fig

Sweet and Savory Rugelach

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Y’all, I am about as merry as a box of candy canes right now. We have, quite literally, one million things in the air right now- a house we’re building, a potential move-in date a week away, work deadlines,  end of year birthdays and parties- but I am determined to be the most holly jolly Mom of two munchkins this side of the North Pole. Never mind that my house looks like a corrugated box and styrofoam explosion; who cares that I haven’t showered, like, at all this week. We’re gonna press on, and we’re gonna have the hap, hap, happiest Christmas! (10 points if you can name that movie quote!)

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Getting in the Christmas Spirit

Last weekend I tried to get the kids in the Christmas spirit with a few traditional activities. We made a gingerbread house (LOL), visited Santa Claus at a local church, and even went decorated sugar cookies. We saw “The Grinch” for the third time and sang Christmas music all day. I even bought a tiny white tinsel tree with mini bulbs for the kids to decorate in lieu of the larger tree we will have at our new house. Aimee decorated the tree and then immediately whined about it not being large enough to put presents under. *Not today, Satan, not today.*

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Basically what I’m trying to say is that I’m trying to do my part even in kinda weird, hectic circumstances. Lest you think I’m doing this out of a Mom-guilt obligation or some incessant need to Keep Up With The Jones’, let me assure you that these efforts are almost 100% selfish; I just really love Christmas, okay? So while we wax poetic about the Baby Jesus and drink lukewarm, child-safe cocoa out of plastic cups, let me introduce you to a holiday treat that I think you’re really going to like: sweet and savory rugelach.

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

Sweet and Savory Rugelach

I’m new to the ruglech train. I’ve tried to make it in the past a number of times, usually without any success, but this was the first time that I was super happy with the results. One dough with two fillings- a sweet and savory- to make a treat that is suitable for appetizer snacks or end-of-dinner desserts. I’m sharing today’s recipes with my BFFs at Diamond of California, who are my go-to for all things nuts. I used their marcona almonds with white chocolate for the sweet rugelach and their whole walnuts for a blue cheese and fig spread savory option. Both are divine, so if you’re in the holiday spirit, break out your nutcrackers and let’s dive in!

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

What is Rugelach?

Here’s what I know about rugelach: it’s a moist dough traditionally made mainly with flour, butter, and cream cheese. The filling options here are endless, but they’re almost always rolled into bitty spiral cookies that are baked until almost crisp. In the past, I’ve had trouble getting my dough to hold its shape in the oven and have ended up with flat, sad-looking crescent roll things. With a smidge more flour and more time to chill the dough, I found that the treats hold up pretty well in the oven. You can swap out your fillings here as you please, just be sure that you keep your dough the same. Don’t use too much moist filling or too many dry ingredients in the centers, or you may find yourself with a mess on your hands. Swapping out nuts or chocolate varieties is totally fine here- experiment!

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

A Few Tips:

A few notes: the sweet rugelach tends to ooze it’s buttery-sugar filling during the baking process. I noticed that even a change in pans yielded slightly different outcomes. If you notice that your cookies are baking in a pool of butter about halfway through, carefully remove the pan from the oven and drain off any excess. Make sure they’re far enough in the baking process that they’ll stay put on the pan, or you may end up dumping your treats down the drain! If you don’t want to risk it- no problem. I just like this for keeping the bottoms as crisp as the tops.

Keeping your dough cold and your oven the right temp as the pans go in will help to prevent some of this as well. As for the savory rugelach, if you’re not a fan of blue cheese, feel free to try gorgonzola, feta, or whatever! I love how the salty blue cheese balances with the sweet fig spread, but to each his own.

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

One final plug for Diamond of California: their nuts are the bomb. You can expect consistent, excellent product from them every time. Pick up a few bags at the store and give them a try yourself! The Whole Walnuts are perfect for this time of year when we all have our nutcrackers out already. They make a great addition to our desserts, bellies, and even table centerpieces, so jump on this train ASAP. As always, thank you for supporting brands that make this site possible. Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals and Happy Baking!

Sweet and Savory Rugelach by Wood and Spoon blog. These are traditional rugelach cookies made two ways: one with a blue cheese, fig spread, and Diamond Walnuts filling, and another made with white chocolate and Marcona almonds. The savory cookie is a perfect small bite appetizer for holiday gatherings and the white chocolate one is a decadent dessert. The pastry here flakes up and crisps almost like pastry dough. Try these yummy holiday treats with the recipe on thewoodandspoon.com

If you like this sweet and savory rugelach you should try:

Triple Chocolate Cookies

Pistachio Honey Bars

Candied Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

Trail Mix Cookies

Print

Sweet and Savory Rugelach

One dough creates two cookies- a sweet and savory rugelach. Switch up the filling options to create the treat of your choice. Perfect for the holidays!

