Kolacky are traditionally yeasted pastries that hold sweet jam or spread. Kolacky cookies are a variation of this with a tangy dough similar to rugelach, which are one of Molly’s favorite sweet treats.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 2 hr 45 min |
| Active: | 30 min |
| Yield: | 26 to 28 cookies |
Ingredients
- 2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
- 1 cup (120 grams) powdered sugar, plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- One 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
- Zest of half a lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white, yolk reserved for egg wash
- 1/2 cup plus 2 to 4 teaspoons cherry jam
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered sugar and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, cream cheese, lemon zest and vanilla extract until smooth, 20 to 30 seconds. Add the egg white and beat to combine. Add the flour mixture and mix just until a dough forms. Turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap, press and form into a square-shape and wrap tightly. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, beat the egg yolk with a splash of water for the egg wash. Set aside.
- Dust a clean work surface with flour. Working with half of the dough at a time, roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Trim the edges and cut into 3-inch squares. You can reroll the dough once. Lay the squares on the sheet tray then dollop 1 teaspoon of cherry jam in the center of each. Fold one corner into the center, brush the corner with the egg wash, then fold the opposite corner into the center overlapping the other corner of dough. Press to seal. Repeat with all of the cookies, then bake until puffed up and golden, begin checking at 13 minutes. Cool on the pans for about 1 hour, then dust with powdered sugar. Keep in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 27 servings |
| Calories | 162 |
| Total Fat | 10 g |
| Saturated Fat | 6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 17 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Sugar | 8 g |
| Protein | 2 g |
| Cholesterol | 26 mg |
| Sodium | 93 mg |
Reviews
Love these cookies. I’ve made them twice. I had to bake them a few minutes longer . I used my own home made mixed berry ham.
Made these yesterday and they are delicious! I like the addition of powdered sugar to the dough, it helps give the dough some flavor. Also, thank you for the tip on using egg yolk to seal the overlapped corners….mine have always opened in the past, this was the first time I ever took a pan of these out of the oven without a single cookie having opened up! I used strawberry jam; just a tip – use regular jam, not “natural”…the Smuckers Natural jam will run all over the place, where the regular Smuckers stays on the cookie.
Just made this beautiful recipe! Made it as directed except I couldn’t find cherry jam so used Huckleberry jam!
I haven’t made these yet. My Slovak grandmother made kolaches by hand – two handfuls of this, a pinch of that – so we couldn’t get the recipe. I hope this recipe makes similar cookies. The dough is very similar to rugelach but my rugelach recipe isn’t a kolache… I’ll post when I make this.