About Time: You Made Czech Koláčes with Budweiser BudvarBy Angelica Malin
Looking for a delicious Koláče recipe? Look no further. You might not think it to look at them, but koláčes are about as hot as it gets right now. From the Deep South in America to London’s East End, this simple-looking pastry is big business, championed by those in the know as being the cake choice of the uber-cool. It has been branded the ‘hipster donut’; the new snack for the discerning that deliciously treads a fine line between bread, sweet pastry and self-contained little treat, perfect for snacking on at any time of the day with a good brew – be it morning coffee or post-work beer. Here’s how to make them yourself as told by Budweiser Budvar:
Koláče Recipe: Ingredients
For the dough:
1kg plain flour.
150g castor sugar.
150g unsalted butter (warmed and melted).
3-4 egg yolks.
40g fresh, live yeast or 2.5tsp instant yeast (added together with the flour).
500ml milk.
Lemon zest.
1tsp salt.
Fine breadcrumbs (for the blueberry tray bake koláč).
For the egg wash:
1-2 large eggs, beaten.
For the crumble:
80g butter.
80g castor sugar.
100g–140g plain flour.
For the curd filling:
250g soft curd cheese (if the curd is too dry, add a bit of milk or cream).
50g–70g castor sugar.
1 egg yolk.
Pinch of lemon zest.
1 whipped egg white.
Optional extras: raisins, cranberries, dark rum, vanilla.
For the poppy seed filling:
250g ground poppy seeds.
500ml milk.
100g castor sugar.
1tsp cinnamon.
A dash of dark rum.
Optional extras: raisins, finely chopped walnuts or hazelnuts, cocoa, ground clove, plum jam.
More fillings:
You can use whatever you have ready-made around, such as fruit jams, for a really easy filling.
Method
For the crumble:
Use good quality unsalted butter. Rub the ingredients together by hand until it achieves something like the consistency of grated Parmesan.
For the curd filling:
Mix curd with the egg yolk, lemon zest and sugar until it has a smooth texture. Add any extra ingredients and, finally, add a whipped egg white, gently folding it in.
For the poppy seed filling:
Add the ground poppy seed mix to hot milk in a saucepan and simmer, but do not boil. When the mixture begins to thicken, add sugar and all the remaining ingredients. Leave to cool and use for filling.
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