Pierogi Recipes from my kitchen to yours

My Pierogi making partners 2011

I want to share my family's pierogi recipe with all of you. It wouldn't be Christmas in my house without that favorite traditional Polish food, the pierogi. For those of you who don't know what a pierogi is, think of it as a large, stuffed dumpling. In our family we made 3 kinds of pierogi, potato-cheese pierogi, sauerkraut pierogi and plum pierogi. The dough is the same for all of the pierogi-only the pierogi filling recipe changes.

Pierogi dough:
4 cups white flour
4 whole eggs plus 2 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream

Measure flour into a large bowl. Add eggs, salt and sour cream. Mix together. I use a mixer just to get the dough started and then hand knead to finish. You don't want to overwork the dough or it will be tough. The dough will begin to form a ball as you knead the dough. If the dough is sticky, add a little additional flour and knead a bit more. Cover with a towel and let rest about 10 minutes.

Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface-a counter or kitchen table is a great place to use. I roll the dough about 1/4 thick and then cut dough in circles with a lightly floured glass or biscuit cutter. I then roll the circles out again to about 1/8 inch think and a slightly oval shape.

Put the filling in the center of your dough. Fold over and seal the edges. Here's a tip save the water from your potaoes and use the starchy water on your fingertip to run around the inner edges of the dough. Pinch and crimp well to seal the edges.

Drop into a pot of boiling salted water until the pierogi float. About 5-7 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water. To prevent the pierogi from sticking to each other butter the boiled pierogi and stack between sheets of waxed paper.

To serve the pierogi, saute in butter until they just start to brown. As Aunt Sophie always said to me, don't let them get brown! Serve with sour cream. Smacznego!

Pierogi Filling Recipes:

Potato-Cheese Pierogi Filling

2 lbs peeled potatoes-about 6 cups-boiled, mashed and cooled.
1 cup of minced onion
1/4 cup butter
1 lb farmers cheese if you can't find farmers cheese in you market, you can use 2 lbs cottage cheese that has been well drained in a cheese cloth.
 salt and pepper.

Saute the minced onion in butter until soft and lightly golden. Add to mashed potatoes, mix in farmers cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper. Use about 2 Tablespoons of filling to each pierogi.

Okay-I used 10 lbs of potatoes!

Sauerkraut Pierogi Filling:

1 large can or jar of sauerkraut
1 oz dried Polish mushrooms (you can substitute any dried mushrooms)
1 cup minced onion
1/4 cup butter

Rinse and drain sauerkraut. you can chop it if you like it finer. Simmer dried mushrooms in water until soft-about 15 minutes. Drain and rinse well to remove any grit. Chop until finely minced. Saute chopped onions in butter until light golden yellow. Combine all ingredients together. Use about 2 tablespoons of filling per pierogi.

Plum Pierogi Recipe:
1 large can of plums.

Drain plums. Remove pits from plums. Use 1 plum per pierogi. My Aunt Kay would dip the boiled pierogi into butter and then into fine white bread crumbs and then saute them in butter.

Sweet Cheese Pierogi Filling Recipe:

1 lb farmers cheese

1/4 cup sugar

1tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. grated orange rind

Mix together ingredients. If you can't find farmers cheese, you can substitute 2 lbs of small curd cottage cheese that has been pressed through a cheesecloth to make a dry cottage cheese. Use about 2 tablespoons of filling per pierogi.

I'd like to thank my brother Adam, who compiled a recipe book of our family's traditional family recipes. Thanks to his hard work, those memories, stories and recipes are preserved for future generations of our family.

It's time for Paczki! Polish jelly filled doughnut recipe

What Mardi Gras. In the Polish tradition of Fat Tuesday, we enjoy eating Paczki or Polish jelly filled doughnuts. The Lenten tradition of fasting called for using up the lard, sugar, eggs and fruit that you had in your home. My Aunt Sophie and grandmother, Babcia, would make these delicious filled doughnuts. Certainly a treat you waited for once a year! This recipe comes from my brothers collection of family recipes. I hope you enjoy it!

1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
1/3 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 whole egg plus 3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups flour
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

Optional: 1/4 cup white raisins

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs and egg yolks. Add the yeast mixture, vanilla, orange rind and salt. Gradually add flour, and optional raisins, blend until well mixed.Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Cover, and set aside in warm area until the dough has doubled in size. On floured board roll out until about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into circles with a glass or biscuit cutter. Place a spoonful of raspberry jam at the center of each circle, fold in half, pinching closed sealing in the jam. Roll into ball shape. Fry in hot oil (350 degrees) or shortening until golden brown. Transfer to paper towels, to absorb excess oil. When cool, dust lightly with powdered sugar.  Note: for a lighter texture, the filled and formed paczki can be set aside to rise again slightly before frying.

