I have yet to meet a person who doesn’t gobble up at least several of these Cinnamon Walnut Cream Cheese Rugelach. They are irresistible little roll-ups of happy flavors, and thanks to the wash you brush on right before baking, they look like you ran to the pastry shop for them. But you didn’t. You made them with your own two hands. Warning: You will have to bar your family/housemates from the kitchen if you don’t want them to disappear as soon as they are out of the oven.

This is my husband’s adaptation of a Martha Stewart recipe, so sometimes we call this Jason’s Rugelach. Whatever. Delicious regardless of who gets the credit!

Makes 32. Prep time: 30 minutes. Total time: 1 hour, plus chilling

INGREDIENTS

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 bar (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 large egg, light beaten

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1/2 cup light-brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

STEPS

1. In a food processor, blend butter, cream cheese, sugar (just the granulated white sugar), and salt until well combined. Add flour, and pulse until a dough forms. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks, and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until forms, about 2 hours (but it’s fine to keep in the fridge for up to two days till you are ready to bake).
2. Preheat oven to 350, with racks set at the upper and lower thirds. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper, and set aside. In a small bowl, combine the beaten egg with 1 teaspoon of water — that’s your egg wash. In a separate bowl, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon, mixing to blend.
3. Taking one dough disk at a time, put the dough on lightly floured parchment paper and roll out into an 11-inch circle. It should be about 1/4″ thick. Using a dinner plate placed on top face-down as a guide, cut around the dough to make a perfect circle. Trim off and discard scraps. (I’ve been known to eat the trimmings.) Brush the dough circles with egg wash. Sprinkle the dough circles with the walnuts and brown-sugar mixture, distributing evenly.
4. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter (MUCH easier, in my book), cut each circle into 16 equal triangles, just as you’d cut up a pie. Starting from the wide end, roll up each triangle of dough and place on the lined baking sheets, seam side down. Brush with egg wash.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes, until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.