My biggest disappointment. In New Prague. A small town. Settled by
Czech immigrants. The pastry that passes locally as kolacky. Really isn’t kolacky. It’s
fake. At best, a Swedish style version. A shame. I was brought up on real
Czech kolacky. Thick dough. Open-faced kolacky. With thick jam filling. Prune.
Apricot. Poppyseed. All kinds of flavors. To suit the palates of every
self-respecting Czech.
You get real kolacky in Chicago.
But not in New Prague. This tiny Minnesota
hamlet. Some of the locals don’t even pronounce ‘Prague’ in the correct manner. It’s been
Americanized. Furthermore, the surname Dvorak is mispronounced. Doesn’t sound
Czech enough. But the biggest crime of all. It’s the New Prague kolacky. Far too
light. Too fluffy. With scant interior jam. And Mary Plocher, she of German
descent and the proprietor at Humble Pie Gift shop on Main Street, knows it. She’s embarrassed. For New Prague. She hands out a printed
recipe. For a proper-made sumptuous open-faced kolacky. If necessary, I’ll take direct
action. I’ll bake a proper kolacky. It’s the least I can do. In honor of the
heritage on my mother’s side of the family. –Jim Broede
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