CHOCOLATE DATE AND WALNUT RUGELACH WREATH

RUGELACH WREATH…’tis the season!

I realize, I’m for sure not the only person who is part of a family that celebrates both Chanukah and Christmas. This got me thinking that I should make some hybrid treats (YESSS! I KNOW!). Since the Jew in me always always always wants rugelach I knew where I wanted to start this crossover sweet. I had never really seen rugelach in any other shapes than bite-sized twists or twisted squares but I assumed it could be done, so—SPOILER(ISH) ALERT—I did it! I twisted mine into wreaths. These rugelach wreaths are stuffed with a mixture of chocolate, dates, and walnuts—it’s incredibly delicious and so fun to have around during the holidays—a for sure showstopper!

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CHOCOLATE DATE AND WALNUT RUGELACH WREATH

Yield: 2 Wreaths

Author: Michelle Williams

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 15 MinInactive time: 10 MinTotal time: 45 Min

Ingredients

FOR THE FILLING

• Walnuts (1 cup)
• Dates (1 cup, pitted)
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (1/2 cup)
• Pure Vanilla Extract (1/2 teaspoon)
• Ground Cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon)

FOR THE OUTSIDE

• All-Purpose Flour (just enough to dust your work surface)
• Puff Pastry Dough (1 sheet, thawed—I used a Pepperridge Farm's frozen box)
• Egg (1, beaten with a teaspoon of room temperature water—this is your egg wash)
• Demerara Sugar (roughly 1/4 cup)
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (1/4 cup)
• OPTIONAL: Christmas Colored Sprinkles

KITCHEN ITEMS

• Food Processor
• Rolling Pin
• Cookie Sheet
• Silpat
• Pastry Brush
• Paring Knife
• Microwave-Safe Sandwich-Sized Ziploc Bag

Instructions

TO MAKE YOUR FILLING

1. In your food processor, combine your walnuts, dates, and chocolate. Process until you have an even crumble—about 1 minute.
2. Add vanilla and cinnamon. Process again for about 10 seconds to incorporate them.

TO MAKE YOUR WREATHS

1. Preheat your oven to 400º.
2. Lightly dust your clean counter and rolling pin with flour.
3. Lay your puff pastry dough on your dusted counter.
4. Use your rolling pin to roll it so it is about 1/2 as thick.
5. Use a spoon to scoop some of your filling mixture into a horizontal line starting 1/2 an inch in from the edge of your dough. The line should be roughly a 1/4 inch high and should span across the width of your dough.
6. Use your hands to fold the 1/2 inch of exposed dough over your filling so that it touches the exposed dough on the other side of your filling.
7. Use your paring knife to cut this roll free from the rest of your dough. Some filling may fall out, don’t worry, we seal your roll in the next step.
8. Use your fingers to pinch the cut side of your roll together over and over again to form a seam and close your roll into a log.
9. Repeat this process with your remaining dough three more times. At the end you will have 4 logs.
10. Separate your logs into two sets of 2 logs. Each of these pairs will become their own wreath.
11. Working with one pair at a time, align 2 of your logs so that they are touching lengthwise in front of you. Alternating, loosely drape one log over the other until all of your dough it twisted.
12. Fold together the two ends to form a circle. I’ve done this two ways. 1. just fold one side over the other. 2. Weave together the two twists on one end with the two twists on the other.
13. Transfer wreaths to your baking sheet.
14. Use your pastry brush to coat all of your exposed puff pastry dough with your egg wash.
15. Liberally sprinkle your Demerara sugar over your egg wash.
16. Use your paring knife to cut slices into the middle each of your dough folds.
17. Bake for 15 minutes.
18. Let cool to room temperature before decorating—about 10 minutes.

TO DECORATE YOUR WREATHS

1. Put your remaining semi-sweet chocolate into the corner of your microwave safe Ziploc bag. Close your bag (I put mine in a bowl, which wasn’t necessary but gave me peace of mind) and microwave it in 15 second intervals, massaging the chocolate when you check on it, until it is melted—about 1 1/2 minutes.
2. Cut a tiny piece off of the chocolate filled corner of your Ziploc bag. This will denote the thickness of your chocolate lines.
3. Lay your wreaths on a surface you can get messy (or just leave them on your Silpat lined baking sheet).
4. Use your Ziploc bag as a piping bag. Decorate to your liking OR to get the linear effect, drizzle your chocolate back and forth horizontally over your pastry working your way from the top to the bottom. To get clean lines, your chocolate drizzle should go past your pastry as you move back and forth and hit your work surface on both sides otherwise you will see the motion of your turn written in chocolate on your pastry.
5. OPTIONAL. Sprinkle your sprinkles over your chocolate.
6. OPTIONAL. Sprinkle extra filling over your chocolate.

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