Kipfels & variants

Ingredients for Approximately 28 Kipfel:

• 1000g (4.349 cups) Flour

• 1/4l (about 1 cup) Milk

• 1 cake Yeast (42g) crumbled

• 1-2 teaspoons Salt

• 1 pinch Sugar

• 3 Eggs (1 egg to brush the Kipfel)

• 150g (.652 cup) Butter (more if you prefer crispier Kipfel)

Preparation:

1. Measure the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Add the crumbled yeast and the pinch of sugar. Add the warm milk (approx. 1-2c./10-20g [2-4 teaspoons]). Combine the ingredients and let the yeast work.

2. Then add the remaining ingredients. Note: remember to save one of the eggs for the wash you will brush on the Kipfel before placing in the oven. Knead the dough. Let the dough rest until it has risen about double its size.

	Click images to enlarge
	Divide the dough into 7 parts and roll each part into a ball.  Roll out the first ball as shown in the picture.
	Cut the rolled out rectangle of dough into four pieces. Set aside.
	Take each of the four pieces and cut into a triangle shape as indicated by the red outline in the photo.
	Take each of the four pieces and cut into a triangle shape as indicated by the red outline in the photo.
	Start rolling up the dough. The first roll or two will hold.
	While rolling with one hand, pull on the pointed end with the other hand until the dough is all rolled.
	You should now have a small roll (croissant) before you. Pulling the two ends down slightly, you should have a crescent form. Place on a greased baking sheet or a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  Continue with the remaining three pieces from this ball of dough. Then complete the same steps for the remaining six balls of dough. When finished you should have 28 Kipfel.
	Beat the remaining egg with a fork and brush the top of the Kipfel.
	Sprinkle salt and/or caraway seed on the top of the Kipfel.
	Place the baking sheet(s) in the oven at either 170°C or 350°F. The baking time will depend on the stove and on the thickness of the Kipfel. They should have a lovely canary yellow color. The results should appear in the photo.

• 2 cakes yeast

• 1/2 cup. warm water

• 2 tablespoons sugar

Make a sponge of above ingredients. When sponge is up, add:

• 1 cup Sugar

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 c. shortening, melted

• 2 cups. warm milk

• Flour for stiff dough

Knead well, Let rise until double in size.  

Knead down and let rise again. Roll out to 1/4 inch thick. Form into crescents and let rise again.  

Brush tops of crescents with one beaten egg; sprinkle tops with salt. Let rise then bake in a 350 degree oven until golden brown.

• 1/2 pound butter

• 2 cups flour

• 6 large egg whites

• 6 large egg yolks

• 1 cup sugar

• 4 cups walnuts

Chop butter into flour, add yolks and knead into a dough.  Can be done in a food processor like you would do pie dough.

Form into balls and chill in refrigerator at least overnight.  Prepare filling a half at a time, beating egg whites until stiff.  Add the one cup sugar gradually and fold in the ground walnuts.

Remove a few dough balls at a time and roll out about saucer size.  Put a heaping tablespoon of filling on the dough and fold over into a crescent  shape.

Bake on cookie sheet for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Yield: 50 kipfel.

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• 1 cup (250 ml) warm milk

• 2 pkgs. active dry yeast

• 3 1/3 cups (500 g) all purpose flour

• ½  teaspoon salt

• 2 tablespoons (30 g) butter

• 1 egg

• 1 egg yolk

Stir sugar into warm milk and sprinkle with yeast.  Let stand until the surface is frothy.  Stir gently to mix in any remaining dry yeast.  Sift flour and salt into a large bowl.  Melt butter and cool slightly.  Lightly beat butter and 1 egg into the yeast mixture.  Pour into flour mixture and combine into a dough.  On a floured surface knead dough until smooth.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size.

Divide dough into golf-ball size pieces and shape into balls.  On a floured surface roll out each ball into a triangle with sides about 6 inches long.  Roll up from long side to the point.  Seal points to rolls with a little egg yolk.  Curve each roll into a crescent.  Place on baking sheet, leaving some space to expand.  Brush with beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with coarse salt and caraway- or poppy seeds.  Cover and let rise in a warm place 15-20 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 450ºF (230ºC). Bake 10-15 minutes & serve warm.

