Peppermint Candy Cookies

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Peppermint Candy Cookies
Yummy peppermint candy cane cookies are filled with peppermint flavor. Each cookie has a hidden filling made with crushed candy canes and cream cheese. After baking the hot cookies are sprinkled with a little extra crushed candy cane to make a pretty cookie, just right for Christmas sharing. The original recipe calls for a drop of red food coloring added to the filling, but I think the color from the candy canes provides enough color so I have deleted the food coloring from the directions.
Recipe type: Dessert | Shaped Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: Two Large Baking Sheets Pan Prep: Ungreased or Parchment Lined Oven Temp: 350° Yield: 3 Dozen Storage: Airtight Container, Room Temperature

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TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapenaccurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Dough:
  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup pecans, finely chopped
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ½ cup confectioners' (powdered) sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Filling:
  • ½ cup finely crushed candy canes (about 3 to 4 ½-ounce candy canes)
  • ½ cup confectioners' (powdered) sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon milk (preferably whole milk)
Tip: to crush candy canes, Place candy in a ziplock plastic bag, crush candy inside the bag by lightly pounding with the flat side of a large knife or rolling pin
Instructions
Dough:
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour and pecans; whisk together to mix. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and confectioners’ sugar; mix together until well combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula so the mixture blends evenly. Add vanilla extract; mix until thoroughly blended. Add flour mixture, mixing just until combined. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Baking sheets may be ungreased, lined with parchment paper, or lined with a non-stick baking mat.
Filling:
  1. In a small bowl, combine crushed candy canes and confectioners’ sugar. Reserve ¼ cup of this mixture for topping cookies.
  2. To remaining candy cane mixture, add cream cheese and milk; stir to thoroughly combine. Set aside.
  3. Reserve about ½ cup of the dough to cover the cookie filling. Shape remainder of dough into small balls, about 1” in diameter. Tip: A small ice cream scoop is ideal for making uniform-sized cookies.
  4. Use your index finger or a wooden spoon with a rounded handle to make a deep indentation with the tip of the handle in the center of each cookie ball. If the dough sticks dip the tip in flour before pressing.
  5. Fill center of cookie with ¼ teaspoon filling. Use a small bit of the reserved dough; flatten into a small disk and place over the filling to seal the hole, smooth and blend the edges. Gently reshape or reroll into a ball shape if necessary.
  6. Bake: Place filled balls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until the cookies are set but not browned. Remove from oven and leave cookies on baking sheet. Sprinkle the top of the hot cookies with a small amount of the reserved candy cane and confectioners’ sugar mixture. Let cookies cool on baking sheet 2 to 3 minutes, then remove cookies from baking sheets with a metal spatula and place on a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
Source: Naftalin, Rose, Grandma rose's Book of Sinfully Delicious Cakes, Cookies, Pies, Cheesecakes, Cake Rolls & Pastries, Random House, New York, 1975

Pumpkin Pecan Tassies

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Pumpkin Pecan Tassies
A mini pumpkin pecan pie combined into one bite-sized cookie treat. If you love traditional Pecan Tassies and Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, then Pumpkin Pecan Tassies are destined to become a new favorite. These Tassies begin with a tender cream cheese pastry pressed into mini muffin pans, a filling made with pumpkin, spice, and a kick of rum, and finished with a brown sugar pecan topping.
Recipe type: Dessert | Shaped Cookies | Pastry | Filled Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: One 24-Cup Mini Muffin Pan Pan Prep: Ungreased Oven Temp: 325° Yield: 24 Tassies Storage: Airtight Container, Room Temperature

