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Rugelach Bars Recipe

Cream Cheese Dough: Place the cold butter and cream cheese in the bowl of your electric mixer. Mix on low speed until the cream cheese is broken down but the butter is still chunky. Add the flour and salt and, on low speed, beat until crumbly and just beginning to hold together. (There should still be some small pieces of butter visible in the dough.) Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Flatten each piece of dough into a rectangle and wrap in plastic. Chill in the refrigerator several hours or overnight. Next day make the chocolate filling.

Chocolate Filling: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Place the walnuts or pecans on a baking sheet and bake for about 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Remove from oven, cool, and then finely chop.

In the bowl of your food processor, pulse the chopped chocolate until very finely chopped. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the chopped nuts, sugar, ground cinnamon, dried apricots, orange zest, corn syrup and melted butter.

Have ready a 9 x 13 x 2 inch (23 x 33 x 5 cm) baking pan that has been lined with parchment paper.

Remove one rectangle of the dough from the refrigerator and, between two 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) pieces of waxed paper or parchment paper, roll the dough into a rectangle that is the size of your baking pan. Line your pan with the rolled out dough, trimming as needed. Spread the chocolate filling over the dough. Remove the second dough from the refrigerator and roll it out the same as the first. Place the rolled out dough on top of the chocolate filling, trimming the edges as needed.

Mix the egg yolk and water together in a small bowl, and brush the top of the bars with the glaze. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake in a 350 degree F (177 degree C) oven for about 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Cut into 1 x 3 inch long bars (2.5 x 7.5 cm).

Makes about 36 - 1 x 3 inch bars

Cream Cheese Dough:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) (160 grams) cold unsalted butter, cut in 1/2 inch pieces

8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese

2 cups (260 grams) all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Chocolate Filling:

1 cup (110 grams) walnuts or pecans

6 ounces (170 grams) semisweet chocolate, cut into pieces

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3/4 cup dried apricots, finely chopped

Grated zest of one orange

3 tablespoons light corn syrup

3 tablespoons (42 grams) unsalted butter, melted

Glaze:

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon water

Garnish:

3 tablespoons (40 grams) granulated white sugar or sanding sugar