Forming kolaches...

In my previous post about making Bohemian style rolls, I talked about forming kolaches. In that post, I hadn't confirmed the process. Well, a few weeks ago, I finally got around to confirming the process and also documented the forming process.



After the ferment of the dough, divide with a dough scraper into 36 pieces. Roughly form into a ball and then form by taking your right palm and flexing it back as far as you can. Place the ball of dough in your palm and then using your cupped left hand, lightly roll the ball around with more pressure on the sides than the top. With a little practice, you should form a tight ball somewhere between the size of a golf ball and a walnut.


Place on sheet pans with parchment paper separated by 1 1/2" from the sides and 3" from each other. Lightly depress each ball with your fingers and then cover with cling wrap to proof for about 30 minutes until the dough rises approximately 1 1/2 times. After the first proof, use your fingers to depress the centers and spread the dough to form a rim of dough approximately 1/4". Let proof for another 15 to 20 minutes. Degas the centers again and fill. Bake as directed by recipe.