Help: Cookie Hints and Tips

TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, accurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Pumpkin Filling:
  • ⅔ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • ⅓ cup canned pumpkin
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon heavy (whipping) cream
  • 1 tablespoon rum (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Pecan Topping:
  • ½ cup pecans, coarsely chopped
  • ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric stand mixer or hand mixer, add butter and cream cheese; mix together on medium speed until smooth and thoroughly blended. Use a rubber spatula to scrap down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the flour and salt, mixing just until combined.
  2. Pat pastry into a 6 inch disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.
  3. Remove chilled pastry from the refrigerator and divide into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place in an ungreased mini muffin pan. Press the pastry against the bottom and up the sides of each cup to form the Tassie shells. Tip: Using one 24-cup or two 12-cup mini muffin pans is ideal. If you have only one smaller pan, keep the extra pastry in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  4. Cover filled pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate Tassie shells until firm, at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Filling:
  1. In a large mixing bowl, add the brown sugar, pumpkin, melted butter, egg, whipping cream, rum, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Use a wire whisk and whisk together just until smooth. Tip: Do not over-mix, and do not use an electric mixer as this will create too many air bubbles in the filling. Set aside.
Topping:
  1. In a small bowl, combine chopped pecans, brown sugar, and melted butter. Set aside.
  2. Remove the pastry filled muffin pans from the refrigerator. Pour the filling in each cup, filling only about two-thirds full. Don’t over-fill as the filling puffs up while baking. Tip: to make filling the cups less messy, use a liquid measuring cup with a spout to pour the filling. Sprinkle the pecan topping on top of the filling in each cup.
  3. Bake: Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown around the edges. Rotate the pans from front to back toward the end of the baking time so the Tassies brown evenly. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Run the tip of a small sharp paring knife around the edges of the muffin cups to loosen the Tassies. When Tassies are cool enough to handle remove from the muffin pan and place on wire cooling racks to let cool.

Pecan Tassies

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Pecan Tassies
Tassies are a southern Christmas treasure, normally taking center stage on the cookie tray. These cookies taste like a bite-sized morsel of pecan pie, with a golden brown crust and lots of chopped pecans in a gooey filling – yummy and addicting
Recipe type: Dessert | Shaped Cookie | Pastry | Filled Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: Two 24-Cup Mini Muffin Pans Pan Prep: Ungreased Oven Temp: 325° Yield: 48 Tassies Storage: Airtight Container, Room Temperature, or Freeze

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TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapenaccurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Filling:
  • 3 large eggs
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups lightly toasted pecans, coarsely chopped, divided
Instructions
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  1. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, add butter and cream cheese; mix together on medium speed until smooth and thoroughly blended. Use a rubber spatula to scrap down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the flour and salt, mixing just until combined.
  2. Divide pastry in half; pat each half into a 6 inch disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.
  3. Remove one of the chilled pastries from the refrigerator and divide into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place in an ungreased mini muffin pan. Press the pastry against the bottom and up the sides of each cup to form the shell. Return the filled muffin pan to the refrigerator until ready to add the filling. Tip: Using two 24-cup, or four 12-cup mini muffin pans is ideal. If you have only one pan, keep the extra pastry and filling in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  4. Remove remaining pastry from refrigerator, and repeat.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Filling:
  1. In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs, butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and salt. Use a wire whisk and whisk together just until smooth. Tip: Do not over-mix, and do not use an electric mixer as this will create too many air bubbles in the filling.
  2. Remove the pastry filled muffin pans from the refrigerator. Distribute 1 cup of the pecans among the pastry-lined muffin cups, sprinkling a few pecan pieces in the bottom of each cup.
  3. Pour the filling over the pecans in each cup, filling only about two-thirds full. Don’t over-fill as the filling puffs up while baking. Tip: to make filling the cups less messy, use a liquid measuring cup with a spout to pour the filling.
  4. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of pecans on top of the filling in each cup.
  5. Bake: Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown around the edges. Rotate the pans from front to back toward the end of the baking time so the Tassies brown evenly. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Run the tip of a small sharp paring knife around the edges of the muffin cups to loosen the Tassies. When Tassies are cool enough to handle remove from the muffin pan and place on wire cooling racks to let cool.
Adapted From: Walden, Hilaire, The Great Big Cookie Book, Hermes House, London, 2008,

Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

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Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Soft pumpkin cookies, fluffy cream cheese filling, and a sprinkling of cinnamon spiced powdered sugar complete these Mini Pumpkin Whoopie Pies. This mini version is just the right size, and the pumpkin and cream cheese combination is scrumptious.

Of course these are not really a pie at all, but a cookie. Whoopie Pies are essentially two cake-like cookies sandwiched with a generous helping of fluffy creamy filling.

Original Whoopie Pies, believed to have originated in the 1920s in either Maine, Pennsylvania, or by the Amish are large affairs, about 4 inches in diameter, and made with a soft chocolate cookie and marshmallow filling. The clever name is possibly from children that would squeal with delight and yell “whoopie” whenever they were getting one of these delicious treats. Modern versions include a cookie made with chocolate or other flavors such as pumpkin and red velvet, and fluffy fillings with all flavors imaginable.
Recipe type: Dessert | Sandwich Cookie | Pumpkin
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: Two Large Baking Sheets Pan Prep: Ungreased or Parchment Lined Oven Temp: 350° Yield: 2 Dozen Storage: Cover and Refrigerate

Help: Cookie Hints and Tips

TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, accurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Dough:
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ cup pumpkin
  • ¼ cup milk (preferably whole milk)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Spiced Cream Cheese Filling:
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 2 cups confectioners' (powdered) sugar
Topping:
  • 1 tablespoon confectioners' (powdered) sugar
  • ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Baking sheets may be ungreased, lined with parchment paper, or lined with a non-stick baking mat.
Dough:
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves; whisk together to mix. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and brown sugar; beat on medium speed until mixture is creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula so the mixture blends evenly. Add egg, pumpkin, milk, and vanilla; beat until thoroughly mixed, mixture may appear curdled. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, beat together until well mixed.
  3. Bake: Drop batter by level tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes or until set and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cookie comes out clean. Tip: Use a measuring tablespoon, fill the spoon with dough and level off with a knife. Use a spoon or knife to scrape the dough out of the measuring spoon and onto the pan, keeping the dough formed in as round a shape as possible.
  4. Remove cookies from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet 2 to 3 minutes. When they seem firm enough, remove cookies from baking sheets with a metal spatula and place on a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Spiced Cream Cheese Filling:
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and cloves; use an electric hand mixer or wooden spoon and beat together until mixture is smooth. Add powdered sugar; beat until filling is smooth and creamy.
  2. Assembly: Spoon about two teaspoons of filling onto the bottom flat side of one cookie. Place another cookie, flat side down, on top of the filling. Press down slightly so that the filling spreads to the edges of the cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling.
Topping:
  1. Combine powdered sugar and cinnamon. Using a fine-mesh sieve, dust the tops of the cookies with the sugar mixture.
  2. Place the whoopie pies on a baking sheet in a single layer and refrigerate for about 30 minutes to firm up the filling before serving.
  3. The whoopie pies will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator. Place on a baking sheet in a single layer and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
Source: Land O’ Lakes
Lewis, Matt and Renato Poliafito, Baked Explorations, Stewart, Tabori & Chang, New York, 2010

Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

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Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
Three wonderful layers, a brown sugar oatmeal cookie base on the bottom, sweet raspberry preserves in the middle, and a refreshingly cool, lemony cheesecake filling on top. Delicious!
Recipe type: Dessert | Bar Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: One 13"x9"x2" Oblong Pan Prep: Greased Oven Temp: 350° Yield: 2 Dozen Bars Storage: Airtight Container, Refrigerate

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TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapenaccurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Crust:
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1¼ cups old-fashioned oats
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Fruit Layer:
  • ½ cup raspberry preserves
Cream Cheese Filling:
  • 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
  • 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare one 13x9x2 inch oblong pan; lightly grease the pan with shortening.
Crust:
  1. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and brown sugar; beat together on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula so the mixture blends evenly. Add flour, oats, and salt; beat until blended.
  2. Press mixture evenly into the baking pan.
Bake and Fruit Layer:
  1. Bake: Bake crust 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
  2. Remove from oven, and immediately spoon raspberry preserves over hot crust and spread in an even layer. Set aside.
Cream Cheese Filling:
  1. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine cream cheese, sugar, and flour. Beat at low speed until well blended.
  2. Crack the eggs into a small bowl and whisk with a fork to thoroughly break up the eggs. Add eggs, lemon zest, and lemon juice to the cream cheese mixture; continue beating on low speed until well mixed. Tip: keep the mixer at low speed to prevent air bubbles from forming.
  3. Bake: Pour filling over the still warm raspberry preserves layer. Bake 25 minutes or until filling is set. The middle may still jiggle a little bit but will set up as it cools. Remove from oven and place baking pan on a wire cooling rack to cool.
  4. When cooled to room temperature, cut into bars about 2 inches by 1½ inches. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours or until thoroughly chilled. Refrigerate leftovers.
Tip: My favorite tool to cut bar cookies is a dough scraper; simply push the dough scraper straight down into the cookie for straight cuts. Or use a pizza cutter or small kitchen knife to cut the cookie into bars.
Adapted From: The Cookie Bible, Publications International, LTD, Illinois, 2004

