Apricot Walnut Rugelach

Cream cheese has been free or close to it for weeks now at different grocery stores around town. I don't know about you but I can't pass up anything that's free. But what do you do with half a dozen packages of cream cheese? Well, here's a great recipe for you to try! It's a flaky, glossy, slightly sweet cookie that my family begs for. It's also very easy. If you're in need of a non-cheesecake recipe to use the cream cheese coming out your ears, try this one. You won't be disappointed.

P.S. If you don't already have cream cheese in your frig, it's free yet again at King Soopers this week! :)

Apricot Walnut Rugelach

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

DOUGH:
• 14 tablespoons of butter
• 8 ounces (1 pkg) cream cheese
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour

APRICOT AND WALNUT FILLING:
• 1 cup apricot jam
• 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

TOPPING:
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sugar

Preparation:
1. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese together. Add sugar and vanilla, and mix until smooth. Add flour and mix lightly. Refrigerate dough for an hour or more.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
3. Divide the dough into four balls. On a floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll one ball out into a circle until about 1/8 inch thick.
4. Spread the apricot preserves in the center of the circle, and then sprinkle the walnuts on top.
5. Cut the pastry into pie-shaped wedges. For bite-size and nice looking rugelach, the thick end of the wedge should about an 1 to 1 1/2 inch wide.
6. Start at the wide edge of the wedge and roll the dough up toward the point.
7. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place each pastry, seam side down, on the paper.
8. Brush each pastry with the egg and sugar.
9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden.

TIPS:
1. For a softer dough, use 1/2 cup of confectioners' sugar in the dough instead of the 1/4 cup of sugar.
2. Using too much filling leads to messy looking rugelach.
3. A pizza cutter makes it easier to cut the dough into pie-shaped wedges.
4. If you don't want to use parchment paper, you can spray the cookie sheets with non-stick spray. But I highly recomment parchment paper. It makes for such easy cleanup.
5. After rolling the dough up and placing on the parchment paper, you can stick them in your freezer. When you need fresh rugelach, take them right from the freezer into the oven and add a few minutes to the baking time.