Stuffed Buns aka Kolache

Have you ever had kolache?

For that matter, do you know what they are?

I didn’t until we moved to Texas, and suddenly there are all these kolache places everywhere.

Kolache, pronounced ko-lah-chee, are a stuffed bun of sorts. From what I understand, they originate in Central Europe (namely the Czech Republic/Slovakia area), but they’re also similar to Russian piroshki.

Like I said, they’re basically stuffed buns, and here, you can get just about any filling in them. There’s spinach cheese, sausage egg, potato cheese, apple cinnamon, cream cheese, etc.

They’re also really yummy.

You can have these any meal of the day, depending on what you stuff them with. They can also be dessert too. They’re really great for picnics and packed lunches though!

If you’ve been to or lived in Japan, you’ll know that stuffed buns are nothing new there. You can find a lot of different stuffed buns in bakeries. Some of the more common fillings are curry, anko (sweet azuki bean paste), custard, jam, etc. They’re yummy too. Except the anko filled onces, I am not a fan of sweet bean paste. But that’s just me…

Hisa stuffing those buns!

Anyway, Hisa and I thought it would be fun to actually make our own stuffed buns/kolache, so last Sunday, we did just that. I made my standard bread dough, but really any yeast bread dough will do I think. You could even buy pre-made frozen bread dough to use if you want. We made five different fillings, stuffed them, baked them, and had a kolache feast. And it was good.

I’ve included the recipes for the fillings we made, but feel free to try out your own fillings! There’s so many options with these! Next time I want to try making pumpkin spice, custard, curry, and sausage & egg fillings. Oh, the possibilities!

Tip: Use a topping or mark your buns in some way, so you can distinguish which bun has which filling. We topped ours with a walnuts, almonds, and sesame seeds to distinguish them.

 

General Stuffing/Baking Instructions:

1. Pinch off a piece of dough. I would say larger than a ping pong ball, but smaller than a tennis ball. But really, make them whatever size you want [note that a larger size bun might need to bake longer].
2. Roll out the dough piece into a circle. You want it fairly thin. Place about 1/4 c. of the filling in the center, fold the sides up over the filling, and pinch them closed. Place on a greased baking sheet, pinched side down, and cover and let rise for 10 – 15 minutes.
3. Beat an egg in a small bowl. Use a pastry brush and brush the top of each bun with the egg.
4. Baking the buns at 375° F for about 20 minutes, or until the buns are golden brown. Place on a cooling rack to cool.

One of the meat filled and spinach and cheese filled buns. Ooh, they were so good.

 

Russian Style Meat Filling

• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1/2 lb. ground beef
• 1/2 diced onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tsp. dry dill weed
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 boiled egg, crumbled
• 1/4 c. plain Greek yogurt
• salt and pepper

1. Melt butter in skillet over medium high heat. Add ground beef and onion, and cook until beef browned. Add garlic, dill weed, and tomato paste, and cook another 2 – 3 minutes.
2. Remove from heat. Add boiled egg and yogurt, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Allow to cool to room temperature before stuffing dough for buns.

Potato, Ham, & Cheese Filling

• 3 medium-large russet potatoes
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 c. diced ham
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 1/4 c. milk or cream
• 1 c. shredded colby jack cheese (or whatever cheese you’d prefer)
• salt and pepper

1. Put a pot of water on to boil.
2. In a small skillet over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil for 3 – 4 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. Peel, wash, and cut potatoes into cubes. Boil until tender, then drain, and return to the pot.
4. Add butter and milk to pot. Mash potatoes until the desired consistency. Add onion/garlic, ham, and cheese, and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Let mixture cool to room temperature before stuffing dough for buns.

Spinach Ricotta Filling

• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 5 – 7 oz. fresh spinach (a little over half a bag)
• 1 1/2 c. ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese)
• 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper

1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and saute for 3 – 4 minutes. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
2. Add spinach mixture, ricotta cheese, and parmesan cheese to a bowl and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Let mixture cool to room temperature before stuffing dough for buns.

These were like bread stuffed with apple pie. Delicious. And yummy for breakfast too!

Apple Spice Filling

[note: everyone had their own preference for how strong they like the spices for this type of apple filling. Add more or less than the recipe says according to your preference.]