  • Author: Kate Wood
  • Prep Time: 25
  • Cook Time: 35
  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 16
  • Category: dessert

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 1 cup (140 gm) all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup (113 gm) unsalted butter, cold and chopped
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, cold and chopped
  • 3 tablespoons sour cream

For the fig, walnut, and blue cheese filling:

  • ¼ cup fig spread
  • 11/2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
  • 1/3 cup (40 gm) finely chopped walnuts
  • 1 egg, whisked
  • For the white chocolate almond filling:
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup (50 gm) finely chopped white chocolate
  • 1/4 cup (30 gm) finely chopped marcona almonds
  • 1 egg, whisked
  • Sprinkling or sanding sugar

Instructions

To prepare the dough:

  1. Pulse the flour and salt in a food processor to combine. Add the butter, cream cheese, and sour cream and pulse, pulse, pulse the mixture until a dough comes together. Don’t overwork it. Pat the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a flat round disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until well-set, a couple of hours or even overnight.
  2. When ready to assemble, roll your disk out onto a lightly floured surface into a round circle, about 1/8-1/4” thick. Make sure your dough isn’t sticking to your surface before you add your filling! For the savory rugelach, spread the fig spread all over the entirety of the dough circle and then sprinkle on the blue cheese and walnuts. For the sweet rugelach, use a pastry brush to paint on the butter and then evenly sprinkle on the white chocolate and almonds. Use a sharp chef’s knife or a pizza cutter to cut the circle into 16 equal-sized wedges. The fat end of each wedge will be about 1” thick. Starting with the wide end, tightly roll up the rugelach until they’re little spiral dough pieces and place each one on a small parchment lined baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Be sure your wedges are tightly rolled so that the rugelach don’t come unrolled in the oven. Place the pan in the freezer for 20 minutes or the fridge for an hour to chill.
  3. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Remove from the fridge and brush the whisked egg all over each pastry. Sprinkle sugar on the white chocolate pastries. Bake in the preheated oven about 30 minutes, or until the pastries are golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool some before serving.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

This post is sponsored by Diamond of California. Dough recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour.

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.com

Strawberry fig pop-tarts. Does your inner kid just squeal with delight? POP-TARTS, okay? Pop-tarts for grown-ups- finally!

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.com

In college, my friends used to joke that I had a tape worm. Now, I’ve never had a tape worm, but it’s my understanding that such creatures are not a joking matter. To be clear, if you currently have a tape worm, you also have my sincerest apologies. Truly.

The point is, I used to be able to eat like I was eating for five. Food would enter my body with zero care in my mind as to where it would go next. Dessert? Duh. Seconds? Of course, thank you for offering. I had an insatiable appetite, a voracity for food and the act of dining, but as luck and genetics would have it, you wouldn’t know it by looking at me. At my largest, I had decent curves and an enviable rack, so I typically  ate without a care on the regular.

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.com

Body Changes

Today, status post a couple of kids and two months away from entering a new decade of life, I have a different understanding with my body. The understanding is that if I eat, I will be filled. If I eat more than I burn, I will gain weight. If I eat an extra helping of dessert every day this week, I will likely have a muffin top in my loosest jeans next week. My butter intake is directly related to the amount of cottage cheese that  I will sport on my hind parts next summer, so I have to exercise self-control at times. That includes busting it at the gym, taking the stairs, and passing on seconds most days of the week. My rubber band waistline is not what it used to be, so I have to work hard if I want to keep my current wardrobe around.

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.com

Unfortunately, my desire for food has not changed. I dream about lunch at breakfast and cheat on my dinner with thoughts of dessert. I’m the girl who eats the gooey cheesy parts off their kids’ sandwiches and finishes their milkshake just in time to drink their husband’s. I’m not above eating French fries out of a greasy paper bag and a brownie “a la mode” is always an “a la HECK YES!”

“a la mode?” is always an “a la HECK YES!”

While I should maybe have some degree of embarrassment or cause for concern (after all, I am a dietitian!?!),  food is just apart of who I am now. I love to make it, I love to eat it. I enjoy the beauty of God’s creation with every bite of macerated berry, shaved truffle, and caramelized shallot that enters my gullet, so while I work hard on the backend to keep my, um, backend looking good, the truth remains that I’m really just here for the food.

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts

Like these strawberry fig pop-tarts. A guilty pleasure indeed, but one that evokes a lot of the playful, childlike memories that I have of food: begging my mom to buy pop-tarts, but settling for toast instead; lusting after that 75-cent, foil-wrapped treat in the vending machine at school when all I had to spend was a quarter. Pop-tarts are a treat that now, as an adult, I don’t make room for in my diet, but when I get the chance to make some of my own, I don’t pass it up.

This recipe for strawberry fig pop-tarts is fantastic for two reasons. First, the filling is an easy peasy strawberry fig preserve that I love to make. Every year, I pick figs and quadruple the recipe so that I can preserve the fruit to enjoy all year round. The second reason you need these strawberry fig pop-tarts in your life is because the crust on these babies is really nothing more than my all-time favorite pie crust. So basically, when you eat these pop-tarts, you’re really getting pie with an extra helping of crust. YA WELCOME.

