Kifli (Hungarian Walnut Cookies)
These cookies are buttery and flakey, love the walnut filling that gives the cookies just enough nuttiness and sweetness. Well balanced flavor, and cute little pockets, just can not have enough of them.
Ingredients
Dough | |||
4 ¾ | cups |
all-purpose flour
unsifted |
|
2 | cups |
butter
or margarine |
|
4 | large |
egg yolks
slightly beaten |
|
1 | cup |
sour cream
|
|
Filling | |||
5 | cups |
walnuts
shelled, ground |
|
1 | cup |
sugar
granulated |
|
½ | cup |
milk
|
|
1 | tablespoon |
almond extract
|
* |
Glaze | |||
1 | large |
eggs
beaten |
|
powdered sugar
|
* |
Directions
Make dough:
In a large bowl, place the flour and the butter.
Using a pastry blender or two knives, cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Add the egg yolks and sour cream; stir with a fork until combined.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board or pastry cloth. Knead the dough with your hands until it is smooth and can be shaped into a ball. If dough is too sticky, knead in more flour.
If desired, wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Make filling: In a medium-sized bowl, place the ground walnuts, granulated sugar, milk and almond extract.
Using a wooden spoon, stir in walnut mixture until ingredients are thoroughly combined.
Prehead oven to 400℉ (200℃).
Grease baking sheets with solid vegetable shortening.
To shape Kifli:
Divide the dough into quarters; wrap three of the quarters separately in plastic wrap and set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the remaining quarter of the dough to a 15 x 12 inch rectangle that is ⅛ inch thick.
Using a pastry wheel, cut the rectangle of dough into 3-inch squares.
Place a heaping teaspoon of the walnut filling in the center of each square; bring one corner of the dough over the filling to the opposite corner; pinch edges together.
Place Kifli on baking sheets; brush with the beaten egg.
Bake for 10 minutes or until cookies are golden brown. Remove from the baking sheet.
Fill the bottom of a pie plata with confectioners' sugar. Roll Kifli in the sugar.
Let cool on wire racks. Repeat steps with the remaining three quarters of dough.


Leicester, MA, United States
almost 9 years ago
These look absolutely delicious and must be great at tea time. Will have to try once the weather here cools down a bit and I can turn my oven on without sweltering (A/C off). Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, lynn. They are very very good, buttery, fruity, flakey... you can find all these yumminess in these small treats. We took them to a party, they didn't last long. But baking on a hot day does generate lots of sweat, hehe!
Toronto , Ontario, Canada
almost 9 years ago
Sarasota, United States
almost 5 years ago
Hungarians had a best recepie, i used different fillings
over 4 years ago
Why do the kifli open up while baking?
It happens especially if the dough is rolled too thick, or you use too much filling. After pinching the two corners closed, I fold the dough over one more time and pinch it together again. It also helps if, when you're brushing them with the egg before baking, you make sure to put a bit extra on the part you just folded over.
over 3 years ago
almost 4 years ago
These are not kiflis. The are more like polish Kolacis. Kiflis are crescent shaped . V they use sour cream in the dough and no extracts. U75
over 3 years ago
Looks so good. I want this recipe
over 3 years ago
These are definitely kiflis. The crescent shaped are also considered kiflis, depending where you are from.
over 3 years ago
The dough turns out extra flaky if you use cold butter rather than room temperature or softened butter. I used half frozen and half refrigerated, and they turned out great. You can also use fruit pastry filling for these! (You need to use less of it than you would the but filling though, or it will run all over your pan while baking!)
over 2 years ago
When my mother made these, she would dip the tops of the prepared cookie in frothy egg whites and then coat them with a mixture of ground walnuts and granulated sugar. Made a crunchy topping when baked. Was always the favorite cooked of everyone.
Correction on walnut/sugar coating. This coating was used when my mother filled the Kifli's with apricot or plum fillings.
over 2 years ago
over 2 years ago
My creation mother in law made Kifli w a yeast dough tried your recipe w peach preserves these are Kifli
over 2 years ago
Correction my croation
mother in law
over 2 years ago
Can I freeze the dough to make them st a later tome?
over 1 year ago
So I have made these before and the problem I have is when they bake they puff up like puff pastry. I even had someone who makes these make the dough for me and I had the same problem. My friends does not puff up
over 1 year ago
How may kifli dose thi make.
over 1 year ago
My family recipe calls for preparing the ground walnuts in a double boiler with ground white raisins, sugar and milk - bringing them to a boil before preparing the cookie. Anyone?
over 1 year ago
What is the serving size.
about 1 year ago
Delicous! Learned to make from my Great Grandma's recipe from the 1900's!! Your recipe is almost like same as hers and just as delicious.
4 months ago
My family begs me to make these every Christmas. This year they asked me to double the recipe.