My grandmother used to make these delicious little cookies all the time. There are so many Polish treats that I remember from my childhood and I have recreated many of them in my adult life. Some still elude me but these prune rugelach take me right back to her kitchen in Philadelphia.

They can also be made with apricot, cherry or any other filling that floats your boat. I know that prune is not everyone’s favorite choice.

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Prune Rugelach

For the Filling:

1 1/2 cups prunes
4 TBS unsalted butter
1/2 cup water
pinch of salt

For the Dough:

2/14 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 TBS sugar
1/4 tsp salt
16 TBS unsalted butter, cut into 1/4″ pieces and chilled
2 TBS sour cream

Make the Prune Filling:

Add the prunes and the butter to a small sauce pan. Add just enough water to cover.
Bring to a boil and reduce heat until the prunes are softened and the water evaporates.
Mash the prunes until you have a uniform mixture.
Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Make the Dough

Pulse the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor until just combined.
Add the butter, cream cheese, and sour cream. Pulse until the dough comes together in small pebble like pieces.
Remove the dough to the counter and press and knead it to combine. Form a log about 9 x 6″ and cut it into 4 equal pieces.
Press each piece into a disc about 8 1/2″.

Place about 3 TBS of filling in the center of the dough circle and evenly spread it
Cut the dough circle to form sixteen triangles. (I used my pizza cutter.)

Roll each triangle neatly, starting from the thicker end.
Place on the prepared baking tray.
Brush with egg wash and dust with sugar in the raw if desired
Bake in the preheated oven for 21 – 23 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through baking.
Cool on a wire rack.
Store in the freezer after the first day.

How Were the Prune Rugelach?

Delicious if you ask me, but I know that not everyone loves prune. It’s easy to substitute apricot or cherry or whatever flavor you would like for the prune in this recipe so don’t let the “prune” turn you off from what is a very delicious little pastry/cookie.

After I took the photo of all the rugelach on the cookie stand I kept a few out for us to munch and then the rest were packed up to go in the freezer. These really do not hold well so if you are not taking them to a party I strongly suggest freezing the bulk of them. They thaw quickly and do you really want all of the effort you put into making them to just disappear into stale pastry? I think not.

I have some prune filling leftover so I will be making prune danish in the near future so stay tuned for that recipe.