Saturday, December 19, 2009

My family Kolacky recipe


I had a friend ask about this recipe, so instead of just emailing it to her, I thought I'd post it here, so anyone else who wanted it could have it. If you're unfamiliar with Kolacky (or Kolachy, or Kolachi), they are Polish/Slovak cookies. It can also be a roll (like a nut or fruit roll), but I prefer these small cookie versions.

This is from my Grandmother's Slovak-American cookbook (hubby bought me my own copy of the cookbook a few years ago). She has made many versions of these cookies over the years, but this is the one she favors, and is truly one of my favorite cookies.

Cream Cheese Kolacky

6 oz of cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sifted flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, well beaten
fruit or nut filling (I usually buy from the bakery at the grocery store... raspberry and apricot are traditional)

Cream butter and cream cheese togther. Sift flower with salt, sugar, and baking powder. Blend dry ingredients thoroughly with cheese mixture. Add beaten eggs. Sir until blended. Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.

Pat or roll outdough on floured board to about 1/3 inch thickness. Cut with floured biscuit cutter, or cut with a pastry wheel into 2 inch squares. Place 1/2 teaspoon of desired fruit or nut filling in center of each square or round, and fold over, sealing the dough shut. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 12-15 minutes.

Makes about 2 dozen


So that's the official recipe, per Grandma. I usually sprinkle sugar on the pastry board with the flour before I roll them out, so they have a light sugar dusting on the outside of the pastry. Also, when folding them over, I usually wet the the bottom flap and pinch the two layers together to hold them closed.


Just a note:
Grandma's Cookbook
The Anniversary Slovak-American Cookbook, Tylka Printing, Chicago, 1952.
AND
The picture I'm posting isn't mine... These are just what my cookies usually look like (on a good day). :) I got it from this webpage:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.polishpierogi.com/images/products/kolacky.jpg&imgrefurl=http://polishcatering.com/&usg=__T1Fejt2rbrwsyvOlW9Q9XIQRC0I=&h=1932&w=2576&sz=656&hl=en&start=2&tbnid=YYcWumkwz3HQfM:&tbnh=113&tbnw=150&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dkolacky%2Bcookies%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG

Thursday, December 10, 2009

18 months old!

Well, it's been 6 months since my last post, and we haven't had tons of pictures of Avery lately, since I broke my camera last spring. Still, here are a few updates:


July: Took Avery to meet her cousins in Baltimore for the first time
August: Moved into our new apartment and Avery started "school"!
September: Lots of time spent with family. Grandpa made a great babysitter (and contributed lots of pictures)
October: Avery's second Halloween didn't go so well, and we didn't get any pictures, due to hatred of wearing a costume.

November: Spent Thanksgiving with Grammy

December: Had our first Christmas show at school!


So, here is a sampling of some of the pictures we HAVE accumulated over the last few months, in no special order.


End of November: 18 month picturesSeptember: Being babysat by Grandpa
July: at Philadelphia Zoo with Firefly friends
July: Cousin's birthday Party




Friday, June 5, 2009

Pictures from Avery's party

Remember, click on the picture to see it larger...


The tables/decor
Avery and her chair/gifts
Family

Playing with her "boyfriend" Aidan

Avery

The jump-a-round

Preparing for Cake
Her cake
Eating a cupcake with her cake
No more cake

Sorry it took a few days, but here are some pictures from Avery's birthday party. We ended up getting the cake from a local grocery store, but it came out pretty cute. :) Plus, her birthday dress ended up being too big, so she wore one of her other gymboree butterfly outfits, but overall, the party was a blast!

Oh, and the picture of the table... We did gerber daisies and butterflies. In fact, in the basket you'll see flowers? Those are silverware rolls with gerber daisies and ribbon tying them up. Took me forever to do , but I loved how they came out.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Happy 1st birthday, Avery!


Oh, My!! Avery is one year old today... ((sigh)) my baby is not so much of a baby anymore.

Since I didn't keep a blog last year, here's a picture of her in the hospital.

She was:
7lb 8oz
born at 6:48pm
20 1/2 inches long

She was born after several days of back labor, but only several hours in the hospital. I was in a beautiful, epidural induced haze, and was pleased to finally have her with me.

