A little bit country, a little bit rock n’ roll, these Chocolate Pumpkin Almond Rugelach have something for everyone!
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bob’s Red Mill. Hanukkah is coming! Presents! Yessss. But, did you know it’s better to give than receive? Really. Psychologists have found that baking for others promotes a sense of wellbeing and benefits the baker as much as, if not more, than the recipient. I can say first hand, that it’s true. I love baking for you!
I make rugelach all the time, and it’s one of my favorite food gifts, especially around the holidays. Here’s why:
One recipe makes a ton (48!), they are easy to ship, super tasty, easy to customize with different delicious fillings, freeze well, everyone loves them, therefore, everyone loves you. And if there are ugly ones, you can eat them. Everyone wins.
For this recipe, I partnered with Bob’s Red Mill, because good ingredients = good cookies. It’s just science. I love Bob’s Red Mill for their grains and and their flour is top notch. (P.S. here is a coupon to save $1 off any Bob’s Red Mill product. My gift to you!) Made with Love, Baked with Bob’s.
I loved the idea of pumpkin and spices like cinnamon and nutmeg mixed with chocolate. Just the idea made me all warm and fuzzy inside! (Or is that the whiskey?)
I shared these with my brother and my friend Amy and they ate them all up!
Slice it, roll it.
You could put a few in a bag with a big ribbon and give them to everyone you know. Hooray!
One for you, one for me…
Chocolate Pumpkin Almond Rugelach
Ingredients
- For Rugelach Dough:
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
- Pinch of salt
- 2 cups Bob's Red Mill all-purpose flour plus more for rolling out dough
- 2 sticks cold unsalted butter 1 cup, cut into chunks (cold ingredients lead to a flaky dough!)
- 6 oz cold cream cheese cut into chunks
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- For Pumpkin Butter Filling:
- 1 15- ounce can pumpkin puree
- ⅓ cup orange juice
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ cups brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- For Chocolate Filling:
- 4 ounces semisweet or dark chocolate finely chopped
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ cup sugar plus more for sprinkling
- 1/2 cup salted almonds chopped
- 2 egg yolks
Instructions
- Place flour, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Then add cold butter, cream cheese, sour cream and vanilla in a food processor and pulse just until combined. You should have a crumbly dough. Do not overmix.
- (If you don't have a food processor, let butter and cream cheese come to room temperature. With a stand or hand mixer with beater attachment or a whisk, cream together butter, cream cheese and sugar just until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Then add in sour cream, vanilla and salt and combine. Lastly, add in flour and cinnamon/pumpkin pie spice and mix with a spoon or your hands just until combined. This method will lead to a chewier rugelach vs. the flakier cookie with cold ingredients.)
- Lightly flour a clean surface and dump dough onto the surface. Divide the dough into four equal sized balls (I use a scale) and flatten each into a disk. Dough will be slightly sticky. Wrap each disk in saran wrap and chill for two hours or overnight. It also freezes well for up to 2 months.
- To make pumpkin butter, in a large saucepan, combine pumpkin, orange juice, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar and vanilla in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil while mixing well. Reduce heat, and let simmer for 20-30 minutes until thick, stirring often. Set aside to cool. You could also use a pre-made pumpkin butter if you wanted to!
- To make chocolate filling, combine chocolate, cocoa powder, sugar for filling in a small bowl.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 F.
- In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks with 1 tablespoon water.
- Roll out each ball on a lightly floured surface into a 9-10 inch circle, about ⅛ inch thick, keeping the other balls in the fridge until you are ready for them. You can use a pie pan to make an even circle. Make sure to use enough flour to prevent sticking on both sides to prevent sticking, but not so much that the dough gets dry.
- Spread a thin layer of cooled pumpkin butter on the circle, sprinkle with 1/4 of chocolate mixture and almonds.
- Cut the circle into 12 triangles using a pizza cutter or sharp knife. The easiest way to do this is cut the dough into quarters, and then cut each quarter into 3 pieces. Roll up each triangle from the wide end, and secure the tip into the cookie so you have a little spiral. Place cookies on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, with the dough point down, and freeze for 30 minutes to prevent spreading. Then wash with egg mixture, sprinkle with more sugar.
- Then bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, and then finish cooling on cooling racks. EAT!
This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. Thank you for supporting WJWE. Jew rock!
Sheila Schroeder says
Rugalach recipe looks so tasty! Any suggestions for substituting a wheat -based flour for those of us who cannot digest wheat (or corn!)?
Amy Kritzer says
Thanks! Can you have gluten free flour? The 1 for 1 works pretty well in this recipe!
L says
Love your blue plate as well as the rugelach!
Looked on your Modern Tribe site for the plate but may have just missed it.
Could you please tell me where to find it?
Thank you! (And for the rugelach – and all your other great recipes, and commentary – too.)
Amy Kritzer says
Aw thanks! Oh the plate isn’t from ModernTribe, I think it’s from Crate and Barrel!
cilla says
they look delicious
Amy Kritzer says
Thanks!
Carol says
Can I use any all purpose flour or does it have to be Bobs red mill flour?
Amy Kritzer says
I love Bobs Red Mill, but any will work!
Jessica Reed says
Can these be frozen for a couple weeks?
Amy Kritzer says
Sure! They freeze well.