On the day I am leaving for Poland and Czech Republic, I wanted to get this posting out. My heritage trip has become even more amazing as I’ve been able to trace more of my ancestry on both sides of the family much further than anyone has before. I have a specific mission in CR when I go to go to Breznice where my grandfather last lived, and get a copy of his birth certificate. My family is unsure of his grandmother’s name and his own parents passed away before he even made it to America. If you are interested in my ancestry findings and tips, check out my other blog for the scoop.
Ok so back to the topic.
For my kolaches I used 4 recipes for different elements since I could not find anything that matched my grandmothers. I had to improvise. Of course on baking this is hard to do. Which is why I’m not exactly a baker. But after this experience, I think I can say that’s not the case anymore! Kolaches are a labor of love. They will take day into night to make them, by the time you prepare the dough, let it rise and work with the dough. I also made the boozy fruit filling on the same day. Each pastry is it’s own individual work of art. And the mistakes taste just as good as the perfect ones. Actually sometimes better!
I researched a ton before I committed to the plan, as I knew this project was a project and it was not going to be instant gratification. But like I shared earlier, none of what I found matched my grandmother’s. Variations in each of them. I knew she used yeast. I don’t think she used cream cheese. At least I can’t remember that if she did. The recipes I referenced and used bits from were:
- http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Kolachky/Detail.aspx?prop24=hn_slide1_Kolachky&evt19=1
- http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/apple-kolaches
- http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/dessert/other-dessert/czech-pastries-kolache.html
- http://www.slovakcooking.com/2011/recipes/kolache/
If you missed my posting on the boozy fruit filling, you can find that here. Boozy fruit was very fun to use and both the fruit and juice both had a functional holiday purpose! I traveled for the holidays and packaged these up as gifts I took on the road. I don’t think any of them lasted very long!
jenn marie cuisine 