• 2 large sweet apples, peeled, cored, and cut into small cubes
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/3 – 1/2 c. brown sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. ginger powder

1. Add cubed apples and lemon juice to a pot over medium high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Add sugar and spices, reduce heat to medium, and continue cooking until apples tender, another 5 – 10 minutes. Adjust spices/sweetness to taste.
2. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature before stuffing dough for buns.

Sweet Potato Filling

[note: everyone had their own preference for how strong they like the spices for this type of apple filling. Add more or less than the recipe says according to your preference.]

• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
• 1/3 – 1/2 c. brown sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. allspice
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. ginger powder

1. Boil, steam, or bake sweet potato cubes, according to your preference, until tender. Add to a bowl, and mash until smooth.
2. Mix in the brown sugar and spices. Adjust spices/sweetness to taste.
3. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature before stuffing dough for buns.

 

Waffles with Roasted Sweet Potato, Ham, and Gorgonzola Cheese

It’s a long name, I know.

Actually, the full name today’s recipe is “Savory Waffles with Roasted Sweet Potato, Ham, Gorgonzola Cheese, and Browned Sage Butter”. That seemed a bit excessive though, so I left out the browned sage butter and savory part.
Trust me though, the long name is worth it. These waffles rock.

It all started at Starbucks. Hisa and I somehow started discussing waffles (go figure), and then we started talking about what make good savory toppings for waffles. This is one that I came up with, and it sounded so good, I ended up making it for dinner later that week.

These waffles exceeded my expectations in the best way. They’re really, really good. They’re regular waffles topped with roasted sweet potato, green onions, diced smoked ham, crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, topped with a fried egg (although a poached egg would be great as well), and then lightly drizzled with browned sage butter.

The flavors complement each other wonderfully. The sweetness of the roasted sweet potato is fantastic paired with the tangy Gorgonzola cheese. The smoked ham adds a wonderful depth to it, and the browned sage butter pulls it all together in the best way possible. Hisa and I were both surprised at just how good these were.

These waffles would be great for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, but I think they would be particularly great for an elegant brunch.
If you’re tired of the same old waffles with syrup, and want to try something different, give these a try.

First, peeled and cut one regular sweet potato into cubes. Drizzle lightly with extra virgin olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Mix it up a bit so everything is well coated, then bake in a 350° F oven for about 20 minutes, or until tender.

Dice several green onions (or chives) and ham. Cook them in a skillet together over medium heat for 3 – 4 minutes. You don’t need to add any salt, as ham has enough salt in it.

Mix up your favorite waffle batter, and make your waffles like normal. I don’t add any sugar to my waffle batter, but if you do, you should probably leave it out for these.
While your making your waffles in your waffle maker, fry or poach an egg for each person.
Also while your making the waffles, melt some butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add fresh sage leaves, if you have any, or dried sage if you don’t. Gently cook the butter until it turns brown (don’t cook it on too high heat or it will burn!). Remove from heat and remove the fresh sage leaves if you used them (leave in the dried sage if you used that).

To assemble, put two waffles on each plate. Spread some of the roasted sweet potato onto to the waffles, and then some of the ham and green onions. Sprinkle the crumbled Gorgonzola cheese on top.

Place the fried or poached egg on top of everything, and then drizzle a small amount of the browned sage butter over everything. Sprinkle a little bit of dried parsley on top (optional), and serve.

Yum.

Savory Waffles with Roasted Sweet Potato, Ham, Gorgonzola Cheese, and Browned Sage Butter

(serves 4)

• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into cubes
• 1/2 c. diced green onions (or chives)
• 2/3 c. diced smoked ham
• waffle batter (enough to make 8 regular waffles or 4 Belgium waffles)
• crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 c. (half a stick) butter
• 8 fresh sage leaves (or 1/2 tsp. dried sage)
• dried parsley for garnish (optional)

