“No one who cooks, cooks alone,” writes Laurie Colwin, and there are times when my tiny kitchen can become quite crowded, especially when I’m baking. It’s then that I’m joined by the ghosts of my father and my paternal grandmother, Bessie, who, in addition to her claim that she was once a great beauty, was also an expert baker, having been an apprentice to a master in her native Poland before immigrating to this country as a young woman.
Mohn kichlach
June 21, 2021
Ingredients
- 2cups flour
- ½cup sugar
- ¼cup poppy seeds
- ¾tsp baking powder
- pinch salt
- 2eggs at room temperature
- ⅓cup vegetable oil
- 2tablespoons ice water
- 1egg yolk thinned with water for a thin egg wash.
Yield: 36 cookies
Preparation
- Step 1
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the eggs and sugar on medium speed until light yellow. Continue beating while adding the oil in a stream. Beat until the oil is incorporated.
- Step 2
Combine the remaining dry ingredients in a bowl and with a fork or balloon whisk mix so that the poppy seeds are evenly distributed throughout.
- Step 3
With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture. Slowly increase the speed to medium and beat until the dough just comes together. Add ice water if necessary, a tablespoon at a time, to make a pliant dough.
- Step 4
Turn the dough on to a piece of cling wrap, form it in a ball and refrigerate for an hour. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 and cover a cookie sheet with parchment. On a floured board and with a floured rolling pin, flatten the dough and roll it into a rectangle. Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut the dough into small squares. Brush with egg wash and place on cookie sheet. Bake in the middle of the oven for 10-12 minutes or until slightly puffed and golden. Cool on a wire rack. The cookies will harden as they cool.