Kolaches (Czech Pastry!)

[jdtractorgirl]

2 packages yeast
2 cups warm milk
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
7 ½ cups flour



Dissolve yeast in ½ cup of the milk. Let set til bubbly. Add remaining milk and sugar, salt, butter, and eggs. Mix and add flour gradually. Hand beat, after all flour is added, until dough is smooth. Let rise in warm place until dough doubles. With spoon, dip out a walnut sized amount of dough. With floured hands, roll into a walnut sized ball. Place on a well buttered pan to rise (til double). After rising, make indentation in the center for filling. Fill with any fruit filling you desire (I like apricot). Sprinkle with streusel and let rise again. Bake at 350 approximately 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Do not overbake! Remove from oven and brush with melted butter while still hot in pan. Remove from pan and place on paper towels to cool. Sprinkle with streusel.

Streusel (Popsika)

2 cups flour
¾ cup sugar
1 stick margarine

Mix flour and sugar. Add margarine. Mix well until becomes a fine crumb mix. Sprinkle on top of Kolaches.

 

[cowman]

I will weigh in on this one, since it's the most recent kolache thread (at least in the pastry section.)

I am not Czech but my now-deceased BIL was. His parents came 'from the old country' and that is where I got my 1st Kolache as a kid. The town (Crosby Tx) they lived in still has quite a bit of Czech influence and at least once/year a church there still spends a Saturday making Kolaches in the Czech style and sells them to the public. They sell out quickly. It is best to pre-order some.
They do not form the dough into balls. The women just grab some out of the big (huge actually) bowls and plop it down on the baking sheet for it's last rise. No real single defined shape tho most are relatively round when they come out of the oven.
I've made quite a few over the years, some much better than others.
Ready for making the indentations and filling added.


I believe these were blueberry, lemon, poppyseed and prune.


I just went crazy with the crumbles.






Most traditional Kolache recipes call for more than one rise, and I've seen a few that called for as many as 5, but the norm seems to be 2-3. I have not quite been able to mimic the ones the ladies from church make nor the ones my sister's mother-in-law did. Close but no cigar. Yet.

The dough is the trick.. it's everything and sets real Kolaches apart from other pastries.
It is rich, tender but firm, sweet but not overly so. Butter, oils, eggs, just unadulterated richness.

I have good luck with the following 3 rise recipe but I increased the eggs to 3 eggs and the sugar to 7-8 Tablespoons. I also increased the salt to 1.5tsp. I prefer to use dried apricots(reconstituted of course) instead of the apricot preserves in the recipe.
https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/kolache/

Now, having said all that IF one wants to make some 'near authentic' Kolaches, Rhodes bread loaf will do in a pinch, but it won't be nearly as rich and flavorful, but will save one from having to make the dough from scratch. Dirt cheap too.

 

[CharlieD]

Must try