The FrangloSaxon Cooks

Louisiana Cuisines

  • Home
  • Recipe List
  • Tripping & Talking
  • Reviews & Recommendations
  • Privacy Policy

Kolaches

March 14, 2019 by Carine Clary 2 Comments

Kolaches

Authentic “West” Texas Kolaches

My first experience of kolaches came on a family car trip where we pulled over for gas in this little town north of Waco. Inside was a small case of pastries and a family of extremely blond people speaking a foreign language that was not Spanish. Hmm… Come to find out that the pastries and the people were Czech and after czeching out the eatables we were converted.

Turns out they were called Kolaches. And Kolaches, if made correctly, offer the perfect ratio of yeasty buttery dough to jammy filling – good for getting the back seat of the car sticky (sorry Mama) but worth it especially if you’re not the one cleaning up the car. So what’s the background here? Keep reading.

The History

But first a spelling lesson. ‘Kolache’ is plural for ‘kolach’ which means wheel in Czech. It’s a general reference to the round shape of the roll which is hollowed out with your fingers and filled with cream cheese and jam. And oh yeah, it’s pronounced ‘ko – lah – chee.’ And according to some purists if you fill them with sausage and roll them up they should be called ‘klobasniki.’ which is not an authentic kolache but tastes real good and which are hanging out in the back of the photo above, although not in rolled form. And even though ‘kolach’ means wheel they are frequently square but no matter the shape they taste great.

If you find yourself in Austin you can get them at Lone Star Kolaches but if you are on the road and in West, Tx (not west Texas the geographical area but ‘West’ the city) you can get them at the Village Bakery.

The Prep

But on to the prep which starts with the dough. There are three rises to this recipe which is less daunting than it sounds. Just multitask while the rises are rising and you’ll be fine.

While you’re following the directions below just remember when you’re kneading not to add too much flour. This should be a soft dough. Kneading it in a bowl is a great way to achieve a smooth glossy dough ball without over flouring. Just hold the side of the bowl with one hand and knead away with the other. Saves a lot of mess.

KolachesThe first rise is the milk/yeast/one cup of flour portion.

Second rise comes after you work in the remaining flour and knead it till smooth.

Third rise (and last one thank goodness!) you will punch down the dough and form into small dough balls & flatten out to about 3 inches and let rise for about half an hour. Then you’ll hollow them out gently with your fingers until you have enough space for the filling. Try to go as close to the edge as you can. Brush gently with the remaining melted butter.

Fill with the cream cheese, jam and top with a slice of whatever fruit matches the jam. And a note about the cream cheese. I use less sugar than most other recipes because I find that the tang of the cream cheese is a better foil for the jam than sweet jam on top of too sweet cream cheese.

After they’re filled they’ll look like this:

Kolaches or this:

KolachesThese savory inauthentic kolaches are great with a little grated cheese on top and I added the sage leaf because I had it on hand and it tasted good in a crispy baked state.

Now they’re done. Beautiful, tasty and wholly worth the effort.

Kolaches
 
Print
Author: Carine Clary
Cuisine: Texas
Ingredients
  • Servings 18 kolaches
  • For the dough:
  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm milk
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 large eggs
  • ¾ cup melted butter
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • optional ½ teaspoon of fresh grated nutmeg
  • For the sweet filling:
  • Jam of your choice
  • 1 tsp. lemon or orange zest
  • For savory filling:
  • ½ lb. breakfast type or polish type loose or cut up link sausage cooked lightly & drained of fat
  • For the cream cheese
  • 1 8 oz. package of full fat cream cheese
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, combine yeast, warm milk, sugar, and a cup of the flour. Cover and let rise until doubled in size.
  2. Beat the eggs, ½ cup of melted butter, and salt. Add egg mixture to yeast mixture and blend.
  3. Stir in about 2 more cups of flour, ½ cup at a time. The dough should be very soft. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes. I do it right in the bowl with one hand so as not to need to add too much flour. When it starts to pull away from the sides it's ready to rest. Cover and let rise for an hour.
  4. After the dough has risen, punch it down and pull off egg-sized pieces. In your hands, roll pieces into balls and then flatten to about 3 inches in diameter. Brush with the remaining melted butter. Place flattened pieces on a greased cookie sheet, cover and let rise again for another half-hour.
  5. Next hollow out gently with your fingers a round space in the center and fill with a teaspoon of the cream cheese mixture and top with jam & fresh fruit if you have it. If you are preparing the sausage version you can leave out the cream cheese.
  6. Bake in oven at 375° F for 12 to 15 minutes.
Notes
You can use nutmeg in the dough for the savory version, lots of sausages have it, but it's your choice.
3.4.3177