You can also fill the paczki after frying with a cake decorating tipped bag. Try lemon curd, custard, or even prune filling for a change! Whatever filling you choose enjoy these treats today!

My Traditional Polish Easter Basket

A Traditional Polish Swieconka Easter Basket
I thought I would share with you some of my favorite Polish Easter holiday traditions and foods. One of my favorite times of the year is the Easter season. I look forward to having "Polish Easter Soup" all year!

Traditionally we would prepare the Easter Basket on Saturday morning and take it to church to have the foods blessed. These foods would not be eaten until Easter morning. The origins of preparing the basket comes from medieval times.The blessing of the basket was meant to insure that there would be sufficient provisions for your family in the upcoming year. The Polish traditions have roots in the foods found in the Passover meal; lamb,bread, wine and bitter herbs.

Here's what's in my basket:

Maslo/Butter: Shaped into the form of a lamb. The Paschal Lamb reminds us the goodness of Christ that  we should have towards all things. Jesus is our Paschal {Passover} lamb, by whose blood we are saved.

Chleb/Easter Bread: A round rye loaf of bread, often topped with the shape of a cross. Symbolic of Jesus, the Bread of  Everlasting Life.

Chrzan/Horseradish: Symbolic of the Passion of Christ. May be white or red (with beets).It reminds us of the bitter herbs in the Passover meal, which symbolizes the harshness of life.

Jajka/Eggs: Indicates new life and Christ's Resurrection from the Tomb.Easter eggs are the crowning touch of the Easter basket. Intricate and elaborate designs show the creativity of the maker. Polish Easter eggs can be decorated with intricate beeswax designs or religious inscriptions, pisanki, painted, malowanki, , or colored with natural dyes, called kraszanki. Egg decoration is an art form in Slavic cultures. Pisanki is a method known to have been used in Poland since the 10th century. The Easter eggs, duck or chicken, were washed. Then artists used a wax stylus to inscribe an Easter greeting or Easter symbols on the eggs before boiling. The wax was removed only after coloring the egg, leaving an elaborate pattern or script visible on the shell.Painted eggs are also popular in Poland. The malowanki, vibrant with the colors of spring, are often intended for gifts and not consumption. The naturally dyed eggs, called Kraszanki, are often dyed with onion skins or beet skins. Just as a chick breaks out of the shell,  Jesus emerged from the tomb Easter morning.


Szynka/Ham: At the time of Jesus, following Jewish law,pork was a forbidden meat to eat. Ham celebrates the freedom of the New Law which came into effect through Jesus' resurrection.

Kielbasa/Polish Sausage: This spicy mixture of coarse pieces of pork products, reminds us on God's favor and generosity. The links of the sausage remind us of the chains of death that work broken by the resurrection of  Jesus, and the chains that bind us as a family.

Slonina/Smoked Bacon: A symbol of the over abundance of God's mercy and generosity. In our family we traditionally use a piece of salt pork.

Sol/Salt: A necessary element in our physical life, that Jesus used it symbolism; "You are the salt of the Earth."

Ser/Cheese: The Farmers' cheese we use is a salted white cheese-made from milk, salt and soured, then pressed thru a cheesecloth to form a small slab of cheese. This fresh cheese symbolizes  the moderation that Christians should have.

I also use a sprig of boxwood to decorate my basket, In Poland, on Palm Sunday,  Christians would bring boxwood sprigs and pussy willow to be blessed, as Palms would not naturally be found in Poland.

I also include some sweets in my basket, more traditionally, a small yeast cake called a babka, would be served as part of the Easter meal.

Easter Soup:

Bialy barszcz/White Borscht recipe:

2 links smoked Polish sausage (Kielbasa)
2c sour cream
2 eggs-slightly beaten
2-3 Tablespoons white flour
White Vinegar
Salt

Soup Additions:
Cubed kielbasa, ham and saltpork
Cubed Farmers Cheese
Cubed Rye bread-light and dark
Hard boiled eggs-diced
White or red horseradish

To make the soup:

In a large pot cover the links of kielbasa with water. Cook on low simmer about 1 hour, piercing the skins of the kielbasa to release the juices.  I simmer my salt pork at the same time in the same water. Remove the meats. Reserve the stock. The Borscht is made from the stock from the meats. In a bowl slight beat the eggs, sour cream and flour. Blend about 1 cup of the warm stock with the sour cream and egg mixture, this will temper the mixture to help prevent curdling. Blend the stock and sour cream mixture back into the stock, bring to simmer-do not boil-to prevent curdling! Add vinegar to taste-I add about 6-8 Tablespoons of white vinegar-tasting after each addition until the soup is slightly tart..

