Kolachke (Glazed Polish Pastry)

Rating: 3.37 stars
46 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 11
  • 4 star values: 7
  • 3 star values: 20
  • 2 star values: 4
  • 1 star values: 4

Kolachkes-claimed by both Poles and Czechs-are round pastries topped with either poppy seeds, nuts, jam, or a mashed fruit mixture. Karen Maderich's heirloom recipe was a first-place winner of Martha Stewart Living Television's Cookie of the Week Contest.

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Ingredients

Directions

  • Heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine sour cream and yeast in a small bowl. Set aside until slightly bubbly, about 10 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, stir in egg until smooth. Set aside.

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  • Using two knives or a pastry cutter, cut butter into flour until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in sour-cream mixture until dough comes together.

  • On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into 2 1/2-inch rounds. Transfer to ungreased cookie sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let sit for 15 minutes.

  • Make a thumbprint in the center of each cookie. Fill each thumbprint with 1 teaspoon preserves. Bake until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer pans to rack to cool. Let cookies cool on pans for 5 minutes. Remove cookies to rack. While cookies are still warm, drizzle with sugar glaze.

Reviews (12)

46 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 11
  • 4 star values: 7
  • 3 star values: 20
  • 2 star values: 4
  • 1 star values: 4
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
02/23/2013
By experience...I agree with evals that this recipe is tastefull. At same time, my family survived WWII and their recipe used cream cheese. Regardless, thanks Martha for sharing. Annie Koprowski, Boston
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/23/2012
My Bussia came over from Poland and when she made Kolachke's they were a cream cheese dough then filled . These are good but I don't think they are Kolachke's.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/25/2012
Pretty good. My husband liked them a lot. Tried several different fillings, mostly different flavored yogurts, and they were all good. Would have liked to try a 'cheesecake-type' filling but had no cream cheese, next time though. I think I will also try some almond flavoring in the pastry next time.
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Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/23/2012
I used a combination of butter & cream cheese, also nonfat Greek yogurt rather than sour cream. I did not get 4 doz, but I made them a little larger than recommended. Still I doubt 4 doz is possible unless you make them truly minis. I will definite try the recipe again, the kolachkes I remember we're squares with 2 sides folded over jam. Think I'll do it that way next time. We alsways drizzled frosting, my grandma came from Poland and that was how she always made them.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/19/2012
Being Czech I can say this is not traditional Bohemian recepy. As a toping we do not use sugar frosting but mixture of flour, butter and sugar in sort of a dry consistency.
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/18/2012
Do you think you could use Greek yogurt instead of the sour cream?
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Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
05/18/2010
I followed the recipe exactly and got about 26 cookies. 4 dozen? Not a chance!
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/02/2009
Do you think that they can be frozen for even a short period of time, say 1 week?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/02/2009
Do you think that they can be frozen for even a short period of time, say 1 week?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
03/02/2009
Do you think that they can be frozen for even a short period of time, say 1 week?
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
12/04/2008
I'm coming clean. This recipe is better than my mother's, my mother-in-laws and all of my other Czech relatives. They all do variations of the the cream cheese recipe and I find them not nearly as light and flaky as these with the yeast. Only change is I don't frost them, just powered sugar. Thanks Martha!
Anonymous
Rating: Unrated
11/30/2008
These are absolutely delicious and surprisingly easy to make. The dough is so flaky that it tastes like puff pastry. A big hit for the holidays! I used apricot on some and raspberry on others.
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