Making Pierogies!

Today I had such a taste for some fresh homemade pierogi, so I made some!  My favorite is potato and cheese filling.   Here are the steps it takes to make a fine batch of this Polish specialty. 

Here is the dough and the potato/cheese/onion filling. 

I cut out the dough into 5 inch circles with a large cutter. 

A heaping spoon full of filling goes in the middle. 

They are crimped into half circles and put on a cloth to dry a little before boiling. 

After boiling, the pierogies are fried.  These are served with sauerkraut for a great Polish meal. 

I grew up with pierogies - they are sort of Polish "soul food".  Here is my recipe for them:

For the Dough

1 stick softened margarine

2 eggs, beaten 

1 c. sour cream 

1 tsp. baking powder 

1/2 tsp. salt

3 cups, plus, flour 

Mix all ingredients and knead a little adding more flour as necessary to make a smooth dough, but don't add too much flour or the dough will be tough.   divide the dough into fourths, and work with one piece at a time.   Keep the rest of the dough under a bowl.

Roll out thin and cut into 5 inch rounds.   Put 1 heaping T. filling on dough and fold in half and crimp edges with floured fingers.  Crimp well.  Place on a floured cloth while you prepare the rest.   You can re-roll scraps and if you have a little leftover, cut into strips as for noodles, or small pieces like for soup dumplings.  You can use these in soup or with cabbage for 'cabbage and dumplings'. 

     Set a large pan of water to boil, salted, and boil about 6 or 7 at a time until they float - about 3 minutes.  Use a slotted utensil and put them on a cookie sheet with edges to dry a little.    When all are boiled, you can fry up what you will eat - melt some butter or margarine in a heavy pan (I use a cast iron skillet) and over medium heat fry them until they are just a little brown on each side.   Season with salt and pepper.  the remaining pierogies can be frozen individually in baggies.  When you want to cook some from the frozen state, let them thaw just a little, and put them half frozen in a skillet with butter and gently fry them until thawed and brown.   

     This recipe makes about 35 to 38 pierogies.

The Filling

4 cups of mashed potatoes (mashed with butter and milk and salt and pepper)

2 c. shredded cheese - I use cheddar or Havarti or Gouda or Monterrey Jack

2 medium onions, chopped and cooked slowly in butter 

salt and pepper, to taste 

Combine everything well.