rugelach

American  

[ruhg-uh-luhkh] / ˈrʌg ə ləx /

Sometimes rogelach rugalach

noun

Jewish Cooking.

rugelach plural

1. a bite-size pastry made by rolling a triangle of dough around a filling of jam, nuts, raisins, etc.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• rugelach
  plural

Etymology

Origin of rugelach

First recorded in 1940–45; from Yiddish rugelekh, rogelekh, plural of rugele, rogele

Explanation

Rugelach are baked pastries made with a dough containing cream cheese or sour cream. Resembling little croissants, most rugelach are filled with nuts, chocolate, or cinnamon sugar. These traditional Jewish treats originated in Poland, and the name rugelach derives from the Polish rogaliki, "little twists." The pastries are rolled and twisted into a crescent shape, using a deliciously rich dough that's wrapped around a sweet filling. Rugelach, long a favorite special occasion food in Jewish communities, is now so widely popular that it can be found in many bakeries, delis, coffee shops, and grocery stores.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rugelach

For crescents and rugelach: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 15, 2022

Could it be babka, a rugelach, or a date-smeared pistachio pizza?

From Washington Post ● Jun. 27, 2022

This ingredient is crucial in Jewish rugelach — a traditional, flaky-crumbly cookie my grandma taught me how to make around the age when I still worried about monsters under the bed.

From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2021

I’ll also go to Zabar’s to pick up items like rugelach, bagels, their lifesaving cream cheese, French/Italian roast coffee and maybe one of their prepared foods for dinner that night.

From New York Times ● Apr. 16, 2021

I tell her about my childhood and my mother’s apricot rugelach.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen