Best Aunt Annes Kolacky Recipes

KOLACZKI - TRADITIONAL POLISH COOKIES

Steps:

• Mix cream cheese and softened unsalted butter in a stand mixer. Add in three cups of flour. Mix well. Wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
• Place a quarter of the dough on a dough board and roll out to a thin layer. Cut into 1 1/2 inch squares. Place jam in the center and pinch together opposite sides. Rub a little water on the place where you pinched together in order to keep them together when baking.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove to cooling rack. Dust with powdered sugar. Store in airtight container.

KOLACHKY

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese and butter until well blended. I like to use my hands, but you can also use a wooden spoon. Mix in the flour 1 cup at a time. As the dough becomes stiff, turn it out onto the counter and knead in flour until it is no longer sticky. Continue to knead the dough for 5 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Crush the walnuts to a fine consistency in a food processor. Stir in the egg and honey. On a well floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut the dough into 3x3 inch squares. Place a teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. Use walnut for some and poppyseed for the rest. Roll the squares up and seal the edges. These can also be formed into triangles. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Brush with egg white.
• Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned. When cool, dust with confectioners' sugar.

SOPHIE'S KOLACKY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease cookie sheets.
• Using a pastry blender or food processor, cut butter into cream cheese.
• In a small bowl, sift dry ingredients together except for confectioners' sugar.
• Work dry ingredients into butter/cream cheese mixture until you have an even, mealy texture.
• Knead to form a stiff dough. If the dough gets too soft, refrigerate for about five minutes before continuing.
• Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness.
• Using a cookie cutter or glass, cut into about 3 inch diameter cookies. Keep re-rolling dough until you have used it all. Use your thumb to make a depression in each cookie. Place a 1/2 teaspoon of filling in the depression.
• Bake for about 20 minutes (until lightly golden). Let cool on a cookie rack. Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar. Store in an airtight container

EASY KOLACKY

Steps:

• Place the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl; beat with electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Beat 1/2 cup of confectioners' sugar into the butter mixture. Slowly beat in the flour; mix well. Cover bowl and refrigerate at least 3 hours, or overnight.
• Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• On a well floured board, roll out chilled dough to 1/8 inch. Use a pizza wheel to cut dough into 2 1/2 inch squares. Spoon approximately 2 teaspoons of filling in the center of each square; do not overfill. Fold opposite corners of each square into the middle to encase dough, pinching dough together in center. Filling should peek out a little at each end. Transfer cookies to an ungreased baking sheet.
• Bake the kolacky in the preheated oven until set but not brown, about 12 minutes. Remove to racks to cool. Dust cooled kolacky with remaining powdered sugar.

CREAM CHEESE KOLACKY

Steps:

• Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add flour slowly until well blended. Shape into a ball and chill overnight or for several hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
• Roll dough out 1/8 inch thick on a floured pastry board. Cut into 2 1/2 inch squares and place about 1/2 teaspoon jam or preserves in the center. Overlap opposite corners and pinch together. Place on ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool on wire racks. Sprinkle kolacky lightly with confectioner's sugar.

MARTHA'S KOLACHES

Steps:

• Cookies:In a small bowl, stir together yeast and sour cream. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 10 minutes. Whisk in eggs until smooth.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, granulated sugar, and salt. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in yeast mixture. Knead in bowl a few times until dough is smooth and comes together. Wrap dough in plastic and flatten into a square. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough 1/4 inch thick. Using a 3-inch square cutter, cut out squares. Transfer to two parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart.
• Place 1 teaspoon jam in the center of each square. Fold upper-right corner over filling, about two-thirds of the way toward opposite corner; press down to seal. Brush lower-left corner with egg wash, then fold corner up and over first fold, pressing down to adhere. (Be careful not to fold too tightly, or you may force out some of the filling.) Repeat with remaining squares.
• Bake until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.
• Glaze:In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar and butter. While whisking, drizzle in milk, a little at a time, until glaze has a runny consistency. Using a spoon, drizzle glaze over cookies. Let stand until set, 1 hour. Glazed cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

AUNT ANNE'S KOLACKY

Steps:

• 1. Soften yeast in sour cream and beaten egg YOLK. Mix well. Set aside.
• 2. Work butter into flour with pasty blender or fork until it resembles small peas. (Sometimes I rub this mixture between my bare palms)
• 3. Add yeast mixture. Mix well with flour mixture.
• 4. Refrigerate the dough, covered, until it is quite firm.
• 5. Prepare filling(s). You can use a SOLO brand filling (usually with pie fillings in the supermarket) or make your own. Prune, apricot, and poppy seed fillings are probably the most traditional. I will include directions for making filling, but I usually use SOLO poppy seed. However, I love the Cherry and Pineapple fillings below, but I am not Czech.
• 6. Optional: Make your own Poppy Seed Filling True Confessions: I have not made this filling! Combine 2 cups poppy seeds, 1/2 sugar, 1/2 cup milk, 1 teaspoon butter and 1/2 cup corn syrup in a sauce pan. Cook about 5 minutes until thick.
• 7. Optional: Make your own Prune filling Another true confession: I haven't made this filling either, but it sounds good! Combined 1 cup pitted prunes, finely chopped,1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped, 1/4 cup raisins, finely chopped, 1/2 orange, washed and finely chopped (peel and all) and 1/4 cup sugar in a sauce pan. Cover the fruit with hot water or black tea to cover the fruit. Simmer all the ingredients until the liquid is absorbed, the fruit is soft and the mixture is quite thick, about 30 to 35 minutes. If the fruit still isn't soft, add more water and continue to cook until it is soft. (I am guessing I would add a bit more sugar.)
• 8. Optional: Make your own Cherry Filling I've made it and like it! :-) Drain 1 can pitted sour cherries and cut the cherries into small pieces with kitchen shears. Combine 1 cup of sugar and 6 Tbsp cornstarch in pan. Add cherry juice from drained cherries and 1 teaspoon red food coloring. Cook, stirring constantly, until thick and clear. Remove from heat and add cut-up cherries.
• 9. Optional: Make your own Pineapple Filling I've made it and like it! Drain a #2 can of pineapple; grind the fruit in a food processor. Mix 3 Tbs. cornstarch with the juice. Add the fruit to the juice and cook until hot and bubbly. Add sugar to taste.
• 10. Prepare streusel topping if using. (Some like the added sweetness; others think it makes the kolacky too sweet.) Mix ingredients together until crumbly. (Left over streusel makes a good topping for an individual cobbler. Just top some raw or canned fruit and bake.)
• 11. When you are ready to bake the kolacky, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll out the chilled dough about 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured surface and cut into small rounds (about 1 1/2 inches). Place rounds on baking sheet. (I use a silicone mat on my baking sheets.)
• 12. Using your thumb, make a slight indentation in the middle of the round. Place a teaspoon or so of filling in the indentation and sprinkle with streusel topping if desired.
• 13. Bake in preheated oven about 10 minutes or until the kolacky bottom is just beginning to brown.
• 14. Remove to a wire rack to cool. Dust with powdered sugar just before serving. (Use a small sifter can for ease of dusting.) When I use the streusel, I skip the powdered sugar.