Kolache

Kolache

“Kolache is a warm, delicious, sweet or savory filled pastry traditionally baked with fruit, cheese or sausage fillings. It is an origination of Central Europe. I enjoyed these little treats with a cup of coffee on my trip to the Czech Republic. I have recreated this recipe with a sweet pastry and blueberry filling.”

Ingredients

For the dough:

1 package of active dry yeast

1 cup of warm water

1/4 cup sugar

3 cups of all-purpose flour

2 eggs

3/4 cup of melted butter

1 teaspoon of salt

1 tsp vanilla essence

For the Pastry cream:

1 cup milk

2 egg yolks

2 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp salted butter

½ tsp vanilla essence

Blueberry jam for filling in the center

Directions

Dissolve 1 teaspoon of sugar in warm water, then sprinkle yeast on top. Set aside for 10 minutes or until foamy. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, vanilla essence and ½ cup of melted butter (reserve ¼ cup for brushing on the pastry) and salt. Add 1 cup of flour and yeast to the egg mixture and mix. Stir in about two more cups of flour, ½ cup at a time. The dough should be soft and moist. Knead dough for about 10 minutes on floured surface. Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise covered until doubled in size—about an hour. (You can also leave it in the refrigerator overnight and let the dough warm up the next day before using it.) After dough has risen, punch it down. Pull off egg-sized pieces, roll into balls, and then flatten to about three inches in diameter. Place flattened pieces on a baking parchment, brush with melted butter, cover and let rise again for another half-hour. After second rising, gently make an indention in the center of the dough with two or three fingers. Bake at 375F for 12 to 15 minutes.

While they are baking, get going on the pastry cream. Mix the sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Whisk in the egg yolks, beating until light in color. Heat the milk in a saucepan over high heat to bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Temper the egg yolk mixture with the heated milk. (Slowly pour about half of the milk into the egg mixture while whisking vigorously, then pour back into the milk saucepan, again whisking vigorously). Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla essence. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes, until cool.

When the kolaches have baked and cooled a bit, spoon in some pastry cream and spread it with the back of the spoon. You can also use a piping bag if you want it a bit fancy. Drop a heaping teaspoonful of blueberry jam in the center and spread slightly. Serve warm. Kolaches are best eaten warm and fresh from the oven, but they also taste good the day after.