Showing the finished kolaczki cookies. They are on a white tray and you can see the cherry filling and almond filling in the cookies
Yield: 5-6 Dozen 2 Bite Cookies

Polish Kolaczki Cookies

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 16 minutes
Chilling Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 31 minutes

Kolaczki cookies are a traditional Polish cream cheese cookie. The cookie dough almost mimics a pastry and is filled with a variety of fillings such as apricot, prune, cherry, almond, poppy seed, and more! 

Ingredients

  • 226 grams (1 cup, 2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 226 grams (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 270 grams (2 ¼ cups) all purpose flour
  • powdered sugar, for rolling
  • solo brand filling of choice (*see note)

Instructions

Make the dough

  1. In the bowl of the a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter (226 grams/ 1 cup) and cream cheese (226 grams/ 8 ounces) on medium/high speed until light and fluffy. This should take about 2 minutes.
  2. Mix in the vanilla extract (¼ teaspoon) and the salt (½ teaspoon) until well combined.=
  3. With the mixer running on low speed, add the flour (270 grams/ 2 ¼ cups) slowly until all is incorporated. You will have a very thick and sticky dough.
  4. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions (I like to use a scale, otherwise you can eyeball it). Place each portion in between 2 pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Flatten each portion to about ½ inch (1.27 cm) thick.
  5. Chill in the refrigerator for about 45 minutes-1 hour, until easy to handle. You can chill the dough for longer but you may need to let it sit out at room temperature before rolling it.

Roll, Fill, & Bake

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
  2. Dust a clean work surface liberally with powdered sugar. Take out one disc of dough and dust the top with more powdered sugar. Roll out to a square about ¼ inch (0.6 cm) thick. Keep the rest of the dough in the refrigerator as you work.
  3. Using a pizza cutter or bench knife, cut the dough into 2x2 inch (5x5 cm) squares.
  4. Spread about 1 teaspoon of filling down the middle of each square, corner to corner. To seal, dab a bit of water on one of the corners without filling and seal it in the center with the other corner. Press to seal so the cookies do not pop open in the oven. Transfer the filled cookies onto parchment lined baking sheets. The cookies will not spread so you can place them fairly close together.
  5. Bake for 14-18 minutes, until just barely golden brown. They won't brown very much. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
  6. Dust cooled cookies with powdered sugar before serving. If you will not be serving right away, wait to dust until right before serving.
  7. Store cookies covered at room temperature for about 3 days. They will start to get soggy if not eaten within a few days. I also do not recommend storing them airtight. Place a lid loosely over top or cover with foil or plastic wrap.

Notes

  • A note about the filling: I find that canned filling works best for this recipe because it doesn't leak out of the cookie. Yes, it does contain corn syrup, but it is a cookie after all! If you prefer to make a filling, I suggest making a dried fruit filling. You can use jam if you like but be warned it might leak out as it bakes.