Sausage and Egg Kolaches
Last Updated on February 15, 2023 by Annie
Filling and flavorful, these dairy-free sausage and Egg Kolaches are the perfect breakfast recipe. Pillowy dough surrounds a mixture of scrambled eggs and sausage, inspired by Kolache Factory’s Texas style kolaches.
On the never ending list of things I miss from Texas, kolaches reach the top. Growing up my kolache order was simple. A sausage and cheese kolache from Shipley’s Do-nut. Oh that warm melty cheese, wrapping the savory sausage, all tightly tucked in a soft, warm bread. I could put those away for days!
As I got older, new kolache joints began to spring up around the Houston area that offered a wider selection of kolaches. One of those was Kolache Factory. While the sausage and cheese kolache was available there were also more traditional Czech style kolaches with sweet fillings as opposed to the savory.
Before I dive into the Kolache Factory kolaches that captivated my heart and soul there are probably a few of you sitting there going, ‘what the heck is a kolache?!?’ If you’re thinking they are simply pigs in a blanket, bless your soul because you have truly not experienced kolaches.
What are Kolaches?
Traditional Czech Kolaches are soft, pillowy sweet breads with jam or cream cheese fillings. Think thumbprint cookie, but with a sweet bread base. Traditional kolaches only contain sweet or meatless fillings.
Kolaches containing savory fillings, typically what you find in Texas, are technically not considered kolaches. In fact, they are klobasnek, which refers to a sausage filled kolache. However, the term kolache has become ubiquitous in Texas, and I believe, is here to stay.
Kolache Factory Kolaches
Now that you know a little more about kolaches, let’s get back to Kolache Factory. These kolaches were different from the ones available at Shipley’s because they had a WIDE variety of flavors. From traditional Czech style, to BBQ Beef and jalapeƱo, egg, and cheese the choices were limitless. Many mornings after nights out in MidTown began with a random dozen of these tasty breakfast rolls.
Creating My Own Kolaches
While nights out have largely been traded for evenings out, my love for kolaches remains the same. Being miles away from a kolache store means making my own. My first attempt came from a cookbook fittingly called The Homesick Texan (Amazon affiliate link) and also happened to be before I went dairy free. While I devoured each and every last kolache (sorry Jason) they were still dairy filled.
For my second attempt, guided by Dessert for Two‘s recipe, I began the dairy free conversion. Drawing on inspiration from those delicious fillings at Kolache Factory, these sausage and egg kolaches fill the void beautifully.
How to Make Dairy-Free Sausage and Egg Kolaches
This recipe can be broken down into three main steps; making the dough, getting the fillings ready, and assembling the Kolaches.
Prepare the Dough
- Activate the yeast: Mix yeast with warm non-dairy milk and sugar. Allow to sit 10 minutes.
- Add eggs and oil: Once activated, mix egg yolks and oil into the yeast.
- Spoon in flour: Next slowly spoon in flour and salt and knead until soft to the touch.
- Rise: Cover and allow to rise for about an hour or until double in size.
Make the Fillings
- Cook meat: In a skillet, brown onion and sausage. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Scramble eggs: In the same skillet, scramble eggs to desired consistency.
- Mix together: Either in the skillet or in a bowl, stir together ground sausage and scrambled eggs.
Assemble the Sausage and Egg Kolaches
- Divide the dough: Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces.
- Roll out the dough balls: Roll the dough into 5-6 inch circles.
- Fill: Add 2 Tablespoons of filling to the rolled out dough.
- Tuck and roll: Tuck the fillings into the dough and roll to round it out.
- Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
- Rise: Place in a 9X13-inch baking dish. Cover and let rise about 30 minutes.
- Bake: Brush the tops with melted plant-based butter and bake until golden brown.
Dairy-Free Changes to Kolaches
If you want to convert a traditional Czech Kolache recipe to dairy free there are a few steps to take.
- Non-dairy milk. Replace the milk in the recipe with a non-dairy milk. I prefer to use oat milk so it doesn’t add any additional flavors to the dough.
- Oil instead of butter. Next replace butter in the recipe with vegan butter or an oil. For this recipe, I used an olive oil.