Sunday, May 31, 2009

Had a great birthday party.

Well, yesterday was Avery's 1st birthday party, even though her birthday isn't actually until Wednesday. The weather was beautiful, and everything went well. Well, except for Avery. She was exhausted from the get-go, even though she had her nap before hand. I think she's not feeling well, or is teething or something. Anyway, she saw lots of family and friends, and received many nice gifts.

I don't have any pictures to post yet, since my camera is broken and I'm waiting on the pictures from both grandfathers. So, grandfathers, send me some pictures to post, lol!

Hope all of Avery's friends have as great of a birthday party as she did!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

1st birthday pictures today!









Well, it's been a while. Avery has been keeping us busy, and between that and house shopping, things have been crazy.

Anyway, 1 more week until her birthday party, and we took her in for her birthday pictures today. She ran around in circles in the waiting area for 45 minutes, then continued to run ALL DAY LONG. We got some really cute pictures, and well, can I say? Not only do I have ONE CUTE BABY, she also REALLY likes cake, lol!

So, here are some of the best pictures from today!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Our little Dandelion



Well, I got my camera outside with us this weekend. It's gorgeous out, and Avery blended right in. I think all the pollen is bothering her allergies, though, so we made the trip outside a little short. So, here's Avery, our little dandelion, growing like a weed.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Spring is here!







Well, spring is really here in Ohio, and Avery is LOVING playing outside. However, she does NOT seem to like the swings, the slide, or other playground equipment. She tends to prefer just chasing the big girls around the playground. I was too busy chasing her to have the camera with me at the park, but here are some new pics from earlier in the day. Maybe next time I'll get more with her outside.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Easter Pics!





We had a great Easter around here. Grandma came over and we had a great time! Here are some pics of Avery's Easter, as well as a little video of her playing her favorite game with Daddy!

It's called, Chase Daddy around the kitchen!

Monday, April 6, 2009

Changed my mind on a theme already!

Ok, so I've actually changed my mind on Avery's bday party theme ALREADY! Thanks for the feedback I got already. I appreciate it, and it led me to thinking about the outfit I wanted her to wear. I LOVE this outfit, so I got to thinking that I should just make THAT into the theme. So, here it is. The butterflies are going to be her hair clips, and I'm going to use that in invites, cake, etc., and then I'm going to use the colors and patterns for the rest of the party! What do you think? Any extra suggestions?

Oh, and we had fun playing outside yesterday. It was 65 degrees and gorgeous. (it's supposed to snow today. Stupid Ohio weather.)

Sunday, April 5, 2009

Help us pick a birthday theme!

Ok, so I'm starting the plans for Avery's 1st birthday party. My problem is, is there are TOO many cute themes.

I've got several I like (though 1 or 2 favorites), but I was wondering about everyone else's opinions. Here are the pics of the different themes. Leave me a comment on your favorite, please? Pretty please? Make this easier on me?








Friday, April 3, 2009

Such a little character!


Sorry it's becoming so LONG between updates anymore. Avery moves so much it's hard to get her to stand still long enough to get her picture taken. She's 10 months old today! Yay! What a big girl. Her personality is coming out more and more every day. She's starting to decide that she no longer likes to be fed "BABY" food, since that's for babies. She wants big girl food. She also wants to get up and move, as well as to have anything that resembles a book, pamphlet, magazine, or the like. (should I be surprised, having the parents she does? probably not)

Oh, and here's a question for you all. How many cheerios need to be on the floor before you're obligated to vacuum? Is there a set number, or is it discretionary?

Friday, March 20, 2009

9 month update




Yesterday was Avery's 9 month doctor's appointment.

She was 7lb 8oz at birth and 20 1/2 inches...
Today? 18lb 4oz and 28 3/4 inches! Go little, girl, go!

She's eating lots of solids and table foods now, and loves her cheerios. She also loves Curious George, Stephen Colbert, and James Taylor. She's a very eclectic little girl. She has a lovey named Bear, a purple binky, and a curl in the middle of her head (actually, all over her head, but it varies by day.)

And of course, here are some pics.