Rugelach Cream Cheese Cookies
Want to really impress your guests? Whether it’s for an upcoming holiday or a special occasion gathering, these Rugelach-inspired cream cheese cookies are always a hit.
These cream cheese cookies take a bit of work to roll but are totally worth it. They’re soft, buttery and the addition of cream cheese makes the dough incredibly tender.
I call these Rugelach inspired because the fillings can be anything but the traditional nut/sugar kind. Use your imagination! I personally love them with chocolate and nuts and with different flavours of jam. You can also put a bit of an Italian spin by using a fig filling that’s off the charts.
They key to working with this type of cream cheese cookie dough is to make sure it remains chilled. When you’re working with one part of the dough, keep the rest in the fridge. Because you need to roll them, they need to be pliable and not soft. Also, most importantly, when the dough it cold they will flake up when baking giving them those luscious tender layers.
Cream Cheese Cookies
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 8 ounces cream cheese (room temperature)
- 1/2-pound unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1/4 cup granulated
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Fillings
Nut
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 cup walnuts or pecans, finely chopped
- 1/2 chocolate chips, chopped into small crumbs
- 1/2 cup apricot preserves, pureed in a food processor
Jam
- Lemon Jam (about ½ cup of each)
- Strawberry Jam
Egg Wash
- 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Cream the cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light. Add 1/4 cup granulated sugar, the salt, and vanilla.
With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and mix until just combined. Transfer the cookie dough on a floured board and roll it into a ball and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Once chilled, cut dough in ¼ and put the rest of the dough back in the fridge until ready to roll. Roll out dough in a circle and cut it diagonally into 12 triangles.
Place or spread filling onto your dough circle and begin by taking the end of one slice and roll it like a croissant.
Brush each cookie with egg wash and sprinkle with extra sugar or cinnamon sugar.
Enjoy!
