PIEROGI

Each October, certain North American cities take a moment to savour the rich history and the flavourful traditions that make pierogi such a treasured and tasty treat. And nowhere do they love pierogi more than in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania – a state that, according to Mrs. T's Pierogi, a big commercial pierog maker, purchases more pierogi per capita than any other U.S. state. In fact, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre are all included in the top 10 U.S .pierogie markets. The Pittsburgh Pirates hold a pierogi race during the bottom of the 5^th inning at home games.

There are “pierogi days” festivals in Indiana and Connecticut too- but what about the rest of us? How come we aren’t enjoying those succulent filled- dumplings?

We might have come close without knowing it because pierogi-like products are truly worldwide.

Pierogi (singular-pierog) are a little like Italian ravioli, Ashkenazic kreplach and Oriental wontons.  Basically pierogi are filled dumplings, usually semi-circular, of unleavened dough which are first boiled and then baked or fried in butter along with fried minced onions. They are usually stuffed with potato filling, cheese or ground meat.

In certain parts of the world pierogies are very popular. The Western Slavs (Poles, Czechs and Slovaks), the Eastern Slavs (Belarusians, Russians and Ukrainians) and the Baltic peoples (Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians) all consider pierogies their own, even though they all spell them slightly differently.

There are different ways to make pierogi, but I remember dough made with sour cream in it that was so wonderful. You don’t have to be Polish to love pierogi. I like using the untraditional ricotta cheese for this, which everyone absolutely loves.

Cheese Filling                                         Makes 3 cups

1 pound of regular ricotta cheese

2 eggs

1 tablespoon of sugar

Salt

Mix everything well.

Dough                                              Makes about one dozen pierogi

2cups flour, plus extra for kneading and rolling dough

½ teaspoon salt

1 large egg

½ cup sour cream

¼ cup butter cut into small pieces

Butter and finely chopped onions for frying with the pierogi

Method

Mix the flour and salt

Beat the egg and pour into the flour

Add the sour cream and the butter pieces and work into the dough a couple minutes

You may do above step in food processor but beware of over-beating

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a half hour or overnight, but no longer than 2 days

Preparing Pierogi

• Roll the dough on a floured board to1/8 inch thickness. It must be thin.
• Cut circles of dough with a cookie cutter, drinking glass or other device to a diameter of 2 inch or 31/2 inch depending on what size you prefer
• Place a small mound of filling (approximately 1 tablespoon) on each circle of dough
• Fold the dough over to form a semi-circle
• Press the edges together with a fork. If having trouble making them stick, use a little water on the edges.

• Boil the pierogi in a large pot of water large enough to hold them all or in batches
• After about 8 minutes, they will float to top and can be removed, rinsed in cool water to stop further cooking, and dried on a wire rack

Fry finely chopped onions in butter until softened. Then add the pierogi and pan fry until lightly crispy. Serve the pierogi and onions with sour cream on the side.

When October rolls around, you can be ready to serve these delectable dumplings. If you enjoy making these, you’ll find plenty of folks to share them with.