Nothing beats digging into a box of warm, squishy rugelach straight from the bakery oven, right? Wrong! This rugelach cake does.
Yes, it’s an entire cake made of rugelach — and no, I don’t mean a babka. Picture a pull-apart cake formed of individually rolled rugelach piled on top of one another in concentric circles, which fuse together into a sticky delight as they bake. Sort of like a monkey bread, but with rugelach instead of balls of dough.
This sensation seems to have blossomed online. While it’s increasingly popular among Israeli home cooks and food bloggers, rugelach cake is not (yet) readily available in bakeries in Israel or the U.S.. There is, however, a version on offer at hipster hotspot Tony V Esther in Tel Aviv’s Levinsky Market.
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After a social media deep dive, it appears that food blogger Keren Agam is the mastermind behind the bake — she’s posted various versions on her Instagram page and website, dating back to as early as 2017.
For those of you who paid attention in Hebrew school, you can watch Keren bake it here.
Since then, the trend has taken off. In addition to Keren’s classic chocolate version, she’s dreamt up a cinnamon variant, as well as one with mini cheese danishes, studded with berries. Others have added a smattering of sesame seeds to the top of their cake. Some have opted for a deep-dish version, with three layers of perfectly rolled rugelach.
I’ll take it any way it comes. But I can’t promise I’ll share. If you’re ready to make your own, try Lior Mashiach’s recipe here.
