Christmastime may as well be synonymous with the word “cookie.” It seems like every baker, every family and every culture has its own special cookie that the holidays would just not be complete without.
My mother-in-law makes her Italian pizzelles every year. She makes oodles of them, so we freeze them and eat them straight out of the freezer for months! Steve’s grandma and great aunt both make amazing cookie trays with all kinds of Italian delicacies like knot cookies and strufoli. The ladies in my family join me in a small-scale cookie swap every year {and I’m not gonna lie, most of the time they buy their cookies, but it’s still just as fun!}, and I usually get creative with trying out new recipes.
My cookie? Biscotti. I make tons and tons {and tons} of them, wrap them up and give them as gifts to family and friends. It’s biscotti madness for, like, 3 days in my kitchen. We’ll see how that works out this year with a tiny tot strapped to me.
Anyway, the point is, when it comes to cookies, we may have our favorites but we’re open to letting new ones in on the holiday fun.We don’t discriminate. If it’s delicious, it’s welcome.
These cookies might just have to make an appearance this year. So. Good.
They’re Dorie Greenspan’s Rugelach with a Dianna Muscari twist. I filled these beauties with chopped almonds, white chocolate and a sprinkle of brown sugar. And because it never hurts to go over the top, I made a delightful Vanilla Raspberry Sauce to go along with them.
Rugelach dough is shockingly simple. Made with butter, cream cheese, flour and salt, it comes together to make the flakiest yumminess you can imagine. You can fill rugelach with whatever your heart desires, though I highly recommend trying this white chocolate almond combo because it worked really, really well.
White Chocolate Almond Rugelach
Ingredients
- 4 oz. cream cheese
- 8 tablespoons {1 stick} butter
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup almonds roughly chopped
- Heaping 1/3 cup white chocolate chips or white chocolate bar chopped
- Pinch of cinnamon
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- 1 tablespoon water
- {Optional} Sanding sugar or granulated sugar
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer {or alternatively in a blender equipped to make dough}, combine cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add flour and salt and mix {or pulse} until a pebbly, clumpy mixture begins to form.
- Scrape dough from bowl and press together to form a ball -- divide it in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap. Pat dough into 2 square shapes and wrap well. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, several hours or overnight.
- When the dough is firm, place one square onto a well-floured surface and roll out to about 12 inches square. Cut square in half -- you should have approximately a 12x6 inch piece. Brush all over with melted butter. Sprinkle evenly with brown sugar.
- Carefully sprinkle with 1/4 of the chopped almonds, white chocolate and cinnamon leaving a small border around the dough. Press down lightly to help it stick.
- Starting from the non-cut side, carefully roll {jellyroll style} up the dough, then flip seam side {the side with the neat cut edge} down. {Some of the filling may fall out the ends. Just do your best!} Wrap rolled up log in plastic wrap and place in freezer until firmed up a bit {30 minutes to an hour}. Meanwhile, repeat the process with rest of the dough and filling.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment or a silicone baking sheet. Set aside. Using a sharp or serrated knife, cut approximately 1 inch pieces from roll and place {seam side down} onto baking sheet.
- Whisk together egg and water in a small bowl. Brush egg wash over each piece and sprinkle tops with sugar.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown on the tops. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly {about 15 minutes} before removing from pan.
Vanilla Raspberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pint Driscoll's Raspberries
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Blend berries in a blender or food processor until smooth.
- Combine berry puree and sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Simmer until slightly thickened and darkened, about 8-10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.
- Serve alongside rugelach.
Sounds delicious