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Every time I make Grandma Fligel's Kolachy I get many requests for the recipe. She made these as dessert for every holiday dinner she hosted, but sometimes my brother and step-brothers and I would sneak 'em while she was still cooking the meal! Below her Kolachy recipe is a cream cheese filling recipe that I've developed over the years. Use more or less orange and lemon rind as you see fit. (P.S. There are an infinite number of Kolachy recipes out there -- some are more like danishes, some use yeast. I guess it all depends what part of Europe your family is from and what has been passed down in your family. You can also have fun doing a web search of all the different ways to spell it: kolachy, kolachky, kolache, on and on!) |
Grandma Fligel's Kolachy
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1 pound unsalted butter (room temperature) |
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8 oz. cream cheese (room temperature) |
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1 teaspoon vanilla |
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1 cup powdered sugar (plus more for dusting) |
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5 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for rolling pin & rolling surface) |
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various pasty fillings (do not use jelly or jam ~ they don't have enough flavor!) such as raspberry, pevka (prune/plum), poppy seed, almond, or cream cheese (see my recipe below). Solo and Bohemian Kitchen are excellent brands. |
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix butter, cream cheese, and vanilla until well blended. Add powdered sugar and mix again. Add flour gradually (I do about 1/2 cup at a time). Near the end of the mixing you may have to add the remaining flour by hand.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Dough should be no more than 1/4" thick.
Cut Kolachy out with a small cookie cutter (Grandma used a milk glass!) and place on baking sheets (additionally, I use Silpat Baking Mats).
Make a thumb print (a wide thumb print! I usually push the thumb print out quite a bit ~ makes room for more filling!) and fill with pastry filling of your choice.
Bake at 375 degrees for about 16 - 18 minutes (just until lightly brown ~ do not over bake!).
Place on cooling rack and sprinkle with powdered sugar. (I always put paper towels or newspaper down on the counter before placing my cooling rack on it ~ makes clean up a breeze.)
Makes approximately 9 dozen cookies.
Karin's Cream Cheese Filling
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8 oz. cream cheese (room temperature) |
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2/3 cup sugar |
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1/2 teaspoon lemon rind |
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1/2 teaspoon orange rind |
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1 large egg (room temperature) |
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1/2 teaspoon vanilla |
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1/4 teaspoon salt |
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4 tablespoons of flour |
With a mixer, cream together in a bowl cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in lemon and orange rind, egg, vanilla, and salt. Beat in flour a tablespoon at a time. Refrigerate until used.
