Sunday Morning - Kolaches

I was introduced to kolaches when I lived in Austin, TX. A recent trip to Houston re-kindled my love of them so I had try my hand at baking 'em.

They are typically a breakfast pastry and can be made with either sweet or savory ingredients. My favorite is ham and cheese, so that's what I attempted to make on Sunday morning. I found this recipe on a fabulous blog called Homesick Texan. The dough was much more biscuit-y than the kolaches you get from bakeries in Texas (and now one on 30th and Belmont in Portland called The Happy Sparrow - YUM! Get you some!), but they were thoroughly edible and re-heated well so we had kolaches for days! The recipe does require about 1. 5 hrs of rising time so make sure you start them early if you want them for breakfast - or make a day ahead and re-heat the next morning).

Kolaches (from the blog Homesick Texan):
Ingredients:
1 package of active dry yeast
1 cup of warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
3 cups of all-purpose flour*
2 eggs
3/4 cup of melted butter
1 teaspoon of salt
1/4 lb. ham or bacon
1 C. shredded Extra Sharp Tillamook Cheddar cheese
*I used A LOT more flour while kneading - it probably took another cup or so of flour just to keep it from sticking to the cutting board.


In a large bowl, combine yeast, warm milk, sugar and one cup of flour. Cover and let it rise until doubled in size.

Beat together eggs, 1/2 cup of melted butter (reserve 1/4 cup for brushing on the pastry) and salt.

Add egg mixture to yeast mixture and blend.

Stir in about two more cups of flour, 1/2 cup at a time. The dough should be soft and moist.
Knead dough for about 10 minutes on floured surface. Don't worry, it’s a joy to knead as the dough is smooth and highly malleable.

Put dough in a greased bowl and let rise covered until doubled in size—about an hour.
After dough has risen, punch it down and pull off egg-sized pieces. In your hands, roll pieces into balls and then flatten to about three inches in diameter. Brush with melted butter.

Place flattened pieces on a greased cookie sheet, cover and let rise again for another half-hour.

After second rising, with your finger gently make an indention in the center of the dough (be careful not to flatten it too much) and fill with your choice of fillings (we used small pieces of deli ham but you could also use bacon and grated Extra Sharp Tillamook Cheddar cheese). Top each one with a bit of shredded cheese before you pop them in the oven.

Bake in oven at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Brush with melted butter when you take them out of the oven and serve warm.