Cranberry Rugelach

For the pastry: In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and the cream cheese. Add the sugar and mix well. Add the flour and salt and mix until a dough forms. Divide the dough into 8 equal portions; flatten into discs, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

For the filling: Combine sugar, cranberries, pecans, melted butter, cinnamon and allspice in a medium bowl until well combined.

To prepare: Remove one dough disc from the refrigerator, keeping the other seven to chill. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the disc to about an 8″ diameter circle. Place 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of the filling on the dough, beginning in the center and spreading outwards, to about 1″ from edge. Cut the dough like a wheel, into 8 triangular pieces. Starting from the wide edge of each triangle, roll into a crescent shape. Repeat this process with the remaining triangles and dough discs, using all the filling.

Place your rugelach, tip side down, on baking sheets lined with parchment paper for easy clean up, or onto ungreased baking sheets. They do not spread, so it’s easy to fit 12 per sheet, or more if your sheets are of the larger variety. Brush each piece with the beaten egg and dust with a bit of extra sugar.

Bake for 17-20 minutes, or until the rugelach begin to just brown on the edges. Remove immediately from the baking sheets to wire racks to cool. They can be served warm, but are wonderful cooled as well. They will keep in an airtight container for a week. Makes 64.