Apricot Rugalah
The Recipe
Makes 24 pieces
Ingredients:
Dough
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
9 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
Filling
3/4 cup apricot preserves (not jelly)… I like Smuckers
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup raisins (dark or white)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Glaze
1 large egg cracked into a small bowl
Instructions:
1. Place the flour and salt in a small bowl and give a few stirs with a small whisk or a fork if you do not have a whisk
2. Cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar together in a medium size mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, a minute or two, then scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula
3. Add the flour mixture and continue to blend on medium low speed until it all comes together, about 20 seconds,, stopping the mixer once to scrape the sides of the bowl.
4. Divide the dough into equal halves and shape each of them into rectangles, about 1/3 inch In thickness, and 7-ish inches in length, then wrap each one in plastic wrap. place them in the refrigerator to chill for a couple of hours.
5. After that time has passed, pull out a long sheet of parchment paper or a linen/cotton dish towel and place it on the surface on which you are working. Sprinkle some flour on your rolling surface, then place the dough in the center of the strip and sprinkle a bit of flour on the top of the slab as well as flouring your rolling pin. Give a couple of rolls in each direction then CAREFULLY flip the dough over, dust it with flour and continue to roll it out to a rectangle about 18 X 7 inches.
6. Spread 6 tablespoons of the jam evenly over the surface of the dough leaving a ½ inch strip along one of the long sides.
7. Sprinkle half the cinnamon/sugar, 2 tablespoons of the chopped nuts and ¼ cup of the raisins evenly over the preserves.
8. Use a small sharp knife or a frosting spatula, gently lift up the long “jammed “edge so that you can start rolling that up like a jelly roll towards the “unjammed” strip, until the seam is on the underside of the roll. Wrap the roll in whatever you used it to roll on and refrigerate. Repeat this with the second rectangle then allow the rolls to sit for a couple of hours in the refrigerator
9. Fifteen minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 375F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly grease them with vegetable oil or butter.
10. Lightly beat the egg for the glaze with a fork and coat each log with the egg wash using a pastry brush if you have one, or a piece of paper towel if you don’t.
11. Use a thin sharp knife to carefully cut the rolls into 1 ¼ inch pieces and place them about 1 inch apart on the baking sheets.
12. Bake the rugalah until the individual pieces are are beautifully golden, about 25 minutes Don’t panic when some of the jam starts to ooze out and darken in color…the jam inside will be fine. Remove the pans from the oven
13. Place a new piece of parchment paper on the counter or a cutting board, and use a small spatula or a butter knife to loosen and lift up the individual pieces from any coagulated jam that has oozed out from any of the pieces. When the rugalah has completely cooled place it on your serving platter.
14. Any leftovers can be stored in a container in the fridge or freezer; it has a really good shelf life!
Adapted from Rosie’s All Butter, Cream-Filled, Sugar-Packed Baking Book published by Workman Publishing in 2011.