Lemon Tassies

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Lemon Tassies
Sweet and sassy, and cute as a button, these Tassies will remind you of miniature lemon pies. Each Tassie is created with a simple cream cheese pastry pressed into a mini-muffin pan, and then after baking is filled with a sweet, yet slightly tart delicious lemon filling.
Recipe type: Dessert | Filled Cookies | Pastry
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: One 24-Cup Mini Muffin Pan Pan Prep: Ungreased Oven Temp: 350° Yield: 24 Tassies Storage: Cover and Refrigerate

Help: Cookie Hints and Tips

TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapenaccurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
Lemon Filling:
  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
  • ½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ¼ cup water
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
Instructions
Cream Cheese Pastry:
  1. In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, add butter and cream cheese; mix together on medium speed until smooth and thoroughly blended. Use a rubber spatula to scrap down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the flour and salt, mixing just until combined.
  2. Pat pastry into a 6 inch disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours.
  3. Remove chilled pastry from the refrigerator and divide into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place in an ungreased mini muffin pan. Press the pastry against the bottom and up the sides of each cup to form the Tassie shells. Tip: Using one 24-cup or two 12-cup mini muffin pans is ideal. If you have only one smaller pan, keep the extra pastry in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  4. Cover filled pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate Tassie shells until firm, at least 30 minutes.
  5. While Tassie shells are refrigerating, preheat oven to 350 degrees F, allowing 15 to 20 minutes for the oven to preheat before baking.
  6. Bake: Bake 20 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown around the edges. Rotate the pans from front to back toward the end of the baking time so the Tassie shells brown evenly. Remove from oven and place on a wire cooling rack to let cool.
  7. Run the tip of a small sharp kitchen knife around the edges of the muffin cups to loosen the Tassie shells. Remove shells from pan and place on a serving plate.
Lemon Filling:
  1. In a medium heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, water, and butter. Cook until thickened and gently boiling, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon so mixture does not burn, continue cooking for 2 minutes more. Remove from heat.
  2. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks with a fork or wire whisk to thoroughly break up the yolk.
  3. Temper the eggs: very slowly, in a thin stream, pour about ½ of the hot lemon mixture into the beaten eggs while quickly whisking together. Tip: The technique used to blend uncooked eggs with a hot liquid is called tempering. Tempering slowly warms the eggs so they are closer to the temperature of the liquid they will be added to, preventing the eggs from scrambling. If you simply poured the eggs into the hot mixture they would immediately start cooking and you would have chunks of cooked egg in the mixture.
  4. Return the egg mixture back to the rest of the hot lemon mixture, pouring back slowly while whisking the two mixtures together. Return to medium heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula and scraping over the bottom of the pan, cook until mixture boils and becomes thick, or registers about 150 degrees using a candy or instant read thermometer to gauge the temperature. Remove from heat.
  5. Cover the surface with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the top of the filling so a film does not develop. Cool to room temperature.
  6. Spoon one rounded teaspoon of filling into each Tassie shell. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours before serving.

Rugelach

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Rugelach
This classic version of Jewish Rugelach, made in a crescent shape, has a thin layer of apricot preserves brushed on the rolled pastry, then sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, golden raisins, and walnuts. The pastry, made with cream cheese, adds just a slight tangy contrast to the sweetness of the filling and is very easy to work with and roll out. These are wonderful little pastries that are hard to resist. Rugelach is easy to make, but it does take time as the dough needs to be refrigerated before rolling and filling
Recipe type: Dessert | Shaped Cookies | Filled Cookies
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Recipe Notes
Pan: Two Large Baking Sheets Pan Prep: Parchment Lined Oven Temp: 375° Yield: 4 Dozen Storage: Airtight Container, Room Temperature

