Cream Cheese

First brought to America by Eastern European immigrants, rugelach are popular on nearly every Jewish holiday table (except at Passover).The rich cream-cheese dough is filled with dried fruit, chocolate, or nuts—or a combination of all three.

You can freeze the unbaked biscuits on a baking sheet, then store in a resealable plastic bag for up to three weeks. When ready to serve, bake them (without thawing) on a parchment-lined sheet (the baking time will be the same).

This recipe was in Mrs. Rowe’s self-published cookbook, Mrs. Rowe’s Favorite Recipes, which is no longer in print. A note at the bottom of the page gives low-fat options, like using low-fat cream cheese and margarine. Give it a whirl if you like, but you’d be missing out on the true-blue flavor of this pie. The coconut and pecans will need close attention while toasting; don’t let their heavenly smell distract you. In fact, they continue to cook for a minute or so after being removed from the heat, so stop cooking them just before they look the way you want them to—golden brown and crunchy. Try the Chocolate Cookie Crust (page 21) for contrast, or the Gingersnap Crust (page 22) to cut the sweetness.

Stephen Harriman, a writer for the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot, says, “For some reason, I was expecting the peanut pie to be a pecan pie look-alike. Instead it looked more like a lemon meringue or banana cream pie. If you like peanuts smooth, you’ll love this.”

Smooth, firm, and creamy, this pie is naturally a lovely shade of pink, so you need not add the food coloring unless you want a deeper color. After 6 hours in the freezer, it’s slice-able but still soft. Left overnight, it’s firm but still creamy—a little piece of strawberry heaven.

This crust, which has a nice tangy flavor, can be used in any recipe that calls for Plain Pie Pastry (page 17) or Vinegar Pie Crust (page 19). It’s a good idea to chill the crust for at least 15 minutes before baking; this will help the crust stick together better.

With their cookie-crumb crust, creamy filling, and fruity topping, individual cheesecakes are a delightful spin on the full-size dessert. Glossy apricot jam gives the desserts a golden glow, while store-bought chocolate wafers provide a crisp, quick-to-assemble base.

Applesauce in the batter makes these cupcakes incomparably moist. Pecans add a bit of texture, but they can be omitted. The cream-cheese frosting gets a twist with the addition of brown sugar.

Smaller adaptations of favorite desserts, such as raspberry-swirled cheesecake, are always appealing. Everyone gets his or her own, with plenty of buttery graham-cracker crust in each bite. Drops of fresh raspberry puree are pulled through cream-cheese batter to give the cakes a marbleized look. Baking the cupcakes in a hot-water bath produces the creamiest results and prevents the batter from sinking in the oven.

These single-serving delights are a staff favorite—not only because they are delectable, but also since they are easy to prepare. Instead of a cookie-crumb crust, a whole sandwich cookie serves as the base for each cheesecake. In addition, chopped cookies are mixed into the filling.

This recipe was developed as a more healthy option to serve at a baby’s or young child’s birthday party. Sweetened only with a combination of maple syrup and molasses, the moist carrot cupcakes are sure to entice children and adults alike (which is helpful, since parents and other older guests often outnumber little ones at early birthday celebrations). Paired with a tangy, mildly sweet frosting—just cream cheese and maple syrup—the cupcakes are also a better choice than most for anyone watching his or her refined sugar intake. Mini cupcakes get only a dab of frosting and a candied carrot chip, while standard cupcakes are dotted with a generous amount of frosting.

The mild and sweet flavor of Meyer lemon is one of Martha’s favorites; these zest-flecked cupcakes are filled with Meyer lemon curd, which peeks out from the tops. The fruit, which is actually a lemon-orange hybrid, is generally available at specialty stores in winter and early spring. If you can’t find Meyer lemons, use regular lemons instead. The recipe yields a lot of cupcakes, so you may want to consider these for a bake sale or large gathering, such as a shower or special birthday celebration.

Versatile, tangy, and quick to prepare, cream-cheese frosting has a perfectly soft consistency for swirling or swooping. It’s the classic choice for topping many cupcakes, including carrot and red velvet, and is also especially good with others, such as zucchini-spice and applesauce-spice.

Similar to dark chocolate frosting (page 302), this topping gets its intense color from the addition of semisweet chocolate. Sour cream and cream cheese impart tangy flavor and ultra-creamy consistency. This frosting would pair well with any chocolate cupcake, particularly devil’s food (page 34; also made with sour cream), as well as those made with banana, such as the roasted banana cupcakes on page 141.

Those new to working with pastry would do well to start with a cream cheese dough. The combination of butter and cream cheese produces a supple, forgiving dough that rolls out quickly and smoothly, thanks to the high moisture content of the cream cheese. It also has a tender crumb and a pleasingly tangy flavor that pairs well with sweet or savory fillings.