Hungarian Cream Cheese Cookies With Prune Lekvar Recipes

GRAM'S HUNGARIAN KIFFLE

Steps:

• 1. 1) Cream butter and cream cheese till fluffy; gradually blending in sugar.
• 2. 2) Stir together flour and salt, stir into a creamed mixture. OR...like me, you could just use a food processor for this step to form the dough.
• 3. 3) Divide in half and roll with your hands to form a "Ball" and Cover; chilling dough several hours or overnight. Be advised; the less you handle the dough the more delicate and flakier it will be when it's baked.
• 4. 4) On lightly floured surface, roll each portion into rectangles, THEN cut them down into about 2 1/2-inch squares. (There WILL be "odd triangle" sizes left. You'll USE them too! - Kiffles are a ROLLED, 'cresent-shape".)
• 5. 5) Place a dollop (about one rounded teaspoon) of filling in the center of each square.
• 6. 6) Lift up two diagonal corners of the dough to center, pinching together to seal into crescents.
• 7. 7) Preheat oven to 375°.
• 8. 8) Place dough on ungreased cookie sheet. (I'd STILL spray them with BUTTER FLAVORED PAM! - Better 'safe' than STUCK!) Bake till firm until golden brown (about 12-15 minutes).
• 9. 9) Cool on wire racks. Sift powdered sugar over slightly warm pastries.
• 10. 10) Store loosely covered in a cool dry place.

HUNGARIAN KIFFLES

Steps:

• Whisk the flour and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.
• Beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until very smooth and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, mixing just until combined. The dough will be quite moist, but not sticky.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and flatten into a square approximately 1/2-inch thick. Cut into 4 equal pieces and wrap each separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, a minimum of 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.
• Remove one portion of the dough from the refrigerator and place it on a liberally floured surface.
• Dust the top of the dough with flour and cover with a sheet of wax or parchment paper. Working from the center toward the corners, roll the dough out to a 1/8-inch-thick square. It should measure about 9 inches.
• For best results, see our recipe notes below to learn how to roll your dough into a perfect square.
• Using a pastry wheel or a sharp knife, cut your dough both lengthwise and crosswise into small squares.
• Your total yield will depend on how large you make them. We recommend 1-1/2-inches which will give you 36 kiffles per square of dough or about 12 dozen total.
• The best way to keep the size even is to use a ruler and mark all 4 sides of the dough square at intervals with the tip of a knife. You can use the handle of a spatula to guide you as you cut to keep your lines straight as well (similar to drawing straight lines on a sheet of paper).
• Working as quickly as possible, place a small mound of filling (about 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon) in the center of each square. If the filling flavor you're using is relatively smooth you can spoon it into a small freezer bag, snip off a tiny bottom corner and squeeze the filling onto the squares. This works particularly well with the poppy and almond flavors.
• Lift two opposite corners of the dough over the filling and gently pinch them together. Fold that "point" over to one side, moisten the tip of your finger with a bit of water and smooth it down gently on one side of the kiffle. This prevent the kiffles from popping open as they bake.
• Important Note: The various filling flavors spread a bit differently during baking so you may want to fill a few "test" kiffles and bake them to gauge the right amount of filling for each type.
• Arrange the kiffles 1 inch apart on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake until barely golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then carefully transfer the kiffles to cooling racks.
• Repeat the process with the remaining 3 portions of dough, using different filling flavors if desired.
• Store kiffles between layers of waxed paper in a tightly closed container and refrigerate. Bring them to room temperature (30 minutes out of the fridge), arrange on a plate and dust lightly with powdered sugar just before serving. It's not advisable to top them with powdered sugar before storing.
• Makes 8 to 12 dozen

LEKVAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Mix together the butter and cream cheese until creamy
• Add flour
• Roll on floured board until 1/4" thick
• Cut into squares
• Fill in squares with lekvar or red raspberry jam
• Fold corners (2 corners) one over the other
• Bake at 420 degrees for 20 minutes
• Roll in powdered sugar while still hot

HUNGARIAN COOKIES FOR BEGINNERS

Steps:

• Sift together dry ingredients.
• Cut in margarine as for pie crust.
• Add eggs, vanilla and milk, just enough to hold dough together. Do not work this dough, just blend ingredients.
• Roll out and cut into squares 3x3 inch, not too thin.
• Fill with any desired filling.
• Brush top with beaten egg.
• Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until golden brown.