And to finish up the pistachio paste, because I had the raspberry filling and crumble made, I did this pistachio and raspberry cake. As usual, making layer cakes is like pulling teeth for me, so I just really couldn’t be bothered with this beyond just wanting to get a few things out of my freezer. It’s pistachio sponge cake, white chocolate whipped cream, raspberry sauce, crumble, and then whipped cream with some of the raspberry sauce added to it. I was supposed to add a little coloring to have a gradation, but again, I couldn’t be bothered.
The crumble basically makes it impossible to get a tidy slice because the sponge is so delicate, but it’s also what makes this cake delicious and sweet enough. The whipped cream contains white chocolate more for a bit of body and stabilization. The amount doesn’t provide sweetness nor much in the way of flavor. And the raspberry sauce is pretty tart. The crumble is a welcome sweet and slightly salty bite that also adds texture.
You’re a good tooth puller (or is it the other way around? 
). That cake looks good!
Thank you! I don’t think I ever gave the expression thought until now. 
I just realized I posted this here rather than the baking thread. D’oh! Sorry about that!
Rugalch were always present at Christmas when i was growing up. I do make them from time to time and always pick a recipe with sour cream in the dough. The filling was always walnuts and apricots. Its a very traditional eastern european Christmas treat.
Fascinating story. Thank goodness for that new addition to the Accounting Dept. @ the bakery!
I remember this thread Rugelach, homemade
I’ve only made them for a cookie exchange once, pre- HungryOnion. Same cream cheese dough with 2 fillings, one with apricot, the other with poppyseed.
I wanted to see if David Lebovitz has a recipe. On FB, he has a photo of some chocolate marzipan rugelach from a bakery called Marzipan in Jerusalem. Here is a Reddit thread about a copycat recipe of the Marzipan bakery version https://www.reddit.com/r/JewishCooking/s/M5Pd8tmfD3
Recipe (can be made parve) https://jamiegeller.com/recipes/chocolate-rugelach/
From Lebovitz’ babka recipe blurb
I remember their stores. A very fancy introduction to all things decadent in the form of chocolate.
I’ve not made rugelach, but I’ve read enough recipes to know that the cream cheese dough is similar to identical to the dough for tassies that I’ve made, and my experience with those is that chilling the formed tassies for a couple of hours to overnight before baking maximizes the flakiness compared to baking right away.
Still isolating over here, and bored - can’t go to the gym or supermarket after dinner, my usual routine. So, holiday baking: a half-batch of Sarah Kieffer’s ginger molasses pan-bangers in the oven. First time with this method.
They smell amazing.
Whoa.
I’d really like to leave the house!
I protected myself for 3 years so I wouldn’t get Covid, kept away from family gatherings outside my bubble so I wouldn’t get it, vaxxed and boosted 4 times so I wouldn’t get it, went through 2 surgeries…aaaaargh!
I’m so sorry, that sounds rough!
Pan-banging ginger molasses cookies from Sarah Kieffer.
Made a half-batch of these last night; my first time with the popular “pan banging” method. Really enjoyed the method (no chilling of dough needed) and banging the pan was kinda fun. You can’t bake too many of them at once (2-3) because of the size, which is a little bit of a pain - I’m sure I could make them a bit smaller in order to mitigate that.
Taste and texture wise, these really hit the spot for me. They’re still soft on day 2 and are fun to break apart and share. Too big for most cookie boxes!
I increased the dry spices a bit (ginger and cinn, and a pinch of clove) and would prob increase them even more next time.
Panforte.
This is my second year making these. It freezes well, but should be cured at room temperature for a week before doing anything with it (including eating it).
I use a recipe from Marcella In Cucina, and add glazed orange peel, glazed lemon peel, figs, almonds and hazelnuts. I had a note from last year about increasing my addition of ground cayenne and ancho chili peppers. Today I used a 1/32 t. of each. I made a full recipe divided between two 6 ½” springform pans.
We love this treat, as does everyone I know who has tried it. Will be making multiple batches this week.
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rugelach-recipe-1944318?oc=linkback
Very buttery and delicious. It felt labor-intensive.
Do you make the peel?
Thanks! At the moment, that’s my first choice of recipes to try.
Nope. Nuts.com. I’ve been happy with the quality of almost all of their nuts and fruits.
I don’t recommend the peppermint bark, however, or the chocolate covered raisins. The former arrives as a chalky mess; the latter has an artificial taste to it. Everything else I’ve purchased there (and it’s been a lot), has been great.
It’s a good one. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed even as a first-timer.
I don’t like the dill pickle peanuts my cousin sent from nuts dot com. The nut-flavoured nuts were great!
