Best Family Favorite Czech Recipes

As Christmas week draws in, I felt the urge to bake some kolacky for the family. I went with the strawberry cream cheese variety this weekend. This kolacky recipe is similar to the other kolacky recipe on this site as the dough consists of simply cream cheese, butter, and flour producing a light flaky puff pastry when baked. The pastry will end up light in color (almost white)when baked. I do not mind the light cream cheese flour tone so I do not add anything to create a golden or yellowing effect such as egg or extra vanilla. Give this recipe a try and remember to pinch the edges shut to avoid the pastry from unraveling. If strawberry cream cheese does not sound like the filling of your choice, you can opt for just about any fruit or nut based pie filling or jam whether apricot, plum, poppy seed or almond. Merry Christmas to all. Strawberry Cream Cheese Kolacky Kolacky Dough 1 cup all purpose flour 3/8 cup cream cheese 1 stick butter Kolacky Filling 1 small jar stra

I found a great deal at the store for which I snagged a 3 pound bag of apples for a measly one dollar. I love cooking with apples in the fall and winter as they are easy to come at a reasonable price. I usually like to prepare these apples in the form of german apple pancake, apple pies, or even a hot apple crisp. My plans for these apples involved something different, bread pudding with apples. The results were tasty and I recommend this as a worthy finish to your holiday dinners or get together. I recommend using day old bread cut or torn into larger pieces. If you have leftover baguettes or buns, that will work even better. You can top this pudding with sauce, though I just use a dollop of whipped cream upon serving. Also consider substituting dried cranberries in place of raisins to make the dish more holiday-oriented. Also consider immersing sliced apples into a bowl of cool water mixed with a little lemon juice until you are ready to combine with the other ingredients. Bre

As I have mentioned in earlier posts, I love cooking with a dutch oven. This stove top marvel creates all sorts of tasty stick to your ribs kind of meals. One of these family favorite meals is chicken and dumplings. There are so many different varieties of chicken and dumpling recipes out there. I have one that is a “cheater” recipe since it uses the aid of bisquick rather than creating the dumping from scratch with flour and baking soda. On a side note, I prefer the use of the heart healthy variety of bisquick since there aren’t any transfats in the mix. I like this recipe opposed to those chicken and dumpling recipes that have dumplings consisting of a more “noodle” or pasta consistency. Some people claim that is true chicken and dumplings, though I prefer the more bread or biscuit style of dumpling as created in my recipe. If you have a whole chicken readily available and a box of bisquick in the cabinet, I recommend you try this one. This recipe also leaves the chicken parts with b

Czech Chicken Paprika Recipe 6 – 7 Chicken Thighs 2 Cups Chicken Broth 1 Cup Water 1 Cup Onion – Chopped 1 Cup Sour Cream 2 Tbs Paprika 2 Tbs Lard or Vegetable Oil 2 Tbs Flour 1 Tsp Garlic, minced ½ Tsp Salt ¼ Tsp Ground Pepper 1. Heat up lard or oil in skillet on medium low heat. 2. Spinkle paprika on both sides of chicken and place in skillet. Place any remaining paprika into skillet. 3. Increase heat to medium and brown both sides of chicken. 4. Add onion and garlic and lightly brown stirring occasionally. 5. Lower heat to simmer, then add flour. 6. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes stirring constantly. 7. Increase heat to medium and add chicken broth and water, stirring constantly. 8. Once a low boil is achieved add salt and pepper. 9. Reduce to simmer partially covered for 40 minutes. Stir on occasion. 10. Remove chicken from sauté pan and add sour cream to sauce. 11. Place chicken back into pan and mix. 12. Add additional salt and pepper to taste (if necessary). 13. Serve on dumplings or eg

Cooler weather ushers in more czech cooking. Well, the weather has finally cooled down here in Chicago which means I can immerse myself into cooking more Bohemian food. Today, I made Svickova which is marinated beef. This recipe much resembles the Chateau recipe with a few alerations here and there. I usually enjoy this dish served over dumplings with green beans on the side. I try to slice the roast as thin as possible so I can place the meat directly on top the dumplings when serving. A cold pilsner to accompany the meal is always good. Here is the recipe. Marinated Beef (Svickova) 3 lbs Sirloin Roast 2 Cups Water 1 Cup Vinegar 2 Carrots, Chopped 2 Ribs of Celery, Chopped 2 Parsnips, Chopped 1 onion, Chopped 5 pieces of Allspice 6 Peppercorns 2 Bay Leaves 4 Tbls All Purpose Flour 1 16oz container Sour Cream 1 Cup Beef Broth 1/2 Tsp Thyme Directions: 1. Combine water, vinegar, vegetables, all spice, peppercorns, and bay leaves into a saucepan and bring to a boil

Dessert Anyone?? A good follow up to a hearty meal involves a little pastry with a hot cup of coffee. One of my family favorite czech desserts starts with Kolacky. Kolacky is a small pastry/cookie that can be prepared using a variety of fillings such as raspbery, apricot, poppy seed, or almond flavors. I have included a fast and easy raspberry kolacky recipes that has been passed down from my great aunt (Teta). Here is how it is prepared. Fruit Filled Kolacky 1 Cup All Purpose Flour 1 Stick Butter 3/8 Cup Cream Cheese Fruit Filling (Jam or Canned Pastry Filling) 1. Cream softened butter and cream cheese 2. Slowly add Flour 3. Thoroughly mix dough until well blended/moist. 4. Refrigerate dough for a few hours. 5. Roll out dough to about 1/4 inch. 6. Cut Dough into Squares. 7. Place squares on greased cookie sheet. 8. Spoon fruit mixture onto center of pastry square. 9. Fold opposite corners into center forming a square. 10 Bake for 12-15 minutes in 375 degree oven. 11.