Help: Cookie Hints and Tips

TheBakingPan Recommends: The BEST instant read thermometer I’ve used for cooking and baking; the ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is incredibly fast, ThermoWorks Splash-Proof Super-Fast Thermapenaccurate, and well worth the investment. I use my Thermapen Thermometer for checking room temperature ingredients, tempering chocolate, baking bread, making pastry creams, sugar syrup, caramel, and candy, cooking meats and fish, and deep frying. Thermapen Thermometer available here.
Ingredients
Dough:
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
Filling:
  • 1 cup golden raisins
  • 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ cup apricot preserves
For Rolling Dough:
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup confectioners' (powdered) sugar
Topping:
  • ¼ cup whipping (heavy) cream
  • Reserved sugar-cinnamon mixture
Instructions
Dough:
  1. In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine flour, sugar, and salt, mix on low speed to blend. Add the butter and cream cheese and mix on medium speed just until blended, do not over mix. Or, process in a food processor just until the dough comes together in small clumps.
  2. Divide dough into 4 equal portions. Form each portion into a 4 inch flattened disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until well chilled, at least 2 hours or overnight.
Filling:
  1. Plump the raisins by steaming with a double boiler; steam the raisins about 1 minute or until softened. Thoroughly drain, or spread the raisins on paper toweling to dry. Tip: Create a double boiler by filling a saucepan with about 2 inches of water and bringing it to a simmer. Place a steamer or plastic or wire mesh colander on top of the simmering water, the upper pan should not touch the water.
  2. Finely chop the walnuts. Set aside
  3. In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
  4. Just before ready to use, place apricot preserves in a small microwaveable bowl and heat in the microwave 30 to 40 seconds just to warm slightly and make easier to spread. Or, heat in a small saucepan on the stovetop, stir and heat the jam over low heat until it liquefies. Remove from heat. Set aside.
For Rolling Dough:
  1. In a small bowl, combine flour and powdered sugar. Set aside.
Assembly:
  1. Remove dough disks from refrigerator. Let stand 10 to 30 minutes before rolling. Tip: The dough is ready to roll when you can leave a slight imprint in the dough when you press it with your fingers.
  2. Lightly sprinkle a pastry mat or pastry board and rolling pin with some of the flour and powdered sugar mixture, roll one of the dough disks into a 10 inch circle. Tip: As you are rolling the pastry, gently pick the pastry up and lightly re-flour the work surface, and then replace the pastry upside down. Make sure it is not sticking to the board when ready to add the filling or it will make rolling into crescents difficult. If necessary, pick the pastry up again and lightly re-flour the surface underneath.
  3. Use a pastry brush and brush 2 tablespoons of the warm apricot preserves evenly over the top of the dough. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the sugar-cinnamon mixture over the top of the preserves, then sprinkle ¼ cup golden raisins over the top, and then sprinkle ¼ cup walnuts over the top. Run the rolling pin gently over the top to gently press the mixture into the dough.
  4. Using a sharp knife, pizza cutter, or pastry cutter, cut the dough into 12 wedges. Tip: The easiest way to cut each piece evenly is to cut the dough as though cutting a pizza. Cut the dough into quarters, and then cut each quarter into thirds.
  5. Starting from the wide end, roll up each wedge, ending with the pointed tip underneath. Bend the edges slightly to form a crescent. Place each crescent on a large baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough discs.
  6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F while crescents are chilling. Prepare 2 large baking sheets; line with parchment paper.
  7. Remove enough crescents from the refrigerator to bake one pan of cookies (about 12) and keep remainder of crescents in the refrigerator until ready to use. Place crescents on the prepared baking sheet.
Topping:
  1. Use a pastry brush and lightly brush the tops of each crescent with a small amount of heavy cream. Lightly sprinkle a little of the reserved sugar-cinnamon mixture over the top of each.
  2. Bake: Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the bottoms are light brown and the edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and use a metal spatula to carefully transfer the fragile cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool. Tip: Transferring the cookies immediately from the baking sheet to the wire rack will help prevent any leaked out filling from sticking to the cookies. Tip: Either use fresh parchment paper for each pan of cookies, or clean off the parchment paper between uses, otherwise any filling that has leaked out will burn when put back into the oven.
Source: Baking Illustrated, by the editors of Cook's Illustrated, 2004
Greenspan, Dorie, Baking, Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 2006
Martha Stewart Holiday Sweets Magazine, 2009
Walter, Carole, Great Cookies, Clarkson Potter Publishers, New York, 2003