Passionate About Pierogies (2 page)
Read Passionate About Pierogies Online
Authors: Kathy Gary
Ingredients
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3 cups flour
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3/4 cup boiling water
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1/4 cup cold water
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1/2 teaspoon salt
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1/2 teaspoon oil
Directions
Sift flour into a bowl and add salt.
Slowly add the boiling water while stirring.
Use a spoon or fork to crumble up any lumps in the flour.
Cover the bowl with a towel and let sit for 5 minutes.
Pour a little at a time of the cold water into the mixture, again crumbling up any of the lumps with a fork or spoon until smooth.
Cover the bowl again with a towel and set aside for 10 minutes.
Add the oil and knead the dough until it's smooth.
Tip:
This dough is especially tasty with the potato
filling.
Ingredients
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3 eggs
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1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
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3 cups all-purpose flour
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1/4 teaspoon salt
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1 tablespoon baking powder
Directions
Begin by beating together the eggs and sour cream until smooth.
This can be done by hand using a spoon or with a mixer on low speed.
Using a sifter, sift the flour, salt and baking powder together into the egg and sour cream mixture.
Knead until dough is smooth.
Ingredients
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1 egg
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1/4 cup milk
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1/2 cup water
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1/2 tsp. salt
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2 cups sifted flour
Directions
In a medium sized bowl, beat egg, milk, water and salt together. This can be done by hand with a spoon or with a mixer on low speed.
By hand with a spoon, slowly add flour, 1 cup at a time, until fully blended.
Ingredients
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2 cups all-purpose flour
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1 teaspoon salt
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1 egg, beaten
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2/3 cup cold water
Directions
Mix together the flour, salt, egg and water into a bowl.
Kneed the mixture into a ball.
Tip:
If the dough is sticky you can add a little more flour or place it in the refrigerator for an hour or more.
For best results, use a heavy rolling pin to roll out the dough.
Lightly flour your working surface and knead the dough until firm and smooth.
Take enough dough to work with, about one-third to one half of the dough, and roll it out.
Depending on your thickness preference (I prefer a thinner pierogi dough, so I roll it out to about 1/8 inch thickness, but you may prefer it a little thicker or thinner.
Thinner pierogies will be more fragile, so handle them with care so they do not rip or split).
Cut out the dough into 3-inch rounds using a pierogi cutter, a biscuit cutter or an upside down glass (see Tip 5 in the Tips Section above).
Continue to roll out and cut dough into circles until there is no dough left.
Tip:
With any left over dough, roll it out to a 1/4 inch thickness and slice it into 4 to 5 inch strips.
Boil the strips in water with a teaspoon of oil, and when they begin to float, with a spoon or tongs, carefully take them out and place them in a bowl to cool.
Instant, homemade noodles!
These noodles are especially good in chicken noodle soup.
There are many different pierogi fillings that you can make.
What you choose can be determined by personal preference or entrée type.
If you want to serve the pierogies as a main dish, you may want to choose a meat filling.
As a side dish, the potato, cheese or onion recipe would be a good choice.
For a sweet side or dessert, you can use a fruit or sweet cheese filling.
The ground meat filling is an excellent choice if making the pierogies as a main dish. The flavor can be enhanced by adding your favorite spices while cooking the meat. You can also top the pierogies with sautéed onions and mushrooms.
Ingredients
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1 lb. ground beef
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1 onion, chopped
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1 tbsp. butter
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1 tbsp. flour
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1/2 tsp. dill
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salt, pepper to taste
Directions
Prepare the meat filling as follows.
In a large skillet, on medium heat, sauté the chopped onion in butter.
Do this lightly, for only a minute or two.
Add the ground beef and sauté on medium-high heat until brown.
Add salt and pepper. When meat is fully cooked, drain off any fat.
Slowly stir in the flour and dill. While still warm (but not hot) put a half-tablespoon of the meat mixture within the circle of dough.
The sauerkraut filling is a favorite straight from Poland! Our family makes these pierogies for holidays and family gatherings. They are especially good on a cold winter day!
Ingredients
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2 cups sauerkraut (rinsed)
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2 tsp. butter
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1 small onion, chopped
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salt, pepper to taste
Directions
Place the sauerkraut in a small pan and cook on medium-low heat in a little water.
Drain.
Chop the sauerkraut into small pieces.
In a frying pan, sauté the onion in the butter.
Add the sauerkraut to the onion and simmer for 5 minutes.
Let this cool before spooning it on to the pierogi dough.
Ingredients
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1 cup mushrooms, chopped
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1 onion, finely chopped
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2 egg yolks
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1 tablespoon butter
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salt, pepper to taste
Directions
In a small frying pan, sauté on low heat, the onion in butter.
Add the mushrooms, salt and pepper and continue to sauté.
Cover and simmer on low heat for 5 to 7 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool.
Place the mixture into a bowl.
Add egg yolks, stirring well.
Cool completely before spooning the filling on to the dough.
This recipe is a family favorite.
Its robust flavor is perfect on a snowy evening!
Ingredients
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1 cup mushrooms, chopped into small pieces
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2 cups sauerkraut
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1 small onion, chopped finely
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butter
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salt, pepper to taste
Directions
In a small frying pan, cook the sauerkraut in a little water, on low heat for 10 minutes. Drain the sauerkraut then cut into small pieces with a knife.
In a separate frying pan, sauté the onion and mushrooms in butter.
Add the sauerkraut to the onion and mushroom mixture and fry on low heat for 5 minutes. Cool completely before using filling.
Ingredients
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1 small head of cabbage
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2 cups of water
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1 small onion, chopped
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2 tablespoons butter
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dash of salt and pepper
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mushrooms (optional)
Directions
Shred the cabbage and place in a small pot.
Cover the cabbage with enough water to cover (about one cup). Heat on high heat for about 4 minutes. Drain the cabbage.
Cover the cabbage again with water (again about one cup) heat to boiling and then simmer for 20 minutes.
In a frying pan, sauté 1 chopped onion in 3 tablespoons of butter until soft and light brown in color. Stir in cabbage and add salt and pepper. Simmer, covered, until soft.
Uncover and continue to cook over low heat until no more moisture is left (about 3 minutes).
Put the mixture in a food processor or blender and grind the mixture finely. For additional taste, add mushrooms when sautéing the onion.
This is a traditional pierogi filling.
It can be a main dish served with a salad or soup or it can be a tasty side dish served with any meat or fish that you would normally complete with a rice, noodles or potatoes dish.
Ingredients
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5 lbs. potatoes
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salt and pepper to taste
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1/4 lb. cream cheese
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1/4 softened butter
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1 lb. Farmer’s cheese (dry cottage cheese can be used as a substitute)
Directions
Peel the potatoes and cut them in half or quarters.
In a large pot, boil the potatoes until soft. Drain the potatoes.
While the potatoes are still hot, add the cream cheese, butter and Farmer’s cheese. Blend well. Allow filling to cool before spooning it into the dough.
Ingredients
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3 medium baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 lb.), peeled and cut into 1-inch slices
