More than you want to know about Periogies

[Guest guest]

Pierogis are sooo easy to make. I have a bunch of recipes here and will

be glad to send more if anyone wants them. My favorite filling is fried

onions mixed with leftover mashed potatoes and grated (shredded) cheddar

cheese. That is how MY grandma made them!!

Enjoy!!

Neysa

 

*Pierogis

 

2 cups all purpose flour

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup water

 

1) Mound flour on a bread board and make a well in the center

2) Drop eggs and salt into well. Add water; working from the center

to outside of flour mound, mix flour into liquid in center with one

hand and keep flour mounded with other hand. Knead until dough is

firm and well mixed.

3) Cover dough with a warm bowl and let rest 10 min.

4) Divide dough into halves. On floured surface, using half of dough at a

time, roll dough as thin as possible.

5) Cut out 3 inch rounds with biscuit cutter (I use a " on the rocks " glass)

6) Place a tablespoon of filling a little to one side of each round of

dough,

moisten edge with water, fold over and press edges together - I use a fork

to make *sure* the edges are sealed, the way you would a pie crust.

 

NOTE: Pierogi can be frozen at this point. Layer carefully in freezer

container, be sure to seperate layers with wax paper.

 

If you are going to eat right away....

 

7) Drop pierogi into boiling (lightly salted) water. Cook gently

3 to 5 minutes, or until pierogi float. Lift out of water with

perforated spoon.

 

At this point, Grandma (and I) would drain the pierogi and lightly

saute - First fry some bacon & crumble; reserve bacon fat. Saute

some chopped onion in same pan; remove & add to crumbled bacon.

Add alittle butter and lightly saute pierogi in same pan. Yum!

 

Mushroom Filling

 

Tradition is to use Polish Mushrooms, or as those of you familiar

critters, Polish Gold - they are VERY expensive, and often VERY

hard to come by. I use a combination of Shitake (sp) and button

mushrooms. Soak Shitake mushrooms in warm water for atleast an hour.

Chop 1 lb button mushrooms roughly and 1/2 medium onion and saute

in butter until mushrooms cook down. Chop Shitake mushrooms fine and

add mushrooms AND WATER THEY HAVE BEEN SOAKING IN to pan & simmer

5-6 min, until liquid starts to evaporate. Salt & pepper lightly.

(This holds nicely in the refrigerator - if you make the mushrooms

the day before you make the pierogis, they will absorb more flavor

from the cooking liquid - or so it seems, but I'm not a chemist).

 

When filling pierogi's, squeeze liquid from mushrooms - if filling

is too moist it will run out of the dough.

 

Now, when my wife and I make them I also make mashed potatoes,

and let them cool a little. Then I get some sharp cheddar cheese

and cut it into very small pieces and add it and a little dill,

salt, and pepper to the potatoes. This makes a wonderful stuffing

as well.

 

 

Pierogi

 

2 cups all purpose flour

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup water

 

Mound flour on bread board with a well in the center. Drop eggs and

salt into well. Ad water, working from center to outside of mound, mix

flour into liquid in center with one hand and keep dough mounded with

the other. Knead until well mixed and firm. Cover dough with a warm

bowl and let rest 10 minutes.

Divide dough into halves. Roll out 1/2 dough on floured surface as thin

as possible. If it gets too thick, it turns noodle-like and they are no

good. Cut 3 inch rounds with biscuit cutter or bowl mouth. Place

filling a little to one side of center. Moisten edges with water fold

over and pinch edges together. Be sure they are sealed well or all the

filling will leak out. Drop pierogi into boiling water. Cook gently

3-5 minutes, or until they float. Lift out of water with perforated

spoon, and drop them into a frying pan with butter or margarine. Fry

until golden.

This recipe yields only about a dozen. I always double or triple it.

If I'm going to go thru the trouble of making them, I'm going to freeze

some too. If you want to freeze them, make sure you boil them first,

then rub margarine on them so they don't stick together in the freezer.

Then thaw in the microwave and drop them in the frying pan.

