Friday Pierogis

By far the most delicious Lenten tradition I know about is pierogis, which are decadent, Polish dumplings.  When I moved to D.C. from Cleveland, I was so sad to learn that many people here don’t even know what pierogis are!  A small amount of them are familiar with Mrs. T’s (so doesn’t count), but most have no idea what they are in general.  In Cleveland, the traditional Friday fish fry often includes pierogis as a side dish.  They might not be the healthiest little guys in the world, but they sure are delicious.

So, since I now live in D.C. and people tragically don’t know what pierogis are, they’re really hard to come by.  A few Eastern churches make and sell them but they’re way over-priced in my opinion.  As a result of all these factors, a taught myself how to make them.  I have tweaked my recipe throughout the years, and am proud to say it’s quite delicious… If I do say so myself.

The first thing you want to make is the filling because it will need to be chilled before you stuff the pierogis.  I only make potato and cheese pierogis because they’re amazing.  There are dozens of other varieties, but I can’t help you there.

What you’ll need for the filling: (note there are separate ingredients for the dough recipe below)

• 6-7 red skin potatoes (honestly organic taste 1000x better, so try to get them from a farmer’s market)
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1 cup sharp cheddar, shredded (you can easily make it more like 1 1/2 cup if you want)
• Salt and pepper
• A generous splash of whole milk.

Quarter your potatoes and boil them until soft. I don’t peel them, but some people do… I think they’re better with the skin.  Anyway, stick the boiled potatoes in your KitchenAid and turn on the paddle attachment.  While they’re still hot, add the butter, cheese and splash of milk.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Chill until cool.

While they’re chilling, you can start on your dough..  This is one thing I have not tweaked.  It’s simply from All Recipes with one caveat- USE WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR.  It makes them taste sooo much better.

OK, so follow that recipe for the dough.  Hopefully you have a KitchenAid, because it makes the whole process so much easier (paddle for mixing; dough hook for kneading).

Once the dough is ready, I use a good old fashioned rolling pin to get it about 1/10″ thick.  You don’t want it too thin because it won’t stick together when you go to fold it.  OK, so it’s rolled out.  Now, take either a biscuit cutter or a large-mouth glass to cut out circles.  Scoop some potato filling in to the circle, fold in half and pinch the ends together or use a fork to seal.    Use water too, if necessary. They should look like semi-circles.

Now that the pierogis are good to go, stick them in a pot of boiling water until they float (1-2 minutes).*  Meanwhile, heat a pan over medium heat and add 1/4 stick butter (maybe more if you’re feeling crazy) let it melt and add a few slices of onion. Cook until soft.  Then, take the pierogis out out the boiling water with a slotted spoon (try to get as much water off as possible) add them to the sauté pan.  Keep them there until lightly browned on either side.

Serve with the onions and eat with sour cream or apple sauce.  Enjoy!

*If you’re freezing the pierogis, this is where you stop.  Put them on a cooling rack until they’re reasonably dry and freeze them in an airtight container or baggie.