A flaky, delicate cookie perfect for making around the holidays, and any other time of year! These cookies are made with a cream cheese dough and filled with jam, mini chocolate chips and nuts and then rolled into the classic crescent shape or rolled into a log and sliced if preferred.
Recipe courtesy of Emily from West of the Loop.
Coarse Turbinado Sugar
for sprinkling on top of cookies
Instructions
For the Dough
Combine the flour and salt in the food processor, and pulse several times.
Add the cold butter and cream cheese. Pulse several times, then run the machine at short intervals, stopping to scrape down the sides, until large clumps of dough form.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface and gently knead it.
Divide the dough in two equal pieces, flatten to about 3/4 of an inch thick, and wrap each portion in plastic wrap.
Refrigerate for at least three hours and up to two days. Dough may be made ahead up to this point and frozen; let it thaw in the refrigerator when ready to use.
To Make Classic Crescent Cookies
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two sheet pans with parchment paper or Silpat baking mats.
Take the dough out of the refrigerator and let it warm up for five minutes.
On a well floured surface, roll out the dough until it is 1/8-inch thick, about a 12-inch circle. Leaving a narrow plain edge, spread jam all over the dough.
Evenly sprinkle 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips, followed by 2 tablespoons of the nuts, over the jam.
Cut the dough into 12 wedges for rolling into crescents. (If the outer edge of the circle is ragged, trim it before rolling.)
Starting at the outside edge, carefully roll up each wedge into a crescent and place on the parchment-lined pan, with the end point on the bottom side.
Repeat until you have 12 crescents.
Chill the formed cookies for 15-20 minutes prior to baking.
When ready to bake, lightly brush the tops with melted butter and sprinkle with 1-2 teaspoons turbinado sugar.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden. Repeat with remaining portion of dough.
Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack.
To Make Rolled Cookies
To make rolled cookies, roll out the dough into a rectangle 1/8-inch thick, about 8 x 12 inches. Leaving a narrow plain edge on one long side, spread jam all over the dough. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons chocolate chips over top of the jam, followed by 2 tablespoons of nuts.
Starting at the long plain edge, carefully roll up the dough tightly into a log and pinch the seam closed. Place on the parchment-lined sheet, with the seam on the bottom side.
Refrigerate the dough log while you repeat the process with the other half of the dough.
When ready to bake the cookies, lightly brush the tops of the logs with melted butter and sprinkle them with 1-2 teaspoons turbinado sugar.
With a serrated knife, cut into the dough at 1-inch intervals to form individual cookies, but do not cut all the way through.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden. Let cool on the pan for about 30 minutes, then slice the log all the way through to form individual cookies.