Aunt Annes Kolacky Food

SOPHIE'S KOLACKY

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease cookie sheets.
• Using a pastry blender or food processor, cut butter into cream cheese.
• In a small bowl, sift dry ingredients together except for confectioners' sugar.
• Work dry ingredients into butter/cream cheese mixture until you have an even, mealy texture.
• Knead to form a stiff dough. If the dough gets too soft, refrigerate for about five minutes before continuing.
• Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness.
• Using a cookie cutter or glass, cut into about 3 inch diameter cookies. Keep re-rolling dough until you have used it all. Use your thumb to make a depression in each cookie. Place a 1/2 teaspoon of filling in the depression.
• Bake for about 20 minutes (until lightly golden). Let cool on a cookie rack. Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar. Store in an airtight container

AUNTIE ANNE'S PRETZELS - COPYCAT

Steps:

• Sprinkle yeast on lukewarm water in mixing bowl; stir to dissolve.
• Add sugar, salt and stir to dissolve; add flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic.
• Let rise at least 1/2 hour.
• While dough is rising, prepare a baking soda water bath with 2 cups warm water and 2 tbsp baking soda.
• Be certain to stir often.
• After dough has risen, pinch off bits of dough and roll into a long rope (about 1/2 inch or less thick) and shape.
• Dip pretzel in soda solution and place on greased baking sheet.
• Allow pretzels to rise again.
• Bake in oven at 450 for about 10 minutes or until golden.
• Brush with melted butter.
• Toppings: After you brush with butter try sprinkling with coarse salt.
• Or for Auntie Anne's famous Cinnamon Sugar, try melting a stick of butter in a shallow bowl (big enough to fit the entire pretzel) and in another shallow bowl make a mixture of cinnamon and sugar.
• Dip the pretzel into the butter, coating both sides generously.
• Then dip again into the cinnamon mixture.
• Notes: The longer and thinner you can make the dough rope, the more like Auntie Anne's they will be.

AUNT ANNE'S KOLACKY

Steps:

• 1. Soften yeast in sour cream and beaten egg YOLK. Mix well. Set aside.
• 2. Work butter into flour with pasty blender or fork until it resembles small peas. (Sometimes I rub this mixture between my bare palms)
• 3. Add yeast mixture. Mix well with flour mixture.
• 4. Refrigerate the dough, covered, until it is quite firm.
• 5. Prepare filling(s). You can use a SOLO brand filling (usually with pie fillings in the supermarket) or make your own. Prune, apricot, and poppy seed fillings are probably the most traditional. I will include directions for making filling, but I usually use SOLO poppy seed. However, I love the Cherry and Pineapple fillings below, but I am not Czech.
• 6. Optional: Make your own Poppy Seed Filling True Confessions: I have not made this filling! Combine 2 cups poppy seeds, 1/2 sugar, 1/2 cup milk, 1 teaspoon butter and 1/2 cup corn syrup in a sauce pan. Cook about 5 minutes until thick.
• 7. Optional: Make your own Prune filling Another true confession: I haven't made this filling either, but it sounds good! Combined 1 cup pitted prunes, finely chopped,1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped, 1/4 cup raisins, finely chopped, 1/2 orange, washed and finely chopped (peel and all) and 1/4 cup sugar in a sauce pan. Cover the fruit with hot water or black tea to cover the fruit. Simmer all the ingredients until the liquid is absorbed, the fruit is soft and the mixture is quite thick, about 30 to 35 minutes. If the fruit still isn't soft, add more water and continue to cook until it is soft. (I am guessing I would add a bit more sugar.)
• 8. Optional: Make your own Cherry Filling I've made it and like it! :-) Drain 1 can pitted sour cherries and cut the cherries into small pieces with kitchen shears. Combine 1 cup of sugar and 6 Tbsp cornstarch in pan. Add cherry juice from drained cherries and 1 teaspoon red food coloring. Cook, stirring constantly, until thick and clear. Remove from heat and add cut-up cherries.
• 9. Optional: Make your own Pineapple Filling I've made it and like it! Drain a #2 can of pineapple; grind the fruit in a food processor. Mix 3 Tbs. cornstarch with the juice. Add the fruit to the juice and cook until hot and bubbly. Add sugar to taste.
• 10. Prepare streusel topping if using. (Some like the added sweetness; others think it makes the kolacky too sweet.) Mix ingredients together until crumbly. (Left over streusel makes a good topping for an individual cobbler. Just top some raw or canned fruit and bake.)
• 11. When you are ready to bake the kolacky, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll out the chilled dough about 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured surface and cut into small rounds (about 1 1/2 inches). Place rounds on baking sheet. (I use a silicone mat on my baking sheets.)
• 12. Using your thumb, make a slight indentation in the middle of the round. Place a teaspoon or so of filling in the indentation and sprinkle with streusel topping if desired.
• 13. Bake in preheated oven about 10 minutes or until the kolacky bottom is just beginning to brown.
• 14. Remove to a wire rack to cool. Dust with powdered sugar just before serving. (Use a small sifter can for ease of dusting.) When I use the streusel, I skip the powdered sugar.