Soft Spicy Rugelach with Dried Figs Filling

Absolutely universal dough and filling. Because filling is not runny, you can use with different types of dough. Because dough is not sweet, you can can choose any filling you want.

Makes 24 2-bites cookies

Dough
1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sumac
A couple dashes cayenne pepper
100 ml vegetable oil
200 ml water, room temperature

Dry Figs Walnut filling
1 cup packed dried figs (about 17-18 medium size dried figs)
1/4 cup apple juice
1/2 cup walnut pieces
3 teaspoons Irish cream liqueur
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Egg wash
1 egg, slightly beaten
Almond flour for sprinkling

To prepare the filling:

In a small saucepan, combine the figs and apple juice. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes or until fruit is soft and the mixture is thick. Remove from the heat, leave to cool for a couple minutes. Add soft figs, the chopped walnuts and cream liqueur to a food processor. Process until smooth paste. Place mixture to a medium bowl, add sugars and melted butter. Mix everything together very well. It can be done in advanced. You can keep filling in refrigerator and warm up on a kitchen counter for 30 minutes before using.

To make dough:

In a medium bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and spices. Make a well in the center of mixture. Bring to boil oil and water in a small saucepan and pour into well. Using a spoon, make a dough. Be careful, because dough will be hot. Leave the dough in a bowl covered on a counter to cool completely. It takes 15-20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Divide the dough into 3 equal parts. On a well-floured board, roll each part of dough into a 10-inch circle. Lightly sprinkle circle with almond flour. Divide filling into 3 equal parts and using your hands, torn one part of the filling into small pieces. Place pieces on a circle and spread with back side of teaspoon. Cut the circle into 8 equal wedges. Starting with the wide edge, roll up each wedge. Place the cookies, points tucked under, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with rest of the dough and filling. Brush each cookie with the egg wash.

Bake 15 minutes on a lower third shelf and 10-15 minutes on upper shelf. Remove to a wire rack and let cool. Store in an airtight container.