- Dairy-Free fillings. Finally, you will want to change the fillings to be dairy free. While jams may already be dairy free, swapping out a cream cheese filling will take a few steps, like making vegan cream cheese or getting a pre-made vegan cream cheese like Kite Hill’s Plain Cream Cheese Alternative.
Pro-Tips for Sausage and Egg Kolaches
- Allow 10 minutes for the yeast to fully activate. If you notice the yeast not activating, dump it out and start again with fresh yeast.
- To remove the casings from sausage, use a sharp knife and slice the casing lengthwise on the sausage. Be sure to remove the entire casing from the sausage. Alternatively you can buy ground sausage that’s not in casings.
- While cooking your eggs, leave them a little moist. This will allow the dough to soak that moisture up and leave you with a perfect consistent after baking.
Helpful Kitchen Tools for Making Dairy-Free Kolaches
Whether you are planning to make your first batch of homemade kolaches or you are a seasoned veteran, these kitchen tools will set you up for success:
- Rolling Pin (Amazon affiliate link)- Used for rolling the dough balls out into circles to be filled, pinched, and rolled into round kolaches.
- Pastry Scraper (Amazon affiliate link)- For cutting the dough into equal pieces.
- 9×13-inch baking dish (Amazon affiliate link)- A staple in just about every kitchen, this simple pyrex pan can double as a baking and storing container.
Other Excellent Dairy-Free Breakfast Recipes to Try
If you tried this Sausage and Egg Kolache recipe feel free to leave a comment below! I would love to hear how it went! Or, snap a picture and share it with me on Instagram by tagging @mylifeafterdairy to share all your life after dairy adventures!
You can also sign up for my newsletter for even more dairy-free goodness!
Sausage and Egg Kolaches
These soft kolaches stuffed with mild sausage and scrambled eggs make a deliciously dairy free breakfast!
Ingredients
Kolache Dough
- ā cup Non-dairy Milk
- 2 teaspoons Yeast Active Dry
- 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 3 cups Flour
- ā cup Olive Oil
- 2 Egg Yolks
- Ā¼+ā teaspoon Salt
Kolache Filling
- 1 pound Mild Sausage casings removed
- Ā½ Onion diced
- 8 eggs Scrambled
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 Tablespoons Melted Vegan Butter to brush the tops
Instructions
Prepare the Dough
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Heat ā cup non-dairy milk to 100-110Ā°F.
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In the base of a standing mixer stir together heated non-dairy milk, 2 Tablespoons sugar, and 2 teaspoons yeast. Allow to sit 10 minutes while yeast activates.
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Meanwhile, in a medium sized bowl measure out 3 cups flour and Ā¼+ā teaspoon salt. Set aside.
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Turn the mixer on medium-low and stir in2 egg yolks and ā cup oil with a dough hook. Gradually spoon in flour and salt mixture until incorporated. Leave the dough to knead until soft to the touch, but not sticky, about 5 minutes.
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Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a dish towel and allow to double in size, about an hour.
Prepare the Fillings
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While the dough is rising, heat a skillet to medium. Brown 1 pound sausage with Ā½ diced onion. Place cooked sausage and onions in a bowl when finished.
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In the same pan, scramble 8 eggs and cook until desired consistency. Pour cooked scrambled eggs over the sausage and onion mixture. Stir to mix together and set aside.
Assemble the Kolaches
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Punch the dough down and pour it out onto a counter. Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces. Roll the dough pieces into balls and then roll the balls out into 5-6 inch circles. Scoop 2 tablespoons of filling into the center of the dough.
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Tuck the filling into the dough by pulling the bottom right corner over the filling and into the middle, then the bottom middle section, the bottom left corner, the left side section, the top left corner, the top middle section, the top right corner, and the right side section.
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Place the closed kolache, pinched side down in a 9 x 13 pyrex dish. Repeat with remaining 11 dough balls. Cover the filled kolaches with a dish towel and allow to rest for 30 minutes.
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Preheat the oven to 375Ā°F. Brush the tops of the kolaches with melted vegan butter. Bake 18-20 minutes.
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