Walnut Kifli

Directions

1. Stir yeast and ½ powdered sugar into ~120F milk, dissolve and set aside. (does not have to proof with instant yeast, if using active, allow to activate (10-15 minutes)
2. Work room-temp butter into flour as you would for a pie crust until corn meal texture.
3. Add room temp egg, remainder sugar, salt, sour cream, and milk with yeast.
4. Work ingredients until a nice soft dough forms. Sometimes a little more flour is needed if it seems too soft.
5. Form into a ball/hockey puck shape, cover and let rest for ~30 minutes.
6. While dough is resting, add sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, orange juice and milk to ground walnuts to make a paste and set aside.
7. Divide dough into 6 equal portions (I weigh the whole ball and divide by six) knead and roll them into little balls and set aside.
8. Roll each portion into a circle about the size of a dinner plate (~7in/18cm) and cut into 8 triangles. (like a pizza. I use a pizza cutter)
9. Place a tsp. of walnut paste on the outer rim of each triangle and roll toward the point into a crescent shape. (sometimes I like to spread the paste over the whole triangle rather than leave in a clump in the center, and then roll. Toasted nut paste tastes so good when it seeps out and gets a bit toasted)
10. Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and allow to rest for an extra 15 minutes.
11. Bake it in a preheated 350 F oven, until it has a slight golden color, about 25 minutes.
12. Dust kifli with powdered sugar.