Sweet Kolaches

Have you ever made or baked something that you liked and then later could not put your hands on the recipe to save your life?  Today, that happened to me.  Where did I put that recipe?   Now I’m so annoyed with myself  I just googled for recipes and found this one by The Homesick Texan.  I figure since she’s a Texan too, her version might be similar to the one I’ve lost, err uh, misplaced.

In sticking with “orange” month I added orange zest to the cream cheese filling.  Soft, little pillow puffs of dough filled with creamy, citrusy goodness.  Actually I could have just eaten the filling with a spoon and been happy.  Czech in origin and originally used as sweets at weddings, Kolaches are popular in the Czech towns of West, Caldwell, and Schlumberg, Texas.  A pass through any one of these communities will leave you wondering which bakery to enter and choose your Kolache, either sweet or savory.  

No, Kolaches are not strangers to us….that recipe though.  It’s alright, you can laugh with me.  While you’re giggling at my absent-mindedness, which I might add is highly unlike me, go ahead and leave me a comment because it’ll make me feel better.

Enjoy!

Kolaches With Orange Cream Cheese Filling(adapted from The Homesick Texan) Ingredients: 1 package of active dry yeast 1 cup of warm milk 1/4 cup sugar 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 eggs 3/4 cup of melted butter 1 teaspoon of salt

Method: In a large bowl, combine yeast, warm milk, sugar and one cup of flour. Cover and let it rise until doubled in size. Beat together eggs, 1/2 cup of melted butter (reserve 1/4 cup for brushing on the pastry) and salt. Add egg mixture to yeast mixture and blend. Stir in about two more cups of flour, 1/2 cup at a time. The dough should be soft and moist. Knead dough for about 10 minutes on floured surface. Don’t worry, it’s a joy to knead as the dough is smooth and highly malleable. Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise covered until doubled in size—about an hour. After dough has risen, punch it down and pull off egg-sized pieces. In your hands, roll pieces into balls and then flatten to about three inches in diameter. Brush with melted butter. Place flattened pieces on a greased cookie sheet, cover and let rise again for another half-hour. After second rising, with your finger gently make an indention in the center of the dough (be careful not to flatten it too much) and fill with one tablespoon of  filling (recipe to follow) and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Bake in oven at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes.

Orange-Cream Cheese Kolache Filling

8 oz cream cheese, softened 1 egg yolk 1/4 cup sugar Zest of one orange 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Beat all ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. Follow recipe above as directed.