1. Pre-heat oven to 350° F. Place cubed sweet potato into a baking pan, drizzle lightly with extra virgin olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Stir around so sweet potato is well coated. Bake about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice, or until sweet potato is tender.
2. Add green onions and ham to a skillet over medium heat. Saute for 3 – 5 minutes, then remove from heat.
3. Make waffles in waffle maker like normal.
4. While waffles are cooking, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When melted, add the sage leaves (or dried sage). Continue to cook gently until butter turns brown in color (don’t cook on too high a temperature or for too long or butter will burn). Remove from heat, and remove the whole sage leaves (dried sage can be left in). Set aside.
5. Fry the eggs sunny-side up or poach them.
6. To assemble: Place 2 waffles (or 1 Belgium waffle) on each plate. Spread some of the roasted sweet potato onto to the waffles, and then some of the ham and green onions. Sprinkle crumbled Gorgonzola cheese on top. Place one fried or poached egg on top of everything, and then drizzle a small amount of browned sage butter over everything. Garnish with a little dried parsley (optional), and serve.

Sausage, Sun-dried Tomato, and Spinach Quiche

If there’s one thing I love, it’s a good quiche.

They’re so versatile and easy, yet delicious. Good for breakfast, good for lunch, good for dinner. A good quiche is hard to beat.

This is similar to a frittata I made a few weeks ago, but with sun-dried tomatoes instead of roasted peppers, and in quiche form.

I usually make my own pie crusts, but I’ve been buying pre-made crusts lately. Whole Foods has some really good ground spelt and whole wheat pie crusts in their frozen foods section. I especially like the ground spelt ones.

Feel free to use your favorite pie crust recipe for this quiche or buy a pre-made crust. It’s up to you. Do whatever floats your boat. We’re flexible around here.

One thing. While you can make quiche using all milk, it’s really good if you use half milk and half cream. The cream gives it a bit of lusciousness and depth of flavor that you don’t quite get with just milk. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still great with just milk, but if you’re looking to impress, add some cream.

 

Sausage, Sun-dried Tomato, and Spinach Quiche

(makes 1 quiche)

• 1 pie crust
• 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 – 1/2 lb. Italian sausage (ground or links cut into slices; pork or turkey)
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1/4 c. sun-dried tomatoes, diced
• 2 c. fresh spinach
• 1 c. shredded cheese
• 4 – 5 large eggs
• 1 c. whole milk (or 1/2 c. milk and 1/2 c. heavy cream)
• salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 360° F.
2. Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage and cook until almost completely browned.
3. Add onion and garlic, and continue cooking for 2 – 3 minutes. Add spinach and cook until spinach wilts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
4. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and cream (if using) together. Add a dash of salt and pepper.
5. Place prepared pie crust on a baking sheet. In the crust layer half the cheese, the meat and vegetable mixture, and the rest of the cheese. Pour the egg mixture over everything.
6. Bake, uncovered, 45 minutes, or until top of quiche is golden brown and the egg filling doesn’t jiggle when gently shaken.

Roasted Pepper, Italian Sausage, and Spinach Frittata

Did everyone have a good Independence Day?

We had a fun, although quiet day here. In the morning, we visited the San Jacinto Memorial. I didn’t know what the monument would look like, and I was surprised to see just how big it was. It’s a huge column (it lacks the pointy, pyramid-like top of an obelisk), and stands at 567 feet tall. That’s slightly taller than the Washington Monument in D.C. That’s pretty big, right? Inside, there was a small museum with the history of the area, important figures in Texas history, and of course the battle of San Jacinto.

I forgot my camera (naturally), so here are some pics from my phone.
I couldn’t get the entire monument in the picture, but here’s (most) of it.

 

Hisa standing at the base of the monument.

After leaving there, we visited the nearby Battleship Texas, built in the early 1900s. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get on the boat as it was closed for repairs, but it was still really cool to see. It had huge turrets on it. I can only imagine how loud it must of been when those things were firing.

I wonder if they had good earplugs back in the early 1900s?

In the afternoon, we went to the movies to see The Avengers (finally!). I’d been wanting to see this movie since it came out, so I was happy to finally get to see it before it left theaters. I was surprised to see how packed the theater was though! The movie has been out for so long, I thought the theater would be nearly empty, but it was packed! I guess that’s why it’s still in theaters… Anyway, I thought it was a really good movie. I love the smart-A-ness of Iron Man, but then I have a special place in my heart for smart-A’s, hehe. I blame my parents. 🙂

In the evening, we had hot dogs, coleslaw, and chips for dinner, with homemade vanilla ice cream and a peach crisp for dessert. My family has a tradition of making homemade ice cream on the fourth of July. My mom would always make some every fourth of July, usually a different flavor each year. This was my first time to make homemade ice cream (thanks for the ice cream maker, Mom!), so I went with a simple vanilla ice cream, but oh, it was so good. Happily, we have quite a bit left over (yay~).

