and store for up to 3 months.
Store rugelach in an air-tight container kept at room temperature for 4-5 days.
There are so many different types of Rugelach you can make. Try spreading the dough with raspberry, cranberry, cherry, strawberry, and apricot preserves along with nuts like walnuts or almonds or take the sweeter route by smearing with Nutella and sprinkling with mini chocolate chips. I’ve also seen some variations use peanut butter, dates, pumpkin, apple butter, you name it! Play around with what you like.
Serving Suggestions
Where I’m from, you most often see rugelach grace the dessert table and cookie swap boxes around the holiday season, though they are popular year-round and can be made whenever you’re craving them! I like to serve mine warm rolled in cinnamon sugar but can also be drizzled with a sweet glaze.
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Rugelach
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Rate ItIngredients
Dough
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter cold and cut into cubes
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 large egg yolk at room temperature
Filling Ingredients
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 cup walnuts
- ½ cup raisins
- 2 Tablespoons cinnamon
Cinnamon Sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
Things You’ll Need
Before You Begin
- Chill the dough well. Keeping the butter cold helps make flakey, pastry layers in the dough when it bakes.
- You can use parchment paper or plastic wrap to roll out the dough discs. They will be cold and firm at first, so put a little muscle into it. It’s best to keep them cold and maintain a firm dough while rolling up the rugelach. Sometimes, the parchment paper bunches under the dough while rolling. I like to flip my dough over a couple times while rolling it out so I can straighten the paper and prevent deep lines in the dough. However, even if you have some lines in the dough, it will be pressed into the cinnamon sugar and won’t show.
- You can vary the size of the rugelach. Divide the dough into just 3 sections and then roll out into a larger circle if you’d like.
Instructions
Dough Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, sugar, and salt and pulse to mix.
- Add the cold butter and cream cheese to the food processor and pulse until the mixture is broken down into pea-sized pieces.
- Add the egg yolk and mix just until combined. The dough should be crumbly, but hold together if you squeeze it in the palm of your hand.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and bring it together into a ball.
- Divide into four sections, wrapping each section with plastic wrap and pressing into a disc.
- Refrigerate a minimum of 2 hours until firm.
Filling Instructions
- Add all of the filling ingredients into the bowl of the food processor. Process until the nuts and raisins are broken down into very small pieces and the mixture is combined.
Assembly Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Working with one chilled disc of dough at a time, roll the disc out on a sheet of parchment paper to form a 10” circle.
- Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar (about 1⁄4 cup for each disc of dough) on your work surface – spread it enough that your 10” circle of dough can set on top of it.
- Place the dough on the cinnamon sugar and press down gently to help the cinnamon sugar stick to the bottom side of the dough.
- Sprinkle 1⁄4 of the filling over the top of the dough, spreading it out evenly, leaving a bit of space around the edges.
- Cut into 8 wedges like you are cutting a pizza.
- Starting at the outer edge, roll the wedge in to form a crescent roll shaped cookie.
- Place the cookies 1” apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake 22-25 minutes until cookies are light brown.
Nutrition
Amanda Davis
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