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.com

Making the Pop-Tarts

To make these strawberry fig pop-tarts, we start by making the preserves. Add some sugar to a pot of chopped or mashed fresh figs and cook until the sugar has dissolved. Add a few scoops of strawberry gelatin (I told you this was the easiest recipe) and cook for a few minutes until thick and bubbly. Let the preserves cool in the fridge while you make your crust.

Add some flour, salt, and sugar to the bowl of a food processor and pulse in some butter and shortening until pea-sized clumps form. The butter adds the flavor and the shortening adds the flake, so trust when I say that this is a crust worth writing home about. Add some ice cold water to the flour until it begins to form a dough. Divide the mixture in half, patting it into flat disks, and allow to chill in the fridge for a few hours.

Assembling the Pop-Tarts

Assembly for these strawberry fig pop-tarts can happen up to a week in advance. Roll out your dough on a floured surface and use a biscuit cutter to cut out the tops and bottoms of your dough. Spoon a bit of preserves on half of the rounds and use a fork to crimp the tops on to each one. Place the pop-tarts in the freezer to set up properly before baking.

Fresh from the oven, these pop-tarts can be messy, but doesn’t that make it taste better anyways? Allow the little pies to cool before adorning them with a spoon of glazed icing. I tossed on some sprinkles too because YOLO, right?

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts Recipe by The Wood and Spoon Blog by Kate Wood. This recipe is for mini round pop tarts make of butter pie crust pasty and simple homemade strawberry fig preserves. Top with an easy confectioner's sugar icing glaze and sprinkles for a fun breakfast or dessert. Find the recipe for the jam and these simple mini hand pie pastries on thewoodandspoon.comThese strawberry fig pop-tarts are incredibly fun and delicious, likely the spunkiest dessert you’ll eat all year. Make these little buddies before the summer is up and don’t forget to just enjoy food from time to time. Be sure to check out my nomination for the “Best Baking and Sweets” category of the SAVEUR Blog Awards. You can vote as many times as you want from now until September 8 by heading to the link in the sidebar of my site. I’ll be popping in this weekend with another treat because I luh you guyz, so happy Monday and have a great week!

If you like these strawberry fig pop-tarts, be sure to check out:

Cherry Lime Hand Pies

Honey Mascarpone Tart with Figs and Salty Graham Cracker Crust

Cranberry Pear Pop-Tarts

Blueberry Galette with a Cornmeal Crust

Peach Berry Pie

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Print

Strawberry Fig Pop-Tarts

Mini strawberry fig pop-tarts are made with buttery pie crust and homemade preserves, topped with a simple sugar glaze. 

  • Author: Kate Wood
  • Prep Time: 45
  • Cook Time: 25
  • Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
  • Yield: 12

Ingredients

For the pastry:

  • 2 1/4 cups (290 gm) of all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 cup (113 gm) butter
  • 1/2 cup (113 gm) shortening
  • 5 tablespoons ice water

For the strawberry fig preserves:

  • 2 cups figs (about 1 pound before stemmed), stemmed and quartered/ mashed
  • 11/2 cups (300 gm) sugar
  • 11/2 ounces of strawberry gelatin ( like Jell-O)

For the glaze:

  • 1 cup (125 gm) powdered sugar
  • 23 teaspoons milk
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • food coloring, if desired

Instructions

To prepare the pastry:

  1. Combine flour, salt and sugar in a medium sized bowl.
  2. Cut in the butter and shortening with a pastry cutter or the back of a fork until it is the consistency of a course meal with small, pea-sized chunks of butter throughout. Add water, 1-2 tablespoons at a time, tossing gently until pastry comes together in moist clumps. Divide dough in half and pat into two round, flat disks. Wrap with Saran wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.

To prepare the strawberry fig preserves:

  1. Add the figs and sugar to a large pot on the stove over medium heat. Mash and stir often until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is well combined. Add the gelatin and bring to a boil, stirring frequently while the mixture cooks for about 7-8 minutes. Mash the figs more if you’d like and then pour the contents into a large canning jar or heat-proof container. Store in the fridge to cool.

To prepare the pop-tarts

  1. Roll out one disk of pastry to ¼” thickness on a floured surface. Using a 3″ biscuit cutter, gently cut rounds of dough. Each Pop-Tart will require two rounds (one for top and one for bottom).
  2. Place one tablespoon of cooled filling on top of half of the rounds.
  3. Top the filled rounds with a second circle of crust and use a fork to crimp the edges. Vent the top of each rectangle by poking the top of the pastry with a fork 2-3 times. Freeze the pop tarts on the baking sheet for at least 2 hours or up to a week.
  4. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the tarts, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool before topping with glaze.

To prepare the glaze:

  1. Whisk together the powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons of milk, and vanilla. Add additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the desired consistency is reached. You want the glaze to be fairly thick but still pourable. Add food coloring if desired. Once pop-tarts have cooled completely, top each pastry with a bit of glaze and allow to set.

Notes

  • If you’d like, feel free to can these preserves! You can triple (or even quadruple!) the recipe and process several batches of cans. See the Ball website (freshpreserving.com) for more help on preserving
  • You will have extra preserves. Save them in an air-tight container in the fridge!

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!