Kitchen Boss Season 2 Episode 10 - It's All in the Wrists

Rugelach Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 ¼ cups (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup (2/3 stick) margarine
• One 8-ounce package Philadelphia cream cheese
• ¾ cup powdered sugar
• 1 ¼ cups cake flour (no substitutions)
• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring your work surface
• 1 cup bake-proof raspberry jam (you can use regular jam if you spread it super thin)
• 1 cup crushed, unsalted walnuts (4 ounces)
• 1 cup raisins
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

1. Put butter, margarine, cream cheese, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together for 2 or 3 minutes, starting on slow and gradually increasing the speed to medium. (You can use a hand mixer if you allow the butter and margarine to soften at room temperature before beginning). Add the cake flour and all-purpose flour and mix on low for 1 to 2 minutes. Be careful not to overmix; stop as soon as the fats are homogenized and the dough is smooth, with no lumps.
2. Spread a thin layer of flour on a sheet pan and transfer the dough to the pan. Sprinkle some flour on the top and flatten the dough out on the pan so it's easy to roll when it comes out of the refrigerator. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes or up to 1 week.
3. When ready to proceed, position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F.
4. Generously flour a work surface. Set the dough on the surface, and use a rolling pin (I prefer a ball-bearing pin for this), to roll it out to a 24 by 18-inch rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Use a bench brush to brush off any excess flour from on top of the dough.
5. Top the dough with the jam and spread it out thinly and evenly with a plastic scraper or the back edge of your knife. Scatter the nuts and raisins over the dough.
6. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon, then dust half the cinnamon sugar over the jam, nuts and raisins.
7. Cut the dough lengthwise into four 6-inch strips, ideally with a pizza cutter. Cut the strips crosswise into three 6-inch pieces. You should have 12 pieces.
8. Roll up each piece tautly into a pinwheel about 1 inch in diameter, ending with the seam on the bottom.
9. Group the rolls into threes and use a pastry brush to paint the tops with melted butter. Quickly sprinkle some of the cinnamon sugar over the top and repeat these steps with each group of three, until you have coated all the rugelach with butter and cinnamon sugar.
10. Flour your scraper or knife and cut each trio into 1 ½ inch pieces. You should have 60 pieces.
11. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper, using nonstick spray or a dab of butter in each corner to glue the paper in place. Arrange the rolls, seam-side down, on the sheets, leaving 1/2 inch between them.
12. Bake in batches until the rugelach are browned on the bottom (note that these will not be very brown on top), 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven. As soon as the cookies can be moved, use a spatula to transfer them to a rack and let them cool.
13. Eat the rugelach as soon as they are cool enough to handle, or let cool completely, then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. They can also be frozen for up to 2 weeks. Let come to room temperature before serving.

*Variation: These are also delicious with apricot jam.
Notes:

• Melting butter - The most fail-safe way to melt butter is to do it in a pan over very low heat. You can also melt it in a microwave, but be careful. If it gets too hot, the water content can explode (that's the "popping" sound you heard if you ever over nuked your butter). Put the butter in a wide, shallow dish and cover it with plastic wrap to save yourself a mess in case that happens.
• No Bake-Proof Jam? - Bake-proof jam can be hard to find if you don't have access to a foodservice purveyor like the ones who supply Carlo's. It's fine to use jam or preserves if you spread them very thin, but stay away from jelly, which is too unstable and will leak when baked.