Authentic Czech Homemade Kolache Recipes

CZECH KOLACHE RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, heat the milk until lukewarm. Pour the dry yeast and a teaspoon of sugar into the milk. The sugar will encourage the yeast to activate. Stir everything with a spoon and leave it in a warm place for about 10-15 minutes until foam forms on the surface.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter, which should be semi-liquid but not hot. Around 30 seconds in a microwave are ideal.
• Add the flour, sugar, salt into a mixing bowl. Add an egg, vanilla, melted butter, and activated yeast with milk.
• Begin with the dough. Roughly combine all ingredients in a bowl with a fork. Turn the mixture out onto a floured work surface and use your hands to work it into a smooth elastic dough. If the dough is too sticky, dust it with a tablespoon of flour and continue kneading. Repeat until the dough is no longer sticky.
• Put the dough back into the bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm place for 40 minutes.
• Transfer the dough to a work surface and divide it into equal parts. If you have a kitchen scale and want kolache the same size, weigh each piece on the scale. The weight of a piece of dough for one pie is around 1 and ½ oz (45 g).
• Shape each piece of dough into a ball. Place it on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Leave enough space between the balls so that the cakes don't touch and bake into a square later. The classic Czech kolach is round!
• Let the dough balls rise in a warm place for another 40 minutes. Cover the dough with a clean tea towel if you leave the dough to rise on the kitchen counter.
• Time to shape kolache! We need to create a beautiful round kolach and create a depression in the center for the filling placement. Take a round-bottomed vessel about 3 inches in diameter, such a glass. I used a ½ measuring cup. Wrap the bottom with a clean dish towel so that there are no creases. Press the wrapped vessel evenly into the dough with light pressure from above. The kolach is stretched out wide and round, and an indentation is made in the middle for the filling.
• In a shallow bowl, beat an egg using a fork and create an egg wash. Brush it over the edges of the kolache pastries.
• Now, place the filling in the middle of each kolach. Just about 1 to 1.½ tablespoons per kolach are enough. If you like, sprinkle the cakes with streusel topping.
• Let's bake kolache! Preheat the oven to 340 °F (170 °C). Place the sheet with kolache in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until the edges are golden brown.

AUTHENTIC CZECH HOMEMADE KOLACHE RECIPE

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast and 1 tsp sugar into lukewarm water.
• Into a microwave safe bowl, put the milk and butter. Microwave just until butter melts. Let cool slightly to 110°F (so it doesn't kill the yeast).
• In a large bowl, combine 2 cups of flour with salt, sugar, and potato flakes. Add in yeast mixture, warmed milk and butter. Stir to combine. Add the egg and blend into dough.
• Knead in remaining flour until dough comes together and it is slightly sticky.
• Let dough raise for an hour and a half or until doubled.
• Once raised, form dough into 12 balls. Place each dough ball onto a parchment lined baking sheet, cover, and let raise another hour.
• In a mixing bowl, beat together cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla.
• Once dough balls have risen for an hour. Use the back of a spoon and make an indentation into the ball.
• Then fill each indentation with cream cheese mixture.
• Bake kolaches at 425°F for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.