Today I’m partnering with King Arthur Baking. You know I am a total fangirl for KAF, so imagine my excitement when we began working together on their Holiday Table. The other week, we discussed what we’re grateful for. Working with such a well respected company who consistently puts forth quality products is on my list.
Have you ever made rugelach before? I know it looks ultra fancy and maybe a little intimidating. Truth is, it’s just a matter of mixing up a dough, chilling it, and rolling it up with filling inside. Like cinnamon rolls, but without any yeast. A traditional Jewish treat, rugelach tastes like buttery, light, and flaky croissants, but aren’t nearly as fussy.
Did you read that?!
Easy homemade croissant-like delights!
Rugelach happily accommodates any sort of fillings from jam and chocolate to dried fruit and nuts. You can roll the dough up into different shapes, slicing pinwheels or spirals, there’s pull-apart or logs, wreaths, twists, you name it. But it all begins with just 1 dough and 1 filling. Here’s how to make rugelach cookies in 1 million photos.
(Ok, 6.)
Today we’ll make a traditional rugelach dough in the food processor and fill it with a sweet brown sugar cinnamon filling that will melt inside the dough as it bakes. The contrast between the salted dough and warm, sweet filling is just about as mouthwatering as cookies get. The dough is similar to the dough I use for maple walnut tassies , though this dough is flakier and more crisp.
The food processor lends a giant helping hand. It’s preferred because it helps create the light and tender pastry; a mixer creates a tougher pastry. The food processor will cut the various fats into the flour and salt mixture. We’ll be using cream cheese, butter, and sour cream in the dough. Health food? These are not.
You can use a pastry cutter if you prefer—and what I always prefer when making pie crust and biscuits—but rugelach requires the teeniest, uniformly sized pieces of fat and flour. There’s wiggle room in pie dough, but not so much here. A food processor makes the job 150% easier and cuts time down to… maybe… 1 minute? Yup, about 1 minute to make this dough.
Flatten the dough into discs and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Or you can pop into the freezer to enjoy homemade rugelach another day. That’s another beautiful thing about rugelach besides being crazy versatile. It’s patient; bake it later if you want!
But if today’s the day for rugelach (um and it should be), roll out the doughs after they’ve chilled, spread the filling on top, and cut into triangles like you would a pizza. And use a pizza cutter… like you would a pizza. The filling should be prepared in the food processor as well because we’re pulsing brown sugar, cinnamon, walnuts, and raisins together to make a moist dried fruit/nut paste of sorts. Heavy on that cinnamon because… holidays.
Press it down onto the dough so it has staying power.
Roll up!
Bake!
The filling gets all melty and warm, the pastry is buttery, uniquely crisp, light, and flaky. Some filling may spill out and a little butter may drip out of the dough as the rugelach bakes. But this is all OK! That butter dripping out will “fry” the bottoms into a crispy phenomenon. And there’s still plenty of good stuff hiding inside, too.
A blizzard of confectioners’ sugar adds a finishing touch.
PS: Let’s talk about savory versions, maybe for any appetizers you need this holiday season? I’m thinking pesto and parmesan or a sweet/salty rendition with jam and fine goat cheese crumbles. With rugelach, the options are deliciously endless.
PrintRugelach Cookies with Cream Cheese Dough
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: European
Description
Homemade rugelach is buttery and flaky with a light and crisp pastry dough and sweet cinnamon filling.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 6 ounces (170g) full-fat brick cream cheese, cold and cubed
- 1/3 cup (75g) sour cream, cold
Filling
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 cup (115g) chopped walnuts (chopped pecans work too)
- 1/2 cup (85g) raisins (or dried cranberries for some color!)
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- water for brushing dough
- optional for topping: confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
- For the crust: Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a couple times to blend.
- Add the butter, cream cheese, and sour cream. Pulse until crumbly; this will take 30 seconds or so. Pulse until there are pea-sized crumbs throughout. See photo above for a visual.
- Divide the dough into three equal portions and gently flatten into a disc shape. Wrap in plastic wrap, then chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day. Or freeze for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
- For the filling: Pulse the brown sugar, walnuts, raisins, and cinnamon in the food processor until very finely chopped and well combined. The filling will feel a little moist. You’ll have a little over 2 cups total.
- Line 3 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Working with one disc of dough at a time and on a lightly floured work surface, roll into a 10-inch circle (roughly 1/4 inch thick, give or take) and brush it lightly with water. Spread about 1/3 of the filling on top. Gently press the filling down into the dough so it’s compact.
- Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut the dough into 8 equal wedges. If you’re cutting on a silicone mat, be careful not to cut the mat. Roll each wedge up, beginning with the wide end and ending with the narrow end. Place the rolls point-side down onto the baking sheets, 8 on each. Repeat with the remaining two discs of dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Bake the rugelach for 25 – 30 minutes, or until golden brown. As the rugelach bake, the butter will lightly fry their bottoms, giving them a super crunchy crust.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve warm or at room temperature. Cover leftovers and store tightly at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can prepare the dough up to 1 day ahead of time as noted in step 3 or freeze for up to 3 months, also noted in step 3. You can prepare the filling 1 day in advance. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature until ready to use. Baked rugelach freezes well for up to 2 months; simply place in freezer bags. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Food Processor | Rolling Pin | Pizza Cutter | Pastry Brush | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper
- No Food Processor? Use a pastry cutter for the crust. Do not use a mixer. For the filling, simply chop it up very fine and use a pastry cutter again to combine it all.
- In partnership with King Arthur Flour.
Did you miss yesterday’s cookie palooza recipe? Red velvet whoopie pies.
This recipe is absolutely delicious! The dough is quick and easy to make, and the rugelach are easy to shape. I will try to make a savory version next time.
Thank you for providing all these great recipes!
Best regards from France!
These rugelach came out delicious and taste even better at room temp the following days (when they’re less flaky and more solid). This recipe makes ones that are definitely flaky like croissants, which tasted great but is not like traditional rugelach. It was interesting trying them this way but I’ll probably look for a more traditional recipe next time.
First time ever baking rugelach and these turned out amazing!!!! My kids don’t like raisins so I substituted a quarter cup of chocolate chips and 2 dollops of strawberry jam and cut sugar in half. I increased walnuts to 1 1/2 cups as seemed not enough filling. Keeper recipe for sure!! Pastry is scrumptious and flaky and very forgiving!!
Good Rugelach has a special place in my heart. They are in the oven now ! Loved your addition of the sour cream in the batter, much easier to roll out the dough. And the way you add the nuts & raisins with the sugar to the prosessor, good touch Sally. Over all these rugelach are much more tidy to roll out and hold together. I did notice you did not call for jam – that’s unusual, but anyway the jam is so miniscule one can usually hardly even taste it.
Just made these with nutella filling. Delicious! I wasn’t sure about the pastry when I made it but it baked up beautifully and light!! Thank you for this great recipe!
This cookie is delicious! The dough is so delicate and extremely tasty. I used the filling suggested, but swapped the raisins for cranberries. I might try some dried cherries next time. For another batch, I also mixed some chopped dark chocolate, milk chocolate, walnuts, vanilla, and espresso powder. Thanks Sally for another yummy recipe!
Such delicious filling choices, Sabrina – we’re glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I made these last night for Hanukkah and they were amazing! I made one round with fig jam and the other with the walnut mixture. the 3rd is awaiting the leftover homemade apple sauce 🙂 The dough is absolutely the best I’ve had. I will use this as my go-to pie crust from now on too. It REALLY needs to stay cold to work with. I made a huge mess of the rolling pin and counter at first, trying to roll it on the counter. If you live in a warmer climate (we’re in HI), then rolling the disks between 2 sheets of parchment paper is a much easier method. I had to keep putting the dough back into the refrigerator every time I put my hands on it, so the parchment made this possible. Thank you!!
Hi Sally! I’ve noticed in other recipes they omit the sour cream. What would the difference be in taste and texture?
Also, why do you brush the dough with water before the filling is placed?
Thanks so much! Enjoying your recipes!!!
Hi Paula, I find the pastry isn’t quite as smooth or tender without sour cream. Water helps the filling stick so it’s nice and compact before rolling/shaping.
Hi Sally! I love your recipes! My Jewish bakery stopped selling their cheese filled rugelach. I haven’t found a recipe though. Do you have any recommendations for a cheese filling?
Thanks!!
Hi Aja, We haven’t tried a savory filling yet but some ideas are pesto parmesan, jam and goat cheese, or a creamy herb filling like in this pull apart bread. Let us know what you try!
These are great! One of my favorite thing to eat. Thanks for putting ingredients by weight as it makes it easy to measure out. Loved every recipe I have tried!
Sally, these were delicious! I have a question about chocolate filling. I used your filling on half of them and a chocolate filling on the other half. The chocolate filling was baking chocolate, brown sugar, and cinnamon, prepared in the food processor. Although they tasted great, the consistency stayed grainy like the filling in this recipe instead of becoming smooth, as if the chocolate cooked instead of melting. Do I need to melt the chocolate before putting it on the dough for it to turn out smooth in the end?
Hi Zack, melting pure chocolate, letting it slightly cool, then mixing it with brown sugar and cinnamon would be great– you’ll form a paste which can easily be spread. That may be more of the texture you’re looking for!
Oh my God, these are some of the best cookies I’ve eaten so far! Thanks for the recipe!
Hi there Sally, really enjoying your recipes during these trying times!
So far I have made 3 of your cookie recipes and today I am doing your Rugelach recipe.
I just finished pulsing the dough and it is not crumbling into pea sized portions, it’s soft and moist so have added 1/4 cup flour and it is still the same
Think I’ll just divide into the 3 discs and refrigerate as is.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Hi Elaine! So glad you’re finding my website useful this season. I’m concerned the dough isn’t crumbly. Were the butter and cream cheese both very cold? Make sure you’re using 6 ounces of block cream cheese (not the whole block and not the spread). Did it look like the photos above? I hope it turned out ok for you.
Can Greek yogurt substitute for the sour cream in this recipe?
Yes, that should work.
Made them tonight and they were amazing! I tried some with jam and the jam spilled out. Is there a trick for using jam?
This is the most incredible rugelach dough I’ve ever come across. I live in a dry, high altitude state, so the other doughs I tried were a struggle to even hold together. Not this, when I opened my food processor the dough looked just like the picture. And once baked you could see the layers. Thank you!
I made these 2 years ago and they were a hit. I will make them again, this year. Easy to make and very tasty
I love apricot anything! can i put apricot jam over the nut mixture if i were to incorporate? How much jam? Will it melt off the cookie?
Hi Melissa! A thin layer of apricot jam over the nut mixture would be delicious! It won’t melt off.
No better rugelach out there! The flavor is outstanding and the pastry is the best we’ve ever had. Keeping this recipe forever. Thanks Sally!
Our favorite rugelach! Sometimes we use dried cranberries instead of the raisins. Thanks for this great recipe.We make them all the time!
These are our favorite rugelach cookies! I almost have the recipe memorized by now!
I’ve never even heard of these before, but they sounded like something my husband would like. Turns out everyone likes them. I feel so super fancy making a dough that comes out magically flaky. I’m disappointed not to read any comments on how a savory version came out. I can imagine brie and apricot or something. Goat cheese. All the savory cheeses! Even spinach and artichoke? I just made my second batch, but my scale was out of batteries, so not as good. Too little flour led to over mixing. Still really flaky and yummy.
Made these last week and they were delicious! Had never made (or eaten) rugelach before and they turned out great. I mostly used cranberries with some raisins as well (team raisin ♀️). Honestly, I was a bit worried they wouldn’t be sweet enough when I tasted the dough- which doesn’t exactly taste like sugar cookie dough lol. I was so wrong, they were perfectly sweet and balanced and not overly sweet like so many desserts. Will definitely make these again.
Haven’t had rugelach since I was a kid, and the ones my mother got from the bakery were dry, boring, and the bottoms tasted burned. They cut corners we don’t have to at home, when they are being made for those we love. I looked at many recipes including Martha Stewart, and yours had sour cream and looked best to me, the proportions and ingredients. And you had King Arthur’s blessing, and they are the only flours I’ve used since the 70’s… if you’re gonna bake from scratch, use the best. I used Montmorency dried cherries from Costco instead of raisins (I was giving them to my veterinarian and worried about a dog getting ahold of a toxic raisin, somehow, and if they are cherry, the vet techs could share with the dogs and cats, and raisins sounded boring) and pecans (I don’t have walnuts because I hate them). I brushed the tops with beaten whole egg to help browning and make the sugar topping stick, and generously sprinkled before baking with turbinado sugar. Holy cow, these are absolutely wonderful and so incredibly easy! I’m already getting ideas for other sweet and savory fillings. It’s like very short pie crust: everything cold, work fast, only work on one disc at a time, and the rest keep cold. Even better, I could do it in steps: do the dough the day or two before, so it really doesn’t take that much time when I only have to make the filling on baking day. Thank you, Sally! Because this turned out so well, I will trust your other recipes, too! (I can’t stop saying holy cow, these are SO DANG GOOD!)
Just made these with raspberry jam filling and drizzled with a lemon glaze, so good! My hubby’s favorite Christmas cookie tradition is jam diagonals, so I wanted to make something with those flavors but with a little twist (see what I did there?). 😉 Great recipe, the pastry is delicious! Thanks!
Hello! Looking to try this recipe, but wondering if I can substitute dried currants for the raisins.
Thanks!
Absolutely!
I have never made Rugelach before. Oh my goodness…it was simple and fabulous! The pastry was so light and flaky and the filling was melt-in-your-mouth good! Can’t wait to try it with some savory ingredients. Thank you!
Just made these tonight!!!! Holy moly I am in cookie heaven! From the moment I saw these in my inbox I was drawn to them because they look so similar to a cookie my grandmother has always made, she has always called them “jewish pastries”… Whatever the heck the name is, these are DELICIOUS! I used pecans instead of walnuts cause i’m just a pecan kinda gal. I ran out of sour cream so I used plain greek yogurt. I think my minor changes worked out just fine. Thanks Sally, these will now be added to my list of christmas cookies I make on Christmas Eve. Based on the reaction I got from my fiance, I will have to double the recipe!
Wow! Everybody in my family fell in love with these beauties. And the dough is so easy! Love it!! I made a dates+walnuts filling . Yummmm
Wow, these look amazing! These are on my must-bake list now. Just one question – would it be possible to leave out the nuts? Or can you suggest any nut-free subs? Thanks!
Certainly! How about chocolate chips (still process those with the other ingredients) or more raisins, shredded coconut, or sunflower seeds/pumpkin seeds?