Hungarian Apricot Kolaches and Nut Rolls
These adorable little cookies are as tasty as they are beautiful. My Hungarian grandmother made these using ice cream for the dough, but sometimes I use the cream cheese version. I share both dough variations and filling for the kolaches and nut rolls below. Enjoy!
Ice Cream Dough
- 2 cups good quality vanilla ice cream (slightly softened)
- 1 lbs butter (softened)
- 4 cups flour (maybe more)
- granulated sugar for rolling
Cream Cheese Dough
- 8 oz cream cheese (softened)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter (softened)
- 2 1/4 cup flour
- granulated sugar for rolling
Apricot Filling
- 1 lb dried apricots
- 1 cup sugar (optional)
- water
Nut Roll Filling
- 1/2 lb walnuts (ground)
- 1/4 cup butter
- water
- sugar
Ice Cream Dough
-
1: Mix ice cream, butter, and 3 cups flour.
2: Put on table and knead in remaining flour
3: Place in refrigerator for 1 hour before working.
Cream Cheese Dough
-
1: Beat cream cheese and butter together with a stand mixer
2: Slowly add flour and salt.
3: Refrigerate for 1 hour before working.
Apricot Filling
-
1: Put apricots in saucepan and cover with water.
2: Boil until soft. Do not let all the water evaporate
3: Add sugar if using and cook until thick
4: Puree with immersion blender or food processor
Nut Roll Filling
-
1: Grind nuts
2: Add softened butter, sugar, and water and stir until consistency of paste
Assembling the Cookies
-
1: Divide dough in half to make it easier to work with, or smaller if needed.
2: Roll out quite thin, probably thinner than what you might think, maybe 1/16 inch thick
3: Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter or crimping roller, cut squares 1 1/2 to 2 inches in size, depending on your preference
4: Place 1 teaspoon of filling in each square and bring diagonal corners together, pinching to seal.
5: Roll each cookie in granulated sugar
6: Bake at 375 degrees for 14-16 minutes
The Harlow Hearth 