 

I love egg dishes. They’re so simple, good anytime of the day, and you can basically put whatever you want in them. They’re also cheap to make! Like strata and quiche, frittatas are a great, easy egg dish to make, and take less time to make than strata and quiche, as you just cook it on the stove for a little bit, then pop it under the broiler for a few minutes to finish cooking.

As it will be going in the oven under the broiler, you’ll be wanting to use an oven-proof skillet to make this. A cast iron skillet is great for this, but any oven-proof skillet will do.

For this frittata, I added roasted red peppers, Italian turkey sausage, and spinach. But I’m sure you didn’t know that, what with the title of this post and all. Oh, and cheese. Don’t forget the cheese! Never forget the cheese!

Goes well with tossed salad and homemade bread. 🙂

Roasted Pepper, Italian Sausage, and Spinach Frittata

(serves 6)

• 2 Tbsp. butter
• 3 Italian turkey sausage links, sliced (ground sausage is fine, as is pork sausage)
• 1/2 small onion, diced
• 2 – 3 roasted red peppers, diced
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 2 c. fresh spinach, chopped
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 c. milk, half and half, or cream
• salt and pepper
• 1 c. shredded cheese

1. Preheat broiler.
2. Add butter to a cast-iron skillet (or any oven-proof skillet) placed over med-high heat. Once melted, add the sausage, and cook until browned. Reduce heat to medium.
3. Add the onion, red pepper, and garlic, and cook until onion turns translucent, 3 -4 minutes. Add the spinach, and cook until it wilts. Spread the meat and vegetables evenly around the skillet.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and a dash of salt and pepper. Pour evenly over the mixture in the skillet. Push the egg mixture around with a spatula or wooden spoon for about 30 seconds, then let it start to set.
5. Once the sides are set, but the center is still runny, sprinkle the cheese over the top. Place in oven, under the broiler until the egg mixture is set and the top is browned. Remove from oven, cut into slices, and serve.

Asparagus and Ham Strata

A new recipe! Yay!

Sorry it’s taken me so long to get around to posting one! But what with moving…and then moving again… I’ve barely had time to even think about cooking anything new or post about it.

This is a dish I made several weeks ago and didn’t get the chance to post about it before the moving frenzy began.

If you’ve never had a strata, it’s a layered casserole consisting of bread, eggs, and cheese, usually with the addition of some kind of meat and/or vegetable. It’s quite similar to a quiche or frittata, except that it doesn’t have a pie crust, like quiche, and instead it has torn up pieces of bread in it.

It’s a really easy, but delicious dish, and honestly, it’s good anytime of the day. Even those times in the middle of the night when  you wake up ravenous, and you raid the kitchen thinking know one will ever know….but they know….they so know.

Feel free to substitute any vegetable of your choice for the asparagus. Broccoli, zucchini, spinach, and summer squash would all be great alternatives.
You can also add any kind of meat you want instead of the ham, or leave it out altogether.

Asparagus and Ham Strata

(serves 6)

• 10 baguette slices (or 5 – 6 regular slices of bread), torn up
• 1 lb fresh asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 in. pieces
• 1 c. cubed ham
• 1 c. grated cheese
• 1 1/2 c. milk
• 6 large eggs
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. dijon mustard
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• black pepper
• 1/2 c. heavy cream (optional)

1. Pre-heat oven to 325° F.
2. Bring a large pot of boiling water to a boil. Cook asparagus for 3 – 4 minutes, or until just tender. Drain and set aside.
3. Grease a 3 qt. rectangle casserole dish. Spread half the torn up bread pieces in the bottom. Top with ham, asparagus, and cheese. Top with the remaining bread pieces.
4. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, yogurt, mustard, onion powder, a dash of pepper (and salt if not using ham), and the cream. Pour evenly over the mixture in the casserole dish.
5. Bake, uncovered, for about 60 minutes, or until egg is completely cooked and the top is golden brown. Let set 10 minutes before serving.

Mmmm, yummeh in my tummeh~