 

Filed Under: Breads & Muffins, Breakfast, Southern Tagged With: kolaches, kolaches with fruit and cream cheese

« Vietnamese Cucumber Salad
Chicken Clemenceau »

Comments

  1. Free Traffic says

    March 22, 2020 at 1:53 am

    Hello! Do you have a Twitter account? I’d like to follow you if that would be okay. I’m absolutely enjoying your blog and look forward to new updates…

    Reply
    • Carine Clary says

      June 17, 2020 at 2:06 pm

      I do have a Twitter account. Click the button on my landing page for new posts. Enjoy!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe:  

Turkey Poulette

Turkey Poulette

Personal Picks

  • Turkey Poulette
  • Mussolini Sandwich
  • Fresh Corn Cakes
  • Chicken Mull
  • Salted Steens Ice Cream

Follow Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

About Me

Hello, I'm Carine Clary and I'm the FrangloSaxon.

And is that a word? In a word - Yes! It reflects my French connections in the south part of the state and the Anglo Saxon ones on the Arkansas state line. I grew up eating & loving all the foods of Louisiana and the idea is to collect lots of them right here on this website.

What you'll find here is food that reflects everybody's cooking. Creole we know. Cajun we know. But how about Croatian or Vietnamese....or Italian or German....or the underestimated plain Southern food they do so well in the upstate parishes?

They're all part of who we are so pull up your chair and join me for some good eats!

Search the FrangloSaxon

Search by Holiday

  • Bastille Day
  • Christmas
  • Fourth of July
  • Mardi Gras
  • New Year's
  • Revillon
  • St. Joseph's Day
  • Tet
  • Thanksgiving

Search by Tradition

  • Cajun
  • Creole
  • Croatian
  • German
  • Greek
  • Italian
  • Southern
  • Vietnamese
  • African
  • French
  • Turkish
  • Mexican
  • Irish
  • Links I Like

    • The Homesick Texan
    • Acadiana Table
    • Southern Souffle
    • Savory Spices
    • Well Being Secrets
    • Deep South Dish

Recent Posts

  • Pastitsio
  • Italian Grilled Cheese Sandwich
  • Crabmeat St. Francis
  • Scallops Beurre Blanc
  • Slugburger

Popular Posts

Mussolini Sandwich

Back in pre World War II days it was actually possible to find restaurants in New Orleans which served something called the Mussolini Sandwich. The History Say what?? It is true and I have the ad to prove it. I thought it would be fun to recreate but needless to say there is no record… 

Read More »

Chicken Mull

Chicken Mull is the old name for Stewed Chicken in milk. It’s also sometimes called Jallop.  This is a cold weather, church supper dish that has spread from its Georgia Carolina origins and now pops up in a few other spots. If you want your kids to come home on their college breaks, make sure… 

Read More »

Creole Crab Cakes

Crispy Creole Crabcakes! Do you crave the crispiest creole crab cake on the planet? You’re in luck because it’s right here and easy to make. The point of your typical creole crab cake is crabby plus crispy with a shot of rémoulade on the side. You want lotsa lumps just barely held together with as… 

Read More »

Vietnamese Cucumber Salad

A Vietnamese cucumber salad that looks elegant and tastes really good. For some reason I’ve found that the dressing tastes better after it’s had a chance to set a spell, so if you have the time you should make it a day ahead or at least a couple of hours ahead but don’t add it… 

Read More »

Christopher Sandwich

For everyone coming off the post-July 4th carnivorous barbequed everything high, let me present the Christopher Sandwich. Almost vegetarian (except for the bacon) it’s both filling and light. The avocado and cheese stick to your ribs while the tomato, onion, olives, pickles, and mushrooms add interest and a salty tang.  And then there are the… 

Read More »

Turkey Poulette

Back in the eighties they made a TV movie about a post-apocalyptic world. They called it “The Day After” and anyone who’s surveyed their house, and especially their kitchen, the day after Thanksgiving has lived it. You think you’ll never eat again but by the next afternoon familiar hunger pangs kick in and you’re headed… 

Read More »

  • Home
  • Recipe List
  • Tripping & Talking
  • Reviews & Recommendations
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Child Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress