It’s that time of the year to bake up a batch of these gingerbread cookies for family and friends. I can’t think of another holiday cookie that brings such a big smile to everyone who receives one of these adorable treats. Once baked and cooled, the fun begins with decorating the gingerbread cookies.
In preparation of making these cookies:
*Check the freshness of your spices especially those that you only use occasionally.
*Meringue powder is the way to go when icing the cookies. Here on Maui they sell Wilton’s brand at Walmart and Safeway.
*Having a small squeeze bottle to decorate the cookies is very useful. It will allow you to draw fine lines and fill in small areas on the cookies.
*Use currants (smaller than raisins) for the eyes. Or skip this and use a drop of icing instead.
*Allow icing to dry thoroughly then package the cookies and freeze for optimal freshness if making days in advance.
One morning just before the holidays, we were shopping at Whole Foods to pick up a few items. I was not paying attention to anything but what was on my list, however, John (always on the lookout for samples) noticed some cookies. It turns out the cookies were actually a type of rugelach which is a small Jewish rolled cookie that can be eaten in one or two bites. Once I returned home, I quickly looked up rugelach recipes and found many variations. Some have chocolate or nuts and raisins while others are savory. The one thing they had in common was a cream cheese and butter dough. The version at Whole Foods was oddly dairy free (pareve). How do you pronounce rugelach? Some say “roo-ga-la” and others like Ina Garten and Dorie Greenspan say “rug-ah-la” which means it’s still a mystery to me.
I choose to skip the chocolate and stick with walnuts, jam and currants. Because these cookies are very small and are rolled, currants work very well since they are much daintier than raisins. I used our homemade mango-lilikoi jam which turned out to be a winner with its sweet and tart flavor.
The dough is rolled out into circles then brushed with jam and sprinkled with the currant and sugar mixture before being cut and rolled into crescents.
I am so happy that there are more lactose free dairy products available these days. Green Valley sells lactose free cream cheese in tubs and we always have one on hand. Because their cream cheese is in tubs which makes it more spreadable, it is a bit softer than normal cream cheese bricks. So I worked around this and found that using a bit less than the normal equal parts of butter and cream cheese was the perfect amount. And the cream cheese is always cold, right out of the refrigerator as is the lactose free Earth Balance Buttery Sticks I used.
The dough is satiny and soft so freezing it for 15 minutes or so is essential in order to roll crescents that hold their shape. The rolled cookies are once again placed in the freezer before going into the oven.
The cookies are done when they puff up and are slightly golden in color.
Once I made my own rugelach, I was hooked. These humble looking cookies are so delicious. We love to eat them straight out of the freezer. And though they seem particularly popular during the holiday season, they are welcome anytime of the year.
3.5 ounces cold Green Valley lactose free cream cheese (drained if needed) spooned into large pieces
Filling:
¼ c + 2 tablespoons (1.8 ounces) currants
½ cup (1.8 ounces) finely chopped walnuts
⅛ cup (1 ounce) packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons (1.5 ounces) granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup + 1 tablespoon mango jam, pureed if chunky (or apricot jam)
To Finish:
Egg wash - I use powdered egg white mixed with water, however you may use 1 whole egg beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
1½ tablespoons granulated sugar mixed with ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Preparation
Dough: Combine flour, sugar, Buttery Sticks, Green Valley lactose free cream cheese in the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse 4-5 times, then turn the processor on and process until the dough forms a shaggy ball, about 40 seconds or so.
Divide the dough in half. Working quickly as the dough is very soft, shape each piece into a disk and wrap each disk tightly in plastic wrap. Chill the dough in the refrigerator until it registers 40 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, at least 2 hours.
Filling: Combine currants, walnuts, brown sugar, granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack set in the middle.
Pull one packet of dough from the refrigerator. Roll out dough into an 11-inch circle on a lightly floured piece of parchment paper. Spread half of the jam on the dough leaving a half-inch border. Sprinkle half of the filling over the jam. With a piece of waxed paper, gently press the filling into the dough. Place dough round in the freezer for 5 minutes to firm up before rolling up cookies. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 12 wedges. The simplest way to do this is to cut the dough in quarters, then cut each quarter into 3 pieces for a total of 12.
Starting at the base of each triangle, roll the dough up so that each cookie becomes a little crescent. Arrange the roll-ups on a parchment lined baking sheet making sure the points are tucked under the cookies. Freeze while you prepare the second batch, or refrigerate for a minimum of 30 minutes.
Just before baking, brush egg wash over each cookie and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture. Bake the cookies for 23-25 minutes. The cookies will be puffed and golden. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool (cookies will be too soft to remove right away). Rugelach should be thoroughly cooled before serving. We love eating these right out of the freezer. Store cookies in the refrigerator or freezer.
