Passed down from generations this recipe is as rich in memories as it is ingredients
Ingredients:
4 c. & 6 Tbsp of all purpose flour 1 tsp baking powder
1-2 Tbsp vinegar 1 ¼ lb. butter (5 sticks)
1 c. water 2 egg yolks (reserve whites for walnut filling)
- Mix 4 cups of flour & 3 sticks of butter (Set aside remaining sticks of butter and 6 Tbsp of flour, combined).
- Mix together 2 egg yolks, water, vinegar & baking powder. Combine with 4 c flour mixture. Use a paddle attachment or dough hook if using stand mixer. Stir until dough forms.
- Roll out dough to approximately ¼ or ½ inch thick (a pastry roller or wooden rolling pin works best) and spread with ½ of butter/flour mixture. In thirds, fold dough inward (you’ll have a layer of dough-butter-dough-butter-dough etc.) Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hrs. Repeat this step.
- *This step can be repeated as often as you’d like. I’ve done it as many as 4 times but you’ll need to add another stick of butter & 3 Tbsp of flour for each time beyond the two listed in this recipe.
- Roll out finished dough to 1/8-1/4 inch thickness. Cut into squares approximately 3 in. x 3 in.
- In center of square, place 1-1 ½ tsp. of apricot or walnut filling. Do not overfill as the preserves expand when baked.(For variety, I’ve also used pecan, raspberry and other fruit fillings.) Either fruit preserves can be used, or tubes of fruit fillings are usually available at most cake/candy decorating supply stores & online) Walnut filling recipe is listed below.
- Pinch two opposing corners together (with fingers slightly moistened with water) and seal together.
- Bake in 325 degree oven for 15-18 minutes. You do NOT want them to brown. They should raise and become flaky. The pastry will have a dry appearance. Cool on wire rack. When completely cooled, sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Walnut filling
2 c. finely chopped walnuts 2 egg whites
Cinnamon/Sugar mixture to taste. Milk
Combine ingredients, sweetening to taste. Add a few teaspoons of milk if mixture is dry
THE STORY: When I was younger, Christmas seemed three months long. Shortly before Thanksgiving, we’d begin looking forward to the arrival of the one thing that signaled the beginning of the holiday season. It wasn’t the lights, or the music & decorations; no, not back then. Way back before home computers, the Internet, overstocked stores or crazy Black Friday shoppers there were two books that every kid in my neighborhood waited for: The Sears Wish book and the JCPenney’s catalog.
When it arrived, my brother and I would fight until blood was spilled, to see who got first dibs with a marker at this bringer of the magical toys we discovered within its cover. Page after page, revealed something wonderful that we’d ‘ooh & ahh’ over as we carefully circled the objects we desired. (I should’ve been as smart as my grandson who saves time by circling an entire page in the ads.)
Once that book arrived, the trips to the stores began. My mother was a woman on a mission with my brother and me in tow while she steered with remarkable agility through crowds of shoppers. Yes, it was madness, but it was civil madness. There was no pushing, shoving or pepper spray; no waiting in long lines for deals. People shopped and chatted and hugged and wished each other Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah. Sales clerks were friendly and helpful, and everyone you met just had a special sparkle about them. It was truly a magical time that focused on family and treating others the way you would want to be treated. It really felt like a season of miracles.
Thinking back to all the Christmas celebrations growing up, I can’t tell you one gift I received; not because I didn’t get any but because the things I DO remember are far more important. We went to my Hungarian grandparents’ house every Christmas eve, where a troupe from their church would show up, in full costume & act out, in Hungarian, a portion of the Christmas story. It was fascinating and always followed by a visit from the big guy in a red suit bearing presents.
What stands out most from the past are the food and the festivities surrounding it. The table was always filled with typical American food as well as specialties from their native Hungary. Poppy seed potatoes were present to bring luck for the coming New Year. Cookies, cakes and sweets of all kinds filled the kitchen counters. But the most popular of all were the delicate, flaky apricot or walnut pastries that Grandma only made a few times a year. A labor of love, their preparation was best stretched out for at least two days. A velvety dough is coated with a mixture of flour & butter, and then re-rolled to let the two blend in the refrigerator. Only when the two have merged, is the dough again rolled out and the process repeated. The more often this is done, the flakier the pastry. My Grandma did it with perfect precision, just as her mother had taught her in the Old country.
When I was a teenager, I asked to be taught the recipe. I was shocked to learn that she used no standard measurements for anything, as everything was “a pinch of this” or a “handful of that”, so I had to estimate the amount of the ingredients. But I watched in awe as she carefully explained every step, including the smallest of details. It is a memory I’ll never forget, because most days, she and I had little in common and therefore weren’t very close. But on that day, a love for cooking & the continuation of traditions passed on through generations brought us together for a common goal. To this day, a Christmas does not pass without the apricot pastries being made in my kitchen, where I’m sure my Grandma’s spirit is watching me as I’ve begun teaching MY granddaughter to make them. So much better than toys or gifts under the tree; these are the important memories of the Holidays; the love passed down from generation to generation.
And she’s right, we are more excited for the cookie than the presents.