Amber Left for Spain to Study... And Returned with a New Love: Nutella (Nutella Rugalach)

I'm not sure we"ll ever be really sure whether Amber went off to college to study (ultimately history)- or rather that college was just the perfect route to her ultimate goal: THE STUDY ABROAD SEMESTER!  Fortunately she did both.  And certainly her study abroad experience was every bit what she had imagined- and more.  Now for sure she made some friends for life... And learned some Spanish...

And as she traveled with these beautiful girls across Europe she found her "new love"- Nutella!  In fact, Amber and her friends discovered that all they really needed to eat as they traveled across this exciting new world was a jar of Nutella and a baguette.  I'll never see a jar of Nutella without thinking of Amber's Grand Adventure!

Nutella actually originates from Italy.  It was created in early 1944 by Pietro Fererro because of the severe shortage of chocolate in post war Europe.  He mixed the cocoa with hazelnuts and the magic began.

Rugalach heralds back to a much earlier time- probably sometime during the medieval times in a Jewish community in Eastern Europe.  The name Rugalach comes from the Yiddish and means "little twist".  Though Rugalach is eaten any time of the year it is especially popular during Hanukkah.

So what could be more perfect to take on our first visit to see the newlyweds?  NUTELLA RUGALACH!

So we gathered the ingredients:

Now it is perfectly appropriate to mix the "dough" in a food processor but I elected to use my Kitchenaid Mixer instead- more fun to watch the process this way...

We started with the Nutella Rugalach:

But also decided to have some Raspberry Preserve Rugalach as well...

I must tell you these Black Raspberry Preserves by Clearbrook Farm are the best!  And just to "keep things in the family", Clearbrook Farm is the the family business of Jenn, Amber's Maid of Honor!

We couldn't wait for the first ones to come out of the oven so we could "sample" them before taking them to Chicago to see Amber and her true love!

Nutella Rugalach: (Adapted from several recipes found on the internet)

Ingredients:

Dough:
2 sticks of unsalted butter, cold, cut into tablespoon size pieces
8 ounces of cream cheese
2/3 cup of sugar
3/4 teaspoon of vanilla
2 cups of flour (you'll also need some flour on the work surface when you're rolling out the dough)
3/4 teaspoon of salt
4 tablespoons of cocoa powder (Because I only used the chocolate dough for 1/2 of the rugalach I only used 2 tablespoons)


Filling:
Nutella (You can add nuts to the Nutella if you wish but I didn't)
or
Black Raspberry Preserves

Topping:
Egg White
Sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar together in the mixer. (You may use a food processor as well.)  Add the vanilla.  Combine the flour and salt together and then add to the mixer.  Mix just until combined -don't overdo this step.  (It was at this point that I removed half of the dough, wrapped it in Saran Wrap and placed in the freezer to chill for the raspberry filling.) Add the cocoa powder and combine.  (If you are only making the Nutella Rugalach and not also the Black Raspberry Rugalach then combine the cocoa powder to the flour and salt rather than saving for the last.) Wrap this dough in Saran Wrap and place in freezer for 20 minutes. (If only making Nutella Rugalach divide the dough into two pieces and wrap separately.)


Roll the dough out on a floured surface and cut into wedges like you would for a pizza. Place the filling on the wide end and roll up. (I used a biscuit cutter and filled the circles instead.)


Paint each "cookie" with whipped egg white and then sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 20-30 minutes and then cool on wire rack.

  ENJOY!

A perfect match don't you think!