 

Cheese filling:

1 tub DRY curd cottage cheese (ricotta will also work)

chives

1 tsp lemon juice

1 egg

1 Tbsp sugar (to taste)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

 

Mix.

 

Sauerkraut and mushroom filling:

2 1/2 cups sauerkraut

Boiling Water

1/2 cup chopped onoin

4 oz. mushrooms, sliced

1/4 tsp pepper

1 hard boiled egg, chopped

2 Tbsp sour cream

 

Cook sauerkraut about 20 mins in saucepan. In frying pan, sautee onion

and mushrooms in butter. Stir in sauerkraut and pepper. Fry until

sauerkraut is golden. Add chopped egg and sour cream. Mix.

 

Pierogi Dough #1

 

2 cups sifted flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 tablespoons melted butter

1/2 cup lukewarm water

 

Mix all ingredients together lightly and knead in bowl. Rest dough for

one-half hour, covered. Knead the dough on a flour coated board and

roll out to one-eighth inch thickness. Cut out circles with a cup,

glass, or doughnut cutter (we've found 4.5 to 5 inches ideal

diameter). Fill with favorite filling pressing edges well together

(like turn-overs).

 

Cook in boiling (gentle boil) water for about ten minutes. Remove

using slotted spoon and rinse lightly with cold water. Serve with

melted butter, salt, pepper.

 

 

Pierogi Dough #2

 

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup melted butter

2.5 cups flour

 

Sift Flour, salt, baking powder together. Add sour cream and melted

butter. Knead the dough on a flour coated board and roll out to

one-eighth inch thickness. Cut out circles with a cup, glass, or

doughnut cutter (we've found 4.5 to 5 inches ideal diameter). Fill

with favorite filling pressing edges well together (like turn-overs).

 

 

Pierogi Dough #3

 

1 egg

1/2 cup water, lukewarm

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup milk, lukewarm

1 teaspoon melted butter

2 - 2.5 cups sifted flour

 

Combine eggs, milk, water in bowl and beat until blended. Add flour,

one cup at a time to make soft dough. Knead the dough on a flour

coated board, cover with bowl and let rest for ten to fifteen minutes.

Roll out dough to one-eighth inch thickness. Cut out circles with a

cup, glass, or doughnut cutter (we've found 4.5 to 5 inches ideal

diameter). Fill with favorite filling pressing edges well together

(like turn-overs).

 

 

Pierogi Dough #4

 

1 egg

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup milk

1.75 - 2 cups all-purpose flour

 

Beat egg, milk and water together in bowl; slowly add flour to make

soft dough. Knead dough on flour coated pastry board until smooth;

cover with bowl and rest dough for fifteen minutes. Roll out dough to

one-eighth inch thickness. Cut out circles with a cup, glass, or

doughnut cutter (we've found 4.5 to 5 inches ideal diameter). Fill

with favorite filling pressing edges well together (like turn-overs).

 

 

Pierogi Dough #5

 

2 eggs

1/2 cup water

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

 

Mound flour on pastry board (or in a large bowl) and make hole in

center. Drop eggs in center hole and cut into flour with knife or

fork. Add salt and water; knead until firm and smooth. Place bowl in

covered bowl and allow to rest for ten to fifteen minutes. Roll out

dough to one-eighth inch thickness. Cut out circles with a cup, glass,

or doughnut cutter (we've found 4.5 to 5 inches ideal diameter). Fill

with favorite filling pressing edges well together (like turn-overs).

 

 

Cabbage Filling (makes enough filling for approx. four dozen pierogi)

 

1 head cabbage

7 cans sauerkraut (10 oz. cans)

1 small onion

1 clove garlic

10 Tablespoons butter

 

Parboil cabbage in boiling water for ten to fifteen minutes. Rinse,

drain, cool, and thoroughly wring moisture from cabbage and sauerkraut;

set aside. The drier the cabbage and sauerkraut the less time required

to complete cooking. Saute onion and garlic in 2 Tbsp. butter. Add

cabbage and sauerkraut and remainder of butter; cook for approximately

one half hour or until cabbage is soft and mixture is " reasonably "

dry. It is important that the mixture not be too moist in order to

prevent wetting dough during the filling process ... wet dough will

cause pierogi to break open during cooking!

