Chocolate Sea Salt Rugelach Food

CHOCOLATE SEA SALT RUGELACH

Steps:

• to make the dough, combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. add the cubed butter, distributing it all over the top of the dry ingredients, and dollop in the cream cheese (1" dollops should do it, but it doesn't need to be perfect). turn the mixer on low and stir until the mixture is mostly mealy and there are still some larger clumps of butter and cream cheese in tact. continue mixing and add the yolks, vanilla, and almond extract, if using, and then continue mixing until the dough comes together. divide the dough in half and shape into discs. wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to two days.
• to form the rugelach, melt the chocolate in a double boiler while stirring or in a microwaveable bowl in 30-second increments, stirring after each. set aside to cool briefly while you roll out the dough. working with one dough disc at a time, roll it out on a lightly floured surface, dusting with flour as needed to prevent it from sticking, until it is a wide rectangle, 18" by 9". use an offset spatula to spread on half of the chocolate in a thin even layer, leaving a 1" border along the long edge that's furthest from you. (try to work kinda quickly so the chocolate doesn't harden.) brush the 1" border with a thin layer of egg wash and then start on the end closest to you and roll the dough into a long tight log, placing it seam side down. transfer to a cutting board or baking sheet and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to two days (depending on fridge space, you might want to cut the log in half so you're dealing with four shorter logs as opposed to two really long ones). if you're only refrigerating for an hour or two, no need to cover the logs. if longer than that, cover with plastic wrap.
• to bake, preheat the oven to 375ºf and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. brush the logs with a thin layer of egg wash, sprinkle with a few pinches of flaky salt, and a ton of sprinkles or sugar. cut into 1 1/2" slices and transfer to the baking sheets, 1" apart. bake until golden brown on top; begin checking for doneness at 24 minutes. (you might notice that the cookies seem to sweat and leak out some fat while in the oven, this is completely normal.) let cool on the pans for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. or enjoy them warm! leftovers can be stored at room temp for several days.

CHOCOLATE-NUT RUGELACH

Steps:

• Pulse cocoa, brown sugar, kosher salt, baking powder, and 2 1/2 cups flour in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until largest pieces are pea-size.
• Beat egg yolks, sour cream, and vanilla extract in a small bowl until smooth. With the motor running, stream sour cream mixture into food processor and process until dough forms a ball around the blade. Turn out dough onto a surface and knead several times until it is smooth and homogenous. Divide in half and form into 3/4"-thick disks. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours.
• Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 350°F. Let 1 disk of dough sit at room temperature until slightly softened, about 5 minutes.
• Roll out dough on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, shifting often on sheet and dusting with more flour as needed to keep from sticking, to a 12" square. Using a small offset spatula, spread half of Nutella over dough in a thin layer. Sprinkle half of nuts, 1 Tbsp. demerara sugar, and 1/2 tsp. sea salt over Nutella. Roll up dough to make a log, using parchment paper to help. Repeat with remaining dough, Nutella, nuts, 1 Tbsp. demerara sugar, and 1/2 tsp. sea salt.
• Slice logs 1" thick and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 1 1/2" apart. Brush tops with egg and sprinkle lightly with more sea salt. Bake rugelach until centers are set and tops are firm to the touch, 25-30 minutes; let cool.
• Do Ahead
• Dough can be made 1 month ahead. Freeze.