A word from George,
Kolache (pronounced koh-LAW-chee) is a traditional Eastern European sweet roll, filled with either rich, sweet and creamy fillings or savory sausages. Almost every European culture has something similar: strudel, tart, pasty, kringle, empanada, beigli, turnover, potica, gugellhuff, hand pie, povitica, kärleksmum, or kugelhopf.
In east and central Texas, where Karen and I both grew up, the food scene is dominated by distinctive twists on Mexican cuisine and barbeque. Both are imported, but with a very unique Texas flair: the Mexican food is known as Tex-Mex and the Brisket BBQ comes from Czech immigrants who came to the Hill Country of central Texas in large numbers after the disruptive European revolutions and civil wars from 1848-1918. But of course, the Czech settlers didn’t just bring BBQ. They also brought their kolache (or kolachi, kolachy, kolacs, and kalacs depending on the region or district of origin).
In Houston, where Karen and I went to college, met, married, and started our family and our ministry, there were nearly as many kolache shops as there were donut shops. So, it was there that we first became acquainted with the tradition of making kolache for Easter morning. At the first church we planted in Texas, Easter kolache was as much a part of our celebration as the Christmas tamale or the Independence Day bratwurst. It’s a tradition we’ve delighted in bringing to our little corner of Tennessee.
So join us baking some Kolache this Easter season. Here are some resource links for you to to bake your own at home.
- A savory breakfast Kolache
- A sweet Kolache
- Easy Hot Cross Buns
- A more advanced Hot Cross Buns recipe
- A Short video sharing more of the history of kolaches, plus some great tips
Feel free to share your pictures with us on social media! #ParishPresEaster2020