 

Allow mixture to stand in refrigerator (in covered bowl) for twenty

four hours prior to filling pierogi dough.

 

 

Cheese Filling #1

 

1 cup cottage cheese, dry

1 egg yolk

3 Tablespoons Sour Cream

salt and pepper

 

Cream cheese with egg yolk; add salt and pepper to taste. If filling

is too thick, add sour cream.

 

 

Cheese Filling #2

 

1 cup dry cottage cheese

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon sugar

2 egg yolks or (1 egg and 1 egg yolk)

 

Force cottage cheese through sieve. Mix with other ingredients

thoroughly.

 

 

Beef filling

 

1 large onion, sliced

2 Tbsp margarine

1 3/4 c ground beef (grd.turkey will work almost as well-cheaper)

3/4 c cooked rice

2 tsp instant bouiillon or meat extract

3 Tbsp hot water

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

 

Saute onion in margarine. Stir in meat and rice. Dissolve bouillon in

hot water. Add to meat mixture with parsley and salt+pepper to taste.

 

Sausage Filling

 

10 oz. polish sausage (kielbasa) Stay away from Hillshire farms-Yuck

skinned and chopped

1/2 c grated cheese or chopped mushrooms or both

1/4 c fine dry bread crubs

1 egg

 

I like to fry the kielbasa in a pan before mixing it all together, but my

original recipe says don't cook it.

 

Cooked Fruit

 

2 cups pitted cherries, blueberries or apples

3/4 cup water

1/3 c sugar (optional)

1/2 tsp cinnamon or cardamom

1 tsp lemon juice

2-4 Tbsp dry bread crumbs

 

Combine fruit water and sugar in saucepan. bring to boil. Simmer until

fruit is tender and water is almost gone. Remove from heat. mash

slightly with potato masher. Add cinnamon and lemon juice. Cook and

stir over low heat until thick. Stir in enough bread crumbs to further

thicken.

 

Pierogies

 

My pierogie recipe is to just make a basic egg-noodle batch.

Pile some flour on a [clean] countertop. Make a depression in

the middle. Break an egg into the middle. Fold the flour into

the egg until well mixed. Cover and let rest at least a 1/2 hour.

 

Roll out the noodle dough as far as you can. Cut into rounds or'

squares (your preference, squares make for less waste). Fill with

your favourite filling, fold over, seal edges with some flour/water

paste and press with a fork. Let rest for an hour.

 

Boil pierogies for a couple of minutes, until they float. Drain.

 

Melt some butter in a frying pan. Sautee pierogies in the butter

until lightly browned on both sides.

 

Eat pierogies, with much gusto.

 

[i stumbled across this method of making pierogies one day about 20

years ago when trying to make my first batch of ravioli. Somewhere

along the way, I said " Gee, these look like raw pierogies " , and

followed my nose.]

 

Fillings:

 

My ex-hubby's Babcia would fill with cottage cheese or prunes. I've

seen in (US) grocery stores potato-cheese filling or sauerkraut filling.

I've read of Russian pierogies with a meat/vegetable filling. I don't

know your pierogie experience, so cannot offer suggestions.

 

These were always served Christmas eve and [i think] on Easter Sunday.

Babcia always made kapusta (sauerkraut, Polish style cabbage) on these

occasions, too.

 

Anna Figura Dziubek's kapusta

 

Open up a couple of large cans of sauerkraut. Drain and rinse well.

Place in a large saucepan with a potato, and enough water to cover.

Bring to the boil, let simmer a while. Drain and rinse. Repeat this

process until the potato starts to fall apart. Add hard green peas and

black mushrooms, plus some pork fat-back which has been fried up a bit.

Stir all ingredients together until the potato has literally fallen

apart, making a slightly creamy sauce. Simmer a while longer.

*

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

In spring, spinach and peas with onions sauteed in butter makes an excellent

filling too!

Gayla Roberts

Always Enough Ranch

Acampo, California

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