Serve this soup over the additions-and add a bit of horseradish to taste
Years ago, my daughter one day in the middle of summer, asked me if I could make her Easter soup! I think my jaw hit the floor-In all my years I had never had Easter soup at any time of the year except for Easter! I would have never asked my mother to make it at any other time of the year-it was that special to us! But now occasionally I'll make it for her, and it's every bit as special to us no matter when we serve it. Sometimes, it's just good to get back to the traditions that make each one of our families special, and to remember our roots.

I hope you will share some of your comments with me. Wesołego Alleluja!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

I just made some chicken noodle soup and my daughters friend said it was even better than her grandmothers. Don’t you just love sharing some comfort food with your family. Chicken noodle soup reminds me of my Busia’s kitchen in Detroit, Michigan when I was growing up. Almost nothing makes me feel better on a dreary winter day when I’m not feeling well as a bowl of steaming hot chicken soup.

Here’s my recipe…I Hope you’ll enjoy making your family a nice pot of chicken noodle soup soon.

Ingredients:

• Whole frying chicken cut-up
• 1 T olive or salad oil
• 1 stalk celery
• 2 medium onions
• 1 bunch carrots (about 4-6)
• 2-3 parsnips
• 2 bay leaves
• Dried parsley flakes
• Salt and Pepper
• Egg Noodles-you can use fine(like the picture) or kluski noodles

Prepare the stock:

In a large stock pot, on medium-high heat, add the oil and chicken. I like to leave the skin on the chicken and brown in slightly-It will add a little more flavor and color to your finished stock. After your chicken is slightly browned, add the tops of your celery stalks-leaves and all! Dice 1 of your onions, add 2-3 chopped carrots, the bay leaves and cover with about 8 cups of water. Cover and let simmer about 1 hour until the chicken is tender . At this point, remove from heat, strain the stock and discard the vegetables. Let the chicken cool and remove the chicken from the bones. If you want to discard the chicken skin-now’s to the time to do it. I personally like the leaving the skin off.

Now for the soup:

In your large stock pot, combine the stock, the chicken you pulled off the bone-chopped into pieces, the remaining carrots, celery, onions and parsnips all chopped coarsely. Add about 1T parsley flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer about 20 minutes-until the vegetables are tender-but not mushy.

While the soup is simmering-cook the egg noodles according to the package directions.

When the noodle are cooked, add to soup.

Now sit down and enjoy a nice warm bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup!

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My families favorite recipes

Smacznego-Bon Appetit! One of the things I wanted to share with you is my love of cooking. Good, sometimes old-fashioned cooking like your mom and grandma night have made if you were very lucky! I grew up in a Polish family of great cooks. My Babcia (grandmother), various aunts and my mother were wonderful cooks that passed down a wealth of knowledge. We learned cooking by doing-not by following recipes in a cookbook-but treasured recipes handed down generation to generation. My brother Adam put together a collection of recipes intending to share them with the world but alas!-the cookbook was never published. I hope to share some of them with you and many of my own favorite recipes. Give them a try-maybe some of them will become your family favorites too! Golabki-Stuffed Cabbage Filling: 1 onion, chopped fine 4 Tablespoons butter ( 1/2 stick) 1 c white rice, cooked 2 lbs ground beef-I like ground chuck 2 eggs 1 tsp garlic powder Salt and pepper 1 whole cabbage For sauce: 1 can cream of tomato soup 1 can diced tomatoes Saute onions in butter until transparent. Combine with cooked rice, meat, eggs, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. Put whole head of cabbage into large pot of boiling water. The trick here is to cut away the leaves of the cabbage from the core. As the cabbage leaves become transparent, run a knife along the center cabbage core to remove a few of the scalded cabbage leaves . Place the cabbage leaves in a colander to cool and drain. Repeat this until you get to the leaves that will be to small to form rolls. Discard ( or eat!) the core.

Take a small amount of the filling-and place it at the base of the cabbage leaf-the amount you need will vary with the size of the cabbage leaf. Put the completed cabbage rolls into a baking dish-I like to lay down a few of my leftover or torn leaves to line the baking dish to keep my golabki from browning too much. Pour the sauce mix over the cabbage rolls, cover and bake in a 350 degree oven about 1 and 1/2 hours. I love these served with homeade mashed potatoes!