Several years ago I was writing an article about kolaches for Home Cooking magazine. The article had to include a recipe. Several community groups in West had published Czech cookbooks or small pamphlets, which always included kolache recipes. Instead of using one of these, I got the bright idea to go to West and bake kolaches with my mother and write down the process as we went along. She never used a recipe when baking kolaches.
I had helped her make kolaches many times when I was growing up. I’d watch what she did and tried to copy her. I will never forget how quickly and neatly she rolled those little dough balls in the palm of her hand. They always came out perfectly round and all were the exact same size. Mine never did. I couldn’t figure out why. But then, she was a great basketball player who could also sew an elaborate prom dress. Me? Well, I won’t go there.
Back to that kolache-baking lesson. My mother and I never had what you’d call a “friend” relationship, meaning we did not relate to one another in an easygoing, chatty manner. She was always my mother and I was always her daughter—a clear line drawn. So, she was not the least bit comfortable with me sitting there with a notebook, asking her questions as we worked.
           “But how much flour do you use? You really don’t measure it?”
           “What if the dough doesn’t rise enough?”
           “Just how big is a pinch?”
I caused her so much anxiety that for the first time in her life, she made an inferior batch of kolaches. Well, that’s a little bit of an exaggeration. They were just not as sweet as usual. But I told her I liked them. She grunted, “Well, fine then!”, threw her dishtowel on the kitchen counter, and walked out, slamming the side door behind her. (The side door, the main egress and ingress at 803 South Harrison, received a lot of emotional activity over the years.)
My goal herein was to provide you with a modern kolache recipe containing precise amounts. Easier said than done. As I looked over a few recipes from those Czech cookbooks, I kept mentally adding suggestions, explanations, and words of encouragement, with the idea to make it so easy a six-year-old could follow it. After hours of frustration, I heard my mother say, “Just leave it, Kathleen.”
So I’m leaving you with a family recipe furnished by my friend and St. Mary’s School classmate, Bettie Hanak Samford. I want to add, “Don’t try this at home.” But I won’t.
Kolache Recipe from the West Heritage Cookbook provided by Bettie Hanak Samford
DOUGH
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup of Crisco
1/2 cup sugar
3 pkgs. dry yeast
2 cups of milk (1 cup canned milk and 1 cup water)
1 tbsp. salt
Enough flour to make a smooth dough
Heat milk until scalded.
Let cool.
Empty yeast into a small bowl and add 1 tbsp of sugar and 1/2 cup of warm milk.
Stir and set aside.
In a large bowl measure Crisco, sugar, yolks, milk, and salt.
Add one cup of flour and blend thoroughly.
Add yeast mixture and enough flour to make a smooth dough. The dough should be a little sticky to the touch.
Place in greased bowl and let rise for at least one hour or until double in bulk. Roll out as desired.
For fruit kolaches, make balls and let rise again.
Make indentions in each and fill with desired fruit.
Bake at 375 for 20 minutes or until brown.
STREUSEL TOPPING!
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp of vanilla
Enough melted butter to make a crumbly mixture.
Can be used on top of all fruit kolaches before baking.
COTTAGE CHEESE FILLING 1
Mix together 1 pound of cottage cheese.
1 box (3 3/4 oz) lemon instance pudding.
Add a few raisins (if desired).
COTTAGE CHEESE FILLING 2
1 1/2 cups of cottage cheese dry
2 egg yokes
1/8 cup of sugar
4 tbsp. of sweet whipping cream
1/3 cup of raisins
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. lemon flavor
1 tsp. lemon rine
2 tbsp flour
pinch of nutmeg
Mix and fill kolaches. May be used inside kolache.
Roll dough as for cinnamon rolls. Cut into 2-inch squares.
Fill with one tbsp of cottage cheese filling.
Fold dough over filling, pinching together.
Form to be round and flatten with pinched down sides.
Butter and let rise again.
Top with sugar topping making a slight indention and let rise again.
Some Flavors of Kolaches :
Prune, poppy seed, apricot, apple. cherry, peach. pineapple, cheese, pecan rolls. cinnamon rolls, pineapple rolls. sausage
Topping Variety:
May use any fruit (cooked) cherry, peach, prune, apricot, pineapple. Drain and dry. Following apricot recipes may be used for all fruits.
Apricot topping.
Cook dry apricot in enough water to cover.
Add sugar to desired taste. Drain well.
Cool before topping kolaches.
Optional. Top each kolache with coconut or streusel.
Note: Have about four cups of flour on hand when making the dough.
           Watch for The Evolution of Kolaches: Part Three—Buc-ee’s.
Kolache Links:
Note: the photo used in this post also came from Bettie.