Beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the salt. Gradually beat in the flour. (I use a clean towel and drape it over my mixer while adding the flour so I don’t create snow in the kitchen.)

Divide dough into 4 equal portions, form into balls, wrap and refrigerate overnight. Let the dough stand at room temperature until workable. (My refrigerator keeps things sometimes too cold, so I often stick it in the microwave for about 10 seconds-power level 4, a few times until workable.)

Position a rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat oven to 375.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out each piece into a 1/8 inch thick round about 15 inches in diameter.

Filling:

Combine the nuts, currants or raisins if desired, sugar and cinnamon. Brush the dough with the butter and then the jam if you are using. Sprinkle with the nut mixture, leaving a 1/2 inch border around the edges.

For large rugelach, cut each round into 8 wedges; for medium, cut into 12 wedges, for small, cut into 16 wedges. Roll up wedges from the wide end toward the point, pinching the point to seal. Gently bend to form crescents.

(You can now freeze these for several months. Defrost before baking.)

Place the rugelach on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let the cookies stand until firm, about 1 minute, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the freezer.

Notes: Rather than filling you can also roll the dough on a surface sprinkled with a 1/2 c of sugar and a 1/2 t of cinnamon. For chocolate rugelach, you could use Nutella or chocolate chips in the middle OR substitute 1/2 c of cocoa powder for the cinnamon and brush the dough rounds with the 1/4 butter, but not the jam.)