Put on your yarmulke...

... it's past the last day of Hannukah! I am super late on this, but I don't want to completely leave out Hannukah in the celebration of yummy baked things. I've become an honorary Jew this year thanks to my roomies, and I'm embracing the experience of lighting the candles each night over some matzo ball soup.

I first fell in love with ruglach when I found them in my mom's international cookie cookbook as an 8 year-old, and when I saw this new interpretation of the traditional Jewish cookie I knew I had to try it! I love the traditional filling of cinnamon and nuts, but I wanted to try something different so I mixed up a combination of raspberry, raisins and sliced almonds.

The verdict? My coworkers and roommates thought they were delightful, and I loved that they're a flaky, light but filling departure from many other holiday cookies. Feel free to experiment with different fillings - I've seen Nutella and hazelnut, walnut and cinnamon and many others!

Raspberry Raisin Almond Ruglach Bars 
Adapted from Hungry Rabbit

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2" pieces
8 oz cream cheese
2 C all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt

1 C raspberry jam
1/2 C golden raisins
1 C sliced almonds

1 egg yolk
3 Tbsp granulated sugar

Directions: Mix butter and cream cheese with a paddle attachment on low speed until cream cheese is broken down but butter is still slightly chunky. Add flour and salt at low speed and mix for about 20 seconds - until the dough begins to hold together but is still crumbly. Divide the dough into two and press together two rectangles on plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 5 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Toast sliced almonds on a foil-lined baking sheet until golden brown and fragrant. Remove and let cool. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Roll out one dough rectangle to a 9" x 13" rectangle and lay on the baking sheet. Spread raspberry jam over dough, then sprinkle raisins and almonds evenly over. Roll out second sheet of dough, lay over filling, and trim edges to match. Brush egg yolk over top layer and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until golden, about 30-35 minutes, rotating halfway. Cool on a wire rack and cut into 24 bars about 1" x 3 3/4" in dimension.

Classy

If brownies are the girl next door, biscotti is sophisticated and intimidating but oh so sweet when you finally get up the nerve to talk to her :) They require a little extra effort, but I love sitting down with a cup of coffee and a slice of crunchy cookie.
These began as an attempt at white chocolate macadamia biscotti, but morphed into toasted slivered almond, white chocolate and dark chocolate whole wheat... You can definitely taste the whole wheat flour, but I like a nuttier flavor anyway and it feels much less sugary. The taste combination is subtle but quite yummy!

You can use the basic recipe for all kinds of mix-ins - try dried cranberries or cherries, other nuts, spices, etc.


Chocolate Almond Biscotti
Adapted from Joy of Baking
Yields about 16 biscotti

2 eggs
2/3 C sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 3/4 C flour (whole wheat or all-purpose)

~1/2 C each of white chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, dry roasted sliced almonds

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat sugar and eggs in a large bowl at high speed until thick, pale and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Beat in vanilla. Add dry ingredients to egg mixture and beat until combined. Add chocolate and almonds and mix to combine. Place dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and form into a rectangular log about 12 inches long and 4 inches wide. Bake for 25 minutes or until firm. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Slice log diagonally into slices about 3/4 inch wide. Place slices cut side down on the baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Flip slices and bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool.

Raw Chocolate Coconut Almond Bites

I'm going to tell myself (and you) that this next recipe is for some healthy little guys that are also DE-lish. To all my gluten-free and vegan friends, this one's for you! The chocolate I use for everything is Trader Joe's 72% dark chocolate "pound-plus" bar in the red wrapper. It's the best chocolate I've found if you don't want to pay a million dollars per ounce (if you do, try Valrhona). 
This recipe is not for the faint of heart or the squeamish. The recipe is pure dark chocolate and almond butter, so it's extremely rich and even I had to admit I was satisfied after one or two... or three. I also ended up with chocolate and almond butter up to my elbows, but I'm not complaining. I also didn't let it cool before trying to divide up the mixture, so I was kind of asking for it. I'd advise removing the bowl from the double boiler and letting the chocolate cool a bit before rolling the balls, or divide it up and let it set on parchment and then roll it (like I did). 

Anywho, enjoy! FYI, you can substitute rolled oats for the slivered almonds if that's more your thing. You're missing out on the monounsaturated fats though :) 

Raw Chocolate Almond Coconut Bites
Adapted from a recipe from Macaroni and Cheesecake

Makes about 36 bites

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C dark chocolate chips (8 1/2 oz if you're using a bar)

2 1/2 C blanched slivered almonds, chopped a little bit

1/2 C honey

1 C unsweetened shredded coconut

1 C almond butter or natural peanut butter

1/3 cup raisins (if desired)

Directions: Melt chocolate, honey and nut butter in a double boiler. Remove from heat and add almonds a little at a time, stirring to mix thoroughly. Add coconut and mix until combined. Add in raisins if desired. Stir all together until well mixed. I'm impatient so I scooped out the mixture while it was still pretty warm, so I had to make little piles on the parchment and wait for it to set a little before rolling it into balls.

Roll into balls or flatten into cookies. Chill in refrigerator or freezer until set, then store in an air tight container in the fridge to keep them set.