These Cream cheese cookies are a version of the Polish delicacy Kolackzi. A flaky and soft pastry base and chocolate-almond stuffing make for a perfect delight for special occasions and festivities.
Kolaczki is a traditional Polish cookie with a pastry-like base and fruit fillings. They are famous across central Europe with different names. They become a staple during holidays and festivities.
These cream cheese cookies are very easy to make and only require a few ingredients. The rich dough of these cookies is made with only flour, cream cheese, and butter. With only three ingredients they bake up to become soft, buttery, and flaky pastry.
Traditional Kolaczki is filled with jams of strawberry, blueberry, apricot, pineapple or apricots, almonds, prunes, poppy seeds, and sweet cheese. But here I’ve used chocolate-coated almonds because I am a chocolate addict and also because I love how chocolate elevates the taste of these cookies to another level.
Since they are a little time-consuming as the dough needs to be refrigerated and the assembly process can take a few minutes some people may wait for a special occasion. But with a little dedication, you can make them anytime because they are very easy to make.
INGREDIENTS
For cookie dough
- Flour
- Butter
- Cream Cheese
- Sugar (powdered)
For stuffing
- Almonds
- Dark chocolate
- Cornflour
You can use any kind of nuts you want like cashews, peanuts, walnut etc. Instead of dark chocolate you can use milk or white chocolate or skip chocolate.
How to make cream cheese cookies with stuffed almond chocolate?
- Gather all ingredients
Stuffing preparation
- Blanching and halving of almonds:Blanching of almonds is done to remove its skin. Skinless almonds have a smooth texture. But this step is completely optional. You can use almonds with skin intact.
- To remove skin of almonds soak then in hey water for around 5-10 minutes. Drain the hot water and immediately pour cold water to cool down. Gently squeeze each almond to remove skin.
- With help of a knife split each almond in half.
- Melting chocolate: Melt chocolate in double boiler. Add cornflour to melted chocolate.
- Coating almonds: Put the almonds in to melted chocolate and mix. Place almonds one by one on a parchment/butter paper. Place the parchment/butter paper in refrigerator for minimum of 30 minutes.
Cookie dough preparation
- Cream butter and cream cheese together. You can employ a mixer for this. Mix on medium speed about 2 minute or till the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
- Add sifted flour little by little and mix with a spatula or hands to make a dough. The dough will have a sticky consistency.
- Place the dough on a plastic wrap. Give it a square shape and completely cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Assembling the cookie
- Divide the dough in to four equal parts. Take one part and refrigerate the other three parts.
- Dust a plane surface with powdered sugar. Place the dough on the surface. Dust the rolling pin also. Remember to use powdered sugar generously.
- Roll the dough in to a square or rectangle with 1/2 inch thickness.
- Cut the the dough in to 2 inch squares.
- Place these squares on a parchment/butter paper lined baking sheet.
- Place one or two chocolate almonds on each square.
- Brush little water on diagonal corners of square and pinch them together with fingers to seal them.
Baking of cookies
- Preheat the oven to 180℃ (350 ℉).
- Bake them at 180 ℃ (350 ℉) for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies achieve a light golden brown colour.
- Remove from oven and place the cookies on a wire rack to cool them immediately.
- Roll them in sugar powder before serving.
FAQ’s
- Why is it necessary to refrigerate the dough?
- The quantity of cream cheese and butter compared to flour is more thus the dough is sticky. Therefore, it is necessary to refrigerate the dough to be able to work with it. And refrigeration also helps in achieving the flaky pastry texture. Work with a small part of dough at a time and refrigerate the remaining part.
- Why powdered sugar is used to dust rather than flour?
- Using flour will make the cookies very dry that’s why powdered sugar is used. Powdered sugar should be used liberally.
- How long can the dough and cookie can be stored?
- In an airtight container or zip-lock bag the cookie can rest in refrigerator for 5 days and in freezer for 1 month.
- In an air tight container at room temperature the cookies can be stored for up to three days.
- What is blooming?
- When baked cookies may open up. To avoid let the assembled cookies rest for 30 minutes before baking.
Cream cheese cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- 180 g Flour 1½ cups
- 170 g Butter 1½ cups at room temperature
- 113 g Cream Cheese ½ cup at room temperature
- ½ cup Sugar(powdered)
Chocolate-Almond stuffing
- 24 g Almond 25 nos
- ½ cup Dark chocolate
- 2 tsp Cornflour
Instructions
Chocolate-Almond Stuffing
- Line a plate/tray with parchment/butter paper and set aside.
- Soak almonds in hot water for 5-10 minutes.
- Drain hot water and rinse almonds with cold water to cool down immediately.
- Squeeze each almond with fingers to remove skin.
- With a knife split the almonds in half. Set aside
- Melt in a double boiler or microwave.
- Add cornflour to melted chocolate and mix well.
- Dip almonds one by one in chocolate and place it on parchment lined tray/plate.
- Place the tray/plate in refrigerator for 30 minutes for chocolate-almonds to set.
Cream Cheese Cookies
- In a large bowl mix cream cheese and butter with a mixer om medium speed till the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
- Sift in flour and make a sticky dough.
- Place the dough on a plastic wrap. Give the dough a square shape. Completely wrap it in plastic wrap.
- Place the dough in refrigerator for 1 hour.
- After 1 hour line a baking sheet/tray with parchment/butter paper.
- Divide the dough in to four equal parts. Take one part to work on and refrigerate the other three parts.
- Dust a plane surface and rolling pin with generous amount of powdered sugar.
- Place the dough on dusted surface and roll the dough in to a square or rectangle of 1/2 inch thickness.
- Cut it in to squares of 2 inches.
- Place these squares on parchment/butter paper lined tray.
- Place 1-2 chocolate-almonds on each square.
- Brush little water on two corners of square and use fingers to pinch them together.
- Preheat the oven to 180 ℃(350 ℉).
- After 10 minutes bake at 180 ℃(350 ℉) for 10-12 minutes or till the cookies achieve light golden colour.
- Remove from the baking sheet/tray and place them on wire rack to cool down.
- Roll them in powdered sugar before serving.
