Day 40: Kolache Recipe

sausage kolaches and cream cheese kolaches

 Recipe:

1 cup milk (or ½ cup milk, ½ cup water) warmed
2 eggs
½ cup sugar
½ cup soft margarine (Imperial or Parkay)
2 T instant yeast
4 cup flour
1 tsp salt

Combine milk, eggs, sugar, and margarine. Beat smooth. Mix yeast into flour and salt. Then add to milk mixture. Knead on board or in bowl until smooth, dusting with flour as needed to handle. Pat top with a little oil. Warm oven slightly, turn off. Place dough in oven to rise to double or a little more—about one hour. Turn dough on a flour surface.

For sausage kolaches: Knead a little and divide into rolls and wrap around sausages for kolaches—use just enough dough to cover sausage. [I used Lil Smokies and breakfast sausages—precooked] Place on greased cookie sheet. Allow to rise for 20-30 minutes. Bake at 350° for 15-18 minutes. After baking, butter tops.

For fruit/cream cheese kolaches: Knead a little and divide into small rolls, roll into ball. Place on greased cookie sheet and brush with melted butter. Allow to rise for 20-30 minutes. Press down an indentation in the center of each ball. Fill the indentation with a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese or fruit filling. Let sit for 10 minutes. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes. They should be a light golden brown in color.

Cream Cheese Filling
16 oz cream cheese
2 egg yolks
½ cup sugar
grated rind of one lemon
1 tsp vanilla

Soften the cream cheese. Beat remaining ingredients together with cream cheese in a medium-sized bowl. 24 servings.