Fillings for Kolace
Prune Filling
| 1 pkg (12 oz) pitted prunes | 2 cups water |
| 2 tablespoons sugar | 2 teaspoons grated orange rind |
| Chop prunes; combine with water and sugar in medium size saucepan. Cook slowly, stirring constantly, 15 minutes or until very thick. Cool. Stir in grated orange rind. Makes 1 ¾ cups. |
Cherry Filling
| 2 cans sour red cherries | 6 Tablespoons cornstarch |
| 1 cup sugar | 1 teaspoon vanilla |
| ¼ teaspoon salt | ½ teaspoon almond flavoring |
| 1 teaspoon red food coloring | |
| Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt. Drain cherries and add juice to sugar mixture. Cook and stir until thick. Stir in remaining ingredients. Enough filling for 3 dozen Kolache. | |
Apricot Filling
Cook dried apricots in water. Add sugar to taste. Drain water and mash with fork or blend with blender to form smooth paste. (if using canned apricots…..drain syrup, blend fruit in blender).
Poppy Seed Filling
| 1 cup ground poppy seed | ½ cup butter |
| ¼ cup milk | 1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice |
| ½ teaspoon cinnamon | ¼ cup sugar |
| Blend all ingredients and simmer for 5 minutes. Let cool before filling Kolace. | |
Apple Filling
Cook sweetened apples in small amount of water until thick. Flavor with cinnamon or grated lemon rind. Add a pinch of salt and 1 Tablespoon butter for each cup of apples. Blend.
Cottage Cheese Filling
| 4 cups well drained small curd cottage cheese | ¾ cup sugar |
| 2 eggs | 2 teaspoons vanilla |
| ½ teaspoon salt | Raisins (optional) |
| Mix well. Add small amount of thick cream to make like thick jam, if necessary. May add raisins which have been scalded with boiling water and drained. | |
Kolace Recipe
| ½ cup milk | ½ cup sugar |
| 2 envelopes active dry yeast | 1 teaspoon salt |
| ½ cup very warm water | 4 egg yolks |
| ¾ cup butter or margarine | 4 ½ cups sifted all purpose flour |
- Scald milk in a small saucepan; cool to luke warm.
- Sprinkle yeast into very warm water in a large bowl. Stir until yeast dissolves.
- Beat butter or margarine with sugar, salt and egg yolks until light and fluffy in large bowl or electric mixer. Stir in yeast mixture, cooled milk and 2 cups of the flour. Beat 5 minutes at medium speed or 300 strokes by hand.
- Stir in remaining flour to make a very soft dough. Knead with a wooden spoon, round up in greased bowl, greased side up. Cover with towel. Let dough rise in a warm place, away from draft for 1 hour or until double in bulk.
- Stir dough down; turn out on a lightly floured pastry cloth or board. With floured hands, knead dough several minutes. Let rise again for a few minutes as it will be easier to handle. Divide the dough in half.
- Roll out one half to a rectangle, 12 X 9 and cut into 12 three inch squares. Place one tablespoon of filling in center of each. To shape each, fold one point over filling to cover, then fold opposite point over top; press to seal (filling will show at either end). Place 2” apart, on a greased large cookie sheet; cover; or roll into a circle ¼ ” thick; cut into 3″ squares. Place some filling in center of each square and bring the corners together in the center. Press edges together well. Arrange on greased pan, cover.
- Or……form dough into walnut sized balls. Dip in melted butter and place on baking pan.
- Let all rise again 45 minutes, or until double in bulk.
- Press large hollows in center of round rolls with fingertips; place a tablespoon of filling in each. Sprinkle with streusel and let rise again several minutes.
- Bake in moderate oven (350) 15 minutes, or until golden. Remove from cookie sheets; cool on wire racks. Grease or butter tops when taken from oven.
Streusel
Mix ½ cup sugar (or powdered sugar), ¼ cup flour and 1/3 cup butter with a pastry blender until crumbly. Sprinkle on top of kolace before baking.