Hungarian Butter Cookies (Kifli)

December 3, 2025

This recipe comes from Chef Anna of Schooner LADONA, and it originally comes from her grandmother. Anna writes, “These cookies are very special to me. My grandmother and mother both made them. They are our families’ favorite cookie.” She and her sister just baked a holiday batch and are happy to share the recipe with our Windjammer Family.

Dough:
1 cup sour cream
2 packages instant yeast
1/4 tsp sugar
5 cups all purpose flour
4 sticks (1 lb.) butter, softened

Filling:
2 eggs
2 T butter at room temperature
4 egg yolks – save whites – 2 for filling and 2 for brishing the top of the cookies

Walnut filling (combine in a bowl):
1/2 lb. ground walnuts
1 cup sugar
2 egg whites
2 T milk

Heat sour cream to lukewarm. Sprinkle yeast over top. Add sugar and mix all together. Cover and set aside while you mix other ingredients.

Add flour to butter-work it in as you would for a pie crust. Add egg yolks and sour cream mixture. Mix dough together with hands until dough forms and comes away from sides of the bowl. Dough will be very sticky at first, but do not add anymore flour. Dough will lose stickiness as it’s worked.

Take about 1/4 of dough and roll it out to a little less than 1/4″ thick. Cut into 3″ squares and place a small amount of walnut filling in center. Fold two opposite corners together and pinch in the middle. Place on a greased cookie sheet and brush tops with beaten egg whites.

Bake at 350 degrees about 8-10 minutes till golden brown. Cool. Dust with powdered sugar to serve if desired.