Photo by Elizabeth Graham
Egg, chorizo and cheese, and smoked turkey and provolone kolaches baked by Autumn Stanford of Bed-Stuy.[/caption]A traditional treat from the Czech Republic. Originally these were filled with cheese and/or fruit. As the recipe came to the United States we started to fill them with shredded meat, or ground meat with cheese, or something else to create some of the original fast food. The Kolache at this point became more of a wrap or a roll.
This recipe is a dessert, and goes back to the roots.
1/4 C warmed whole milk
3 TBL melted butter
1 small egg
– whisk together above ingredients
– mix together dry ingredients in a separate bowl
1 C AP flour
1 TBL sugar
1 tsp yeast
pinch of salt
Mix everything in a food processor and mix just until the dough comes together
Add a bit of flour or milk until you get a well formed dough ball
Turn up the speed and mix for 8 minutes
Place into lightly oiled GLASS bowl and put in warm place to rise for about an hour
While this rises, make your filling
2 OZ of cream cheese
1 TBL sugar
2 tsp AP flour
zest and juice from one lemon
Mix until it all comes together
Add 2 OZ ricotta cheese
Mix again until incorporated
Set aside
For a nice finish, make some streusel for the edges
1 TBL AP flour
1 TBL sugar
1 tsp butter
Set aside
After an hour, dump the dough onto a floured surface
Flatten it just a bit, then cut into 4 pieces
Create four rounds
Spray very lightly with cooking spray to keep them from drying out
Set them on a baking sheet and let them rise for another 90 minutes
Flatten the center of each ball with the greased bottom of a coffee cup or large glass
Brush the top of each kolache with egg white and a TBL of water
Put filling into the center
Sprinkle with streusel
Bake at 350º for about 15 minutes
Rotate pan, and bake another 10-15 minutes or until browned
Serve warm if possible
Kolache photos from www.slovakcooking.com and Brooklyn Paper.
