Rugelach and Democracy

So many of you wrote after last night’s post asking about my family recipe for Rugelach/Meltaways that it only makes sense to share it! You’ll find the recipe at the end of today’s newsletter. It’s definitely what my grandmother and mom would have wanted. They were never ones to hoard recipes. Although the cookies can be a little bit messy at the rolling out stage, they are utterly worth it—absolutely delicious with coffee.

We also had success with sugar cookies, although my daughter gets all the credit for decorating them.

Beyond cookies, I have been reflecting on an important piece Marc Elias, the expert election lawyer, wrote over the weekend. In it, he says, “Each time I have sat down to write something since the election, I am bothered by this recurring phrase that I simply cannot get out of my head. So, this week I am going to just say it out loud: we are on our own.”

We are on our own. I suspect the reason Marc can’t get it out of his head is because it is true. The cavalry isn’t coming to rescue us. But here's the important thing. We may be on our own, but we are not alone. We truly are in this together. We have each other, a community of like-minded people who care about democracy, and although that may seem like a slender thread right now, it’s how we’re going to get through this. Trump may try to turn our nation into an illiberal democracy—a country where existing democratic institutions are used to cloak undemocratic processes in a veneer of legitimacy—but we will not let him. At a minimum, though, we can make sure he doesn’t do it under the cover of darkness. There are people who will be willing to shine a light and expose what’s happening.

So, gather your resources and gather your courage. We don’t know exactly how this will play out, which of the horribles will come first, and whether any guardrails might reemerge. It feels like a plan for the worst and hope for the best moment. Inevitably, with this level of uncertainty, we are going to be building the airplane while we are flying it. But there are a lot of people included in that “we,” and they bring many different talents and resources to the fight. We will not succumb to illiberal democracy.

We’re in this together,

Joyce

Grandma Bess’ Meltaways

Dough

1 8oz Carton of cottage cheese

1 C. Unsalted butter at room temperature

2 C. Sifted Flour

Filling

1/2 C. Melted Butter

3/4 C. Light Brown Sugar

Cinnamon as desired

3/4 C. Finely chopped walnuts or pecans

Egg wash (to brush the tops with before baking)

1 Egg yolk whisked with 2 T. Water

Prepare the dough:

Whip the cottage cheese in a blender until smooth (I usually skip this step and mix it on high in the mixing bowl before adding other ingredients).

Put the cottage cheese and butter in a mixer and mix until smooshed together. Add flour and mix on low speed until incorporated, then on medium until the dough begins to form into a ball. Remove from mixer, divide into three equal balls, and press into flat discs several inches thick.

Wrap each disc in plastic wrap or wax paper and refrigerate for at least four hours. They will keep for up to 24 hours like this.

Form and bake the cookies:

When you’re ready to bake, begin by preheating the oven to 400°`and putting parchment paper on or greasing 2-3 cookies sheets depending on size.

Take one dough disc out of the fridge and roll it out on a lightly floured board or nonstick mat into a circle about 1/8” thick. Brush with 1/3 of the melted butter. Sprinkle 1/3 of the brown sugar evenly over the dough, follow with 1/3 of the nuts, and finally, sprinkle cinnamon generously over the top. Cut the round into 16 pizza slice-shaped wedges.

To roll them up, start at the wide end and roll up tightly, but don’t worry too much if they aren’t perfect; they’ll still bake up nicely and taste great. Place them on the cookie sheet with the point side down to hold them in place. Repeat with the other two dough discs.

Before putting them in the oven, brush the tops with the egg wash mixture.

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Remove from the oven and let rest 5-10 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling.