Uncle Bills Cottage Cheese Perogie Filling Food

UNCLE BILL'S COTTAGE CHEESE PEROGIE FILLING

Steps:

• Squeeze as much liquid that you can from the dry curd cottage cheese and discard.
• In a mixing bowl, add cottage cheese, finely chopped green onions, beaten eggs, salt and pepper and mix well to blend.
• Use 1 heaping tablespoon for each perogie.
• Boil for 2 to 3 minutes or until they float to the surface.
• Serve with melted butter and sour cream if desired.
• These perogies freeze well.

UNCLE BILL'S POTATO/CHEDDAR FILLING FOR PEROGIES

Steps:

• In a medium size saucepan, add potatoes and just cover with water.
• Bring to boil, reduce heat and cook for about 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
• Drain and mash potatