November 11, 2008

TWD just under the wire - Rugelach!

I was a little sad that I didn't get to make last week's recipe, Rugelach, so I made time to do it this week. Granted, it's 11:15PM on Tuesday night and I just took the last batch out of the oven, but I made it!

I had to smile when I saw how many TWD bakers struggled to pronounce this tasty treat. I guess I take it for granted that rugelach (as well as kreplach, gefillte, gribnes, challah, and teglach) are a part of my vocabulary. Rugelach also have a special place in my heart for two reasons. First, my beloved Bubbie Ruth made amazing rugelach, and second, there is a small bakery in the shuk (market) in Jerusalem that makes to-die-for chocolate rugelach. No, I'm not exaggerating. These rugelach are A-MAZ-ING. People line up around the street for them. And now I'm drooling...

My mom typed up my Bubbie's recipes for me, so I consulted her rugelach before I checked the official Dorie recipe. Surprisingly, they were similar in terms of filling and dough - with a few alterations. Bubbie used sour cream and butter, Dorie uses cream cheese and butter. I decided to hedge my bets and go with Dorie's dough and Bubbie's filling: apricot jam with walnuts coated in cinnamon sugar. Then I remembered how much I loved those chocolate rugelach, so I filled the other batch with raspberry jam, chocolate shavings and walnuts.
Overall, the dough was great! Super easy to make and pretty easy to work with. I rolled my first batch way too thin and a few of the pieces fell apart when I tried to roll them. After tasting a few of the baked rugelach (for research purposes, of course!), I wish I had used more filling. It's a delicate balance because you don't want to overload the small crescent, causing it to tear and spill; but you don't want to have too little sweetness with the tangy dough.
I will definitely make these again, with both fillings, but I'll use a heavier hand.


7 comments:

Princess of Power said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

Looks yummy! I am waiting to buy a food processor before trying my hand at it. I too just got in my TWD under the wire--nothing like baking until the wee hours of the morning! :)

Cristine said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

Your rugelach looks delicious!!! Now I want to go make another batch!

Sabrina said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

They look wonderful!!!

Anonymous said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

I've never known anyone outside my family that knew what Teiglach was. It's actually the name of my family listserve! (Yes, we are lame).

Anonymous said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

Your rugelach look gorgeous. Perfectly golden and crispy! YUM!

Debbie said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

Your Rugelach looks great.

Nazarina A said...Best Blogger Tips[Reply to comment]Best Blogger Templates

Tasty little morsels with a cuppa!I am sure they disappeared real fast!