Hungarian Nut Roll Cookies (Walnut Filling) Baked Until the Edges Set

Hungarian Nut Roll Cookies (Walnut Filling) Baked Until the Edges Set keeps the shopping list focused on all purpose flour, kosher salt, and oz cream cheese room temperature. It serves 48 Cookies.

Count on 30 minutes of prep, 12 minutes of cooking, 2 hours of resting, about 2 hours from the first measurement to the plate.

Ingredients Method

What goes in the bowl

For the Pastry

• 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
• 1 cup unsalted butter softened
• ½ cup granulated sugar for rolling

For the Walnut Filling

• ½ pound walnuts finely ground
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup whole milk boiled
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted

How the cooking goes

To make the Walnut Filling

1. Mix filling in a medium mixing bowl using only ¼ cup of the boiled milk. The mixture should be thick.
2. If the filling is not spreadable, use the rest of the milk. You used all of it. It will thicken as it sits.
3. Note: You can make the filling ahead of time and freeze it until you are ready to use it. Just thaw at ambient temperature when you are ready to use.

For the Pastry Dough

1. Sieve flour and salt together in a medium mixing bowl and keep it to one side.
2. Whip the cream cheese and butter together with a electric mixer or a hand mixer until completely incorporated and creamy (3-5 minutes).
3. Reduce the speed of the mixer and slowly add in the flour. You used 5 additions and completely mixed in the flour each time. The dough will be soft but not sticky.
4. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and flatten each to ¾” thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until hard, at least 2 hours.

Assembling the Walnut Rolls

1. Pre-heat the oven to 375F. Move the oven rack one setting higher than the center.
2. Dust each side of the dough with flour. Generously coat a flat surface (countertop, marble board, etc.) with granulated sugar. Plop the dough on top and press gently to push some crystals into the dough. The sugar will keep your dough elevated off the rolling surface enough to keep it from sticking. Lightly coat the rolling pin with flour throughout the process, using as little as possible.
3. With a pastry wheel or sharp knife, trim the dough into a square and then cut the square into 16 smaller squares. the dough never rolled out into a perfect circle so you would just cut as many 1 1/2 “ squares a possible, saving the scraps for later.
4. Set a dollop of filling in one corner of each square. You used ½ teaspoon.
5. Starting in the corner with the filling, roll the dough around the filling from corner to corner, gently pressing down as you roll. Grab the roll on both sides and pinch as you bend the roll to create a crescent shape. Gently move it to a parchment covered sheet pan, placing the Rolls no closer than 1” apart.
6. Repeat with all remaining squares.
7. Sprinkle the middles of the Rolls with just a touch of granulated sugar.
8. Oven-bake 12-14 minutes or until the bottom edges are a golden and you can smell them. They should puff up slightly in the middle. With experience you can see when the dough is cooked. Allow it to cool slightly on the pan on a wire rack and then move them gently to a wire rack to cool until it is no longer warm.
9. Repeat with all remaining dough. Refrigerate and re-roll your scraps. Amazing.
10. For a more traditional cookie, you can omit the granulated sugar and dust the final, cooled cookie with powdered sugar. You will warn you that it won’t be as divine.

After it comes off the heat

Cool the sheet on a rack before the pieces are stacked. A covered tin keeps them for a few days.

If you want another plate from Cookies, open Soft Gingerbread Cookies Baked Until the Edges Set and Soft Sugar Cookie Baked Until the Edges Set.