Dates Chocolate Rugelach , a Pastry for Peace


Too many tears have flowed. Too much blood has been shed. All of us have a responsibility to work for the day when the mothers of Israelis and Palestinians can see their children grow up without fear; when the Holy Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be; when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews and Christians and Muslims, and a place for all of the children of Abraham to mingle peacefully together as in the story of Isra, when Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed (peace be upon them) joined in prayer. - President Obama

Can food bring people together?.Evidently it does ,irrespective of our faiths and beliefs who can resist these delectable pastries?.In short food brings joy ,mends relations and fosters love.

Pastries for peace is a food event organized by Rosa of Rosa's Yummy Yums to bring peace in Middle East through the most loved "Pastries".4 days past the deadline of the event,I'm late in making the post,but I'm hopeful dear Rosa would accept this late entry.

Coming to the pastry I fell in love with instantly,the Rugelach.These morsels of love are a traditional treat for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.Made with cream cheese , butter and fruity filling these are totally addictive.I use the naturally sweet dates combined with dark chocolate and cocoa,these are not overwhelmingly sweet,the crust is melt-in-the-mouth delicious despite cutting down on half the butter and using lower fat cream cheese.A perfect treat for any holiday.

Recipe adapted from CIA Culinary Intelligence

Ingredients
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour(or use fine ground wheat flour)
8 ounce low fat cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

For the filling
6-8 medium Soft Dates(or use a cup of any fruit preserve)
1 teaspoon unsweetened Cocoa powder
1/2 cup dark chocolate,chopped
1/2 cup toasted pecans or walnuts
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Method
Make the Dough
Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and set aside.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a food processor, cream together the butter and cream cheese on medium speed, about 2 minutes. On low speed, mix in the sifted dry ingredients(flour mixture) until just combined. Scrape down the bowl as needed to blend evenly. Wrap the dough tightly and chill until firm, 15–20 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to an even thickness of 1 inch and fold in thirds, like a letter. Wrap the dough and let it rest for at least 1 hour and up to overnight in the refrigerator.
To make the filling
Combine the toasted nuts,cinnamon and chocolate, if using, in a food processor and chop, pulsing the machine on and off, until an even, coarse paste forms.Add the dates and blend until well combined.
Shape and Bake
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly spray cookie sheets with cooking spray or line them with parchment paper.
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each into a 10-inch round. Spread one-fourth of the filling over each round,then cut each into 16 or fewer wedges depending on the size of the pastry desired. Roll the wedges up starting with the wide end.
In batches, bake until the cookies are a light golden brown, rotating the pans as necessary to bake evenly, 25–30 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and cool completely before serving.



Posted earlier Kunafa, the Sweet Arabic pastry ,is also an entry for Pastries for peace.

Comments

Beautiful post. And I LOVE rugelach. Your recipe looks marvelous!
Finla said…
I want to have them. Looks so perfect and so so good.
Seena said…
I love this and your biryani recipe too.. hope to make them once.. :)
Unknown said…
Scrumptious pastries for a good cause.
Sasha said…
Love the Date & Chocolate filling.
very new recipe to me.Great effort
Sarah Naveen said…
Oh My...amazing!!! Love to have that now..
Jhonny walker said…
Hey Yasmeen,
I once had these made by my good friend , who is from Israel. i loved these so much that I stole the last one and got caught :)

Thanks for sharing this one..also the biryani recipe looks good!
Jen said…
Delicious!did you use egg wash for these,doesn't say in the method?
Namitha said…
Wow..Wonderful...Will try them and let you know :-)
Unknown said…
Thank you all :D
Jen,I did not use any egg wash for these :)
Of course I accept your recipe! That is a beautiful post and speciality! The roundup will be up as soon as possible...

Cheers,

Rosa xoxo
Wonderful post!! This is one of the few blogs where Pastries can be healthy :) Lets pray that the war ends soon... When all religion talks about peace, I don't know why people fight on religion... Why don't the terrorists and politicians understand that we have only one life to live..
PJ said…
Wonderful recipe and not that fatty either... this is a win-win for sure! thanks for sharing :)
Unknown said…
pastries look yumm..
Janan said…
A new kind of filling I would love to try.I usually use fruit preserves.
thanks for the peace message.
Rahin said…
Yasmeen I was thinking of making rugelachs since eid for the same event :), v happy to see them on your blog, as always a wonderful n healthy recipe
Sarah said…
Thanks for the beautiful post. My brother in law is a palestinian that grew up in Jersualeum, I know first hand of the war between the two. I sincerely hope that the two can find some peace!
Rugelach is one of my favorite pastries, delicious!
Kerstin said…
What an inspiring post. Your Rrgelachs look perfect and I love that you lightened them up!
notyet100 said…
lovely post dear,..
s said…
aww. beautiful post..and date filling is wow!
Pari Vasisht said…
beutifully written dear and pastries are very new to me.
Raks said…
Cool looking pastries,so pretty and sounds awesome too!
SE said…
wonderful and tempting pictures..
Dolly Sharma said…
UR pastries are delectable. May God bestow peace to the nations in war. Food does bring people together.There will be a day when the Mothers of Israelis and Palestinians will have no fear in their hearts....
This is a wonderful event organized by Rosa. Its late now,maybe next time I'll participate.
Cynthia said…
Peace will reign if we all sat down with each other to share and eat.
Spice said…
Like that biryani of yours.....this recipe sounds & looks tasty....
Ivy said…
They look delicious and shall have to hurry up and prepare a recipe for the event. Please pass from my blog to collect your Award.
Joanne said…
What a great post! I think food can definitely be a unifier. We all need to eat and I think a little bit of nourishment has a way of raising people's spirits.

I love rugelach...one of my favorite desserts. You've put all the best fillings in these.
Parita said…
So cute and adorable!!
Shri said…
I have always wanted to make these but some how never happened!After seeing yours' I am even more inclined to make these...Lovely!
Malar Gandhi said…
Very thought provoking post, dear. I clearly agree with you...wish world peace. And yes, food does really unite us all. Hats off to your best piece of writing.
Gita Jaishankar said…
Wonderful post Yasmeen...the pastry looks divine....love your presentation too with the cup of hot chocolate...awesome :)
Gita Jaishankar said…
I am glad you liked the cranberry rasam dear :)
Arabic Bites said…
I love the quote in the beginning of this post...
Those rugelach looks so tempting,I would love to have one please with cup of tea :D

Have a good day Yasmeen :)
tasteofbeirut said…
I had the same idea a year ago. I love your date rugelach, I love those dainty cookies and they are very popular at my house!
Saraswathi Iyer said…
First time here you have wonderful recipes and nice blog. Do participate in Cakes n cookies event in my blog. Do drop in sometime.
Soma said…
These are so unique and beautiful Yasmeen.
CurryLeaf said…
Beautiful Post and I love rugelach.Perfect filling but I hav never tried dates and choc together.Great Clicks.Somehow I missed this post in my DashBrd.

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