Not What He Was Looking For, But Still Delicious

My dad has been trying for the longest time to recreate his mother's recipe of fruit-filled crescents. The recipe she left behind listed three ingredients. That's it - no directions, nothing. I tried my best to recreate the dough, but it was too crumbly. Before I went home for Thanksgiving, I noticed a picture in one of my cookbooks, so I made kolacky for him. Turns out that although they taste very good, I misunderstood my dad. He said they were closed crescents with filling, not kolacky (below) or rugelach. So pretty much I need to make homemade crescents and fill it with fruit preserves. Back to the books.

Anyway, kolacky is a sweet dessert that originated from central Europe (Czech, I believe) and is filled with cheese or fruit fillings. You take a square piece of dough, fill the middle with filling, and pinch two opposite corners together. Although I made the wrong cookie, these lasted 30 minutes in the house. Next time, I want to try adding lemon to the dough because I have poppy seed filling at home.


Golden Kolacky




1/2 cup butter, softened
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup flour
Fruit preserves (usually found in jars in the baking aisle)

Beat butter and cream cheese in large bowl until smooth. Gradually add flour, blending until soft dough forms. Divide dough in half and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about an hour (do not freeze).

Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out dough on floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into 2-in squares for smaller but more cookies, 3-in squares for bigger but fewer cookies. Spoon 1 tsp. preserve in center of each square. Bring up two opposite corners to center; pinch together to seal. Fold sealed tip to one side. If dough becomes too soft, place in refrigerator for about 15 minutes. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely. Makes roughly 2 dozen, depending on size of cookies.

Source: Favorite Brand Name Recipes Grandma's Christmas Cookies, 1997 p. 78