Comment: We put salt and caraway seeds on them.

• 2 packages of yeast

• ½ cup lukewarm water

• 1 teaspoon sugar

• ¾ cup butter (or use vegetable oil)

• 2 cups lukewarm milk

• 4½ cups all-purpose flour

• 2 teaspoons salt

Dissolve yeast in cup lukewarm water with sugar.
Melt  butter (or use veg. oil) with lukewarm milk.
Mix everything together with all purpose flour and salt.

I find the easiest way is to mix it with a wooden spoon till it's all moistened. Wait 10 or 15 minutes, then work it together by hand. It should come off the sides of the bowl nicely by now. In "the olden days" you had to work it or knead it for ten minutes, not really necessary if you just let it rest a little first.

Shape the dough into a smooth ball, coat it with oil and let it rise till double in bulk.

At this point I roll it out on a floured board, cut triangles off, stretch them long and roll them tightly  from the wide end. Shape into crescents, brush with egg, sprinkle with salt and caraway seeds, let rise another 10 minutes and bake at 400. They're good fresh but also freeze well.

My mother used to shape small loaves of dough about the size of half a large grapefruit, let them rest; roll them into thin circles and then cut them in wedges to make the Kipfel.

Comment:  The words Wasser = water; Brunnen = well (water).  In the early days, our ancestors had no freezers to keep things chilled or cold. Therefore, in order to keep something cold, the meat and vegetables were put into a pail and lowered into the well, (Brunnen) where it stayed cold. The dough was wrapped in a cloth, and put either in water or lowered into a well. This was done for about 2-3 hours. Should the dough still be sticky when retrieved from the water, add more flour.

• 500 g (2.17 cups) flour

• 1 sq. yeast

• 250 g. (1 cup) butter

• 3 eggs

• 4 teaspoons cream

• Salt

• 50 g. (3.5 tablespoons) sugar for the dough

• 50 g. (3.5 tablespoons) sugar for rolling

Put flour in a bowl; press down flour in the center of the bowl. Break yeast into pieces and place in middle of bowl. Sprinkle sugar over yeast, adding warm milk to resolve yeast. Leave sit for 15 minutes.

Add butter; eggs; salt; cream and some sugar. Mix to form dough; knead dough. Wrap dough with a cloth, and put in cold water for 2 hours. Remove from water, add flour if needed.

Roll dough on a board, cut pieces in triangle shape, and roll up from wider edge to the point.  Set oven to 180-200C. (350-400F.); bake to a yellow gold color.

Comments:  These cookies (sponge-cake texture) are named after the revered Hungarian leader Lajos Kossuth.  When I asked my mother why the cookies had such a funny name, she told me they were named after a famous Hungarian general.  So, I assume grandmother learned the recipe from Hungarian neighbors.  I always assumed the name started with a G, but when we visited the Arad market, I spied Kossuth Cigarettes!  I asked my cousin if that name was the same as the kipfel our family so loved.  He was pleased I knew the pastry and confirmed that, indeed, it was the same name and named after the same person.  Our family (and non-DS friends) always looked forward to the “Moon Cookies” at Christmas.  They used a lot of eggs and that is probably why the baking of them was limited to Christmas.  Why did we call them moons?  Because Mom and Grandma cut them in the shape of crescent moons using half of a round cookie cutter. 

• Blend together: 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon butter or lard and 2 1/8 cups sugar

• Add: 2 whole eggs, 2 lemons both inside and out (the juice and the grated rind)

• Beat the above ingredients well
   

• Add: 8 egg yolks; beat well

• Spoon in 3 cups sifted flour with ½ teaspoon baking powder.  Beat.

• Fold in: 8 egg whites which have been beaten stiff but not dry (I always worried about this step).

• Line a 12 x 17 x 2 ½” greased pan with wax paper and pour batter in.
   

• Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown in a 350° oven. 

• Invert the pan and take immediately out of pan and place on a board (Mom had a large baking board; I use my board counter top). 

• Cut with half of a circle (resulting in a crescent moon) and roll in confectionary sugar. They freeze well.  Beautifully moist and lemony.