Recipes
Caroline Schiff's Fig and Sesame Brown Butter Rugelach
Makes approximately 36 small cookies
This rugelach has the addition of brown butter in the dough which adds a rich, nutty flavor that I love. They’re a little more labor intensive than other cookies, but so special and perfect for the holidays or a Hanukkah celebration. This dough works great with a variety of jams and fillings, so once you’ve mastered it, go wild. If you’d like to make your own fig jam I fully support that too, but the stuff right out of the jar is delish. You can make the dough a day or two ahead of time, and you can divide it in half to make a quarantine-friendly quantity.
ingredients
- 226 grams (2 sticks) Kerrygold Unsalted Pure Irish Butter, softened at room temperature
- 192 grams cream cheese, room temperature
- 83 grams sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 217 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 cup fig jam
- ⅔ cup toasted sesame seeds, unhulled if possible
- 1 egg beaten with a splash of water
Method
- The day before, brown the butter: Melt 1 stick of butter in a deep, small pot over medium-high heat and let it come up to a boil. Cook the butter, whisking frequently until brown flecks start to appear. I look for a deep, rich honey color, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the butter cool fully in the pot before transferring to a container and chilling overnight.
- The next day, make the rugelach: Take the remaining unsalted butter, brown butter, and the cream cheese out of the fridge several hours before baking so they come up to room temperature. When soft, scale out 79 grams of brown butter. You’ll have a little more than you need, and you can save the extra to toss with pasta, spread on good bread, etc. Extra brown butter is never a bad thing!
- In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed, or in a large bowl with a wooden spoon, cream together the unsalted butter and brown butter until uniform. Keep the mixer running and add the cream cheese about 2 tablespoons at a time until fully incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides with a spatula as needed.
- Turn the mixer back on and add the sugar and vanilla, and cream together until uniform. Scrape down as needed.
- Change your mixer’s speed to low, add the flour and salt, and mix until the flour is just fully combined into the fats and no flecks of butter remain.
- Transfer the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a rectangle. It will be very soft. Wrap well and chill at least 3 hours or overnight.
- On a large, well-floured piece of parchment paper set on your work surface, roll the chilled dough into a ¼-inch thick rectangle. Then fold the short ends into the center, overlapping like a brochure. Rotate the parchment 90 degrees and roll out again to another 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Use as much flour as needed during this process, this dough can be really sticky and tricky to work with so take your time. If the dough is very soft you can transfer it, on the parchment, to a half sheet pan and chill for 15 minutes.
- Line a half sheet pan with another piece of parchment paper. Using a large knife, neaten up the edges of the rectangle, and make sure the dough isn’t stuck to the parchment paper by peeling back the edges, and running an offset spatula underneath. The dough will temper quickly if it feels stiff, and you can always pop it back in the fridge if too soft, but keep in mind it’s forgiving and they’re only cookies!
- Use an offset spatula to spread the fig jam all over the dough in an even layer. Then, put 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds aside and sprinkle an even layer of the remaining sesame seeds over the fig jam.
- With a large knife cut the dough in half lengthwise, and then cut each of the long thin rectangles into 1-inch thick strips going across the long way. Roll each on up bringing the short ends together. Place each finished rugelach on the sheet pan with the seam side down. When the tray is full, transfer it to the fridge to chill for one hour.
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Space the rugelach 2 inches apart on 2 parchment-lined sheet trays. Egg wash the top of each lightly, and sprinkle with the remaining sesame seeds. Transfer the rugelach to the oven and bake until golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Allow them to cool slightly on the sheet pans before enjoying.
