Hungarian Kiffles – My Hungarian Family Recipe

Create gorgeous Hungarian Kiffles using this recipe that has been passed down for generations, a family classic. Hungarian Kiffle cookies are a delicate cookie made with a cream cheese pastry dough and filled with apricot jam, lekvar (prune filling), or homemade nut or poppy filling.

We love holiday cookies around here, have you tried these almond flour sugar cookies? Or these seasonally festive orange molasses cookies?

Holiday cookies are taken very seriously in my family, each year we typically makes no less than 10 types of cookies. Hungarian Kiffles are a staple, only made at Christmas, and adored by all. Kiffles are a unique Eastern Eurpoean pastry, the dough is not sweet, it is delicate and yeasty (that seems to be a unique family twist) and filled with sweet treats like apricot (shown here in this recipe) sweet walnut filling, Lekvar (prune) filling, and poppy seed filling.

Hungarian Kiffles: The Festive Cookie Your Holiday Tray Has Been Waiting For

You will fall in love these cookies and my hope is they become a tradition in your family. From their stunning appearance on a holiday cookie tray to their light and delicate the pastry that's just sweet enough, each perfect little bite will keep you coming back for more.

Let's Get Baking!

Ingredients You'll Need

Detailed measurements and ingredients can be found within the recipe card at the end of this post.

Classic Baking Ingredients:

• All Purpose Flour
• Unsalted Butter and Cream Cheese – both need to be at room temperature. The cookie dough will not work if butter and cream cheese are cold.
• Baking Powder
• Fresh yeast or dry yeast
• Milk

Fillings: My family typically makes Kiffles with apricot and prune filling. Poppyseed and Hungarian walnut filling are reserved for our Kolache recipe but I have seen Kiffle recipes with these fillings as well.

• Thick apricot jam – what I used in this recipe
• Lekvar filling – prune filling. You can purchase this premade or make your own by boiling 2 cup of prunes in 1 cup of water until all but a few tbsp of water remain. Add to a food processor with orange zest and 2 tbsp orange juice and blend until smooth.
• Poppyseed filling (solo brand has a premade poppyseed filling or you can make your own)
• Hungarian walnut filling

Notes on Ingredients

There are many kiffle recipes online that do not use yeast, I can't speak to the original etiology of this recipe only that my family has always made a yeasty dough. My suspicion is that as recipes get passed down younger generations simplify (which I am all for) but the yeast in this dough is what makes these cookies stand out on your holiday tray.

Tools

• Measuring cups and spoons
• Mixing bowls
• Small ridged pastry wheel
• Large baking sheet
• Rolling pin

Step by Step Instructions + Tips – Let's make some cookies!

Step 1: Prepare yeast

• Warm the milk in a small saucepan. PRO TIP FROM MY GRANDMOTHER – The milk is at the perfect temperature when you can hold a finger in the milk for 10 seconds without your finger burning.
• Once the milk is perfectly warmed, stir in yeast to dissolve. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until it foams

Step 2: Prepare dry ingredients

• Sift together flour and baking powder – set aside

Step 3: Stand Mixer

• Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or you can use a hand mixer)
• Cream together butter and cream cheese until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
• Slowly add the yeast milk mixture and continue mixing until combined.
• Slowly add the dry ingredients until the dough just comes together. Do not overmix at this stage.

Step 4: Knead

• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead a few times until the dough is silky smooth. This is a very delicate dough so you do not want to overwork it.
• Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator to rest for one hour or overnight.

Step 5: Roll out the dough – Making Uniform Kiffles

• Cut the ball of dough into 4 pieces, you will roll each piece out individually
• Take 1 piece of dough and roll out to 1/4 to 1/8″ thick and a 10″ by 17″ rectangle
• Use your crimped pastry wheel to square the edges and make an even rectangle
• Cut the dough into even sized squares (each square about 2″x2″ using a crimped pastry cutter
• Add a small dollop of jam, or filling of your choice to the center of each square

Step 6: Make the Kiffle shape

• Pick up one square and pull opposite edges of the dough together, fold the dough over like a little swaddled baby.

Step 7: Bake

• Bake on a large sheet tray/ cookie sheet. I like to use a silpat or you can use parchment paper
• Bake for 8-10 minutes or until bottom begins to brown slightly

Step 8: Cool and Let it Snow

• Allow cookies to cool on a cooling rack. Once cool enough to handle sprinkle with powdered sugar

Make Ahead/ Storage/ and Freezing Instructions

• STORAGE – Cookies can be stored in a tightly closed container, or cookie tin for up to 1 week. Arrange in a single layer with sheets of wax paper between layers. Although in my family we prefer to bake them fresh and follow the freezing instructions below.
• MAKE AHEAD/FREEZE – You can make the cookies in their entirety without baking and freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet until solid, then transfer to a flat ziploc bag and keep frozen for up to 3 months. When ready to eat, place the frozen cookies on a sheet tray and bake in a 350° oven for 9-11 minutes.

Dietary Modifications – I have never tried this recipe gluten free, I would imagine it would work using gluten free 1:1 flour. If you try it, comment below and let me know how it worked!

If you’ve tried this recipe, don’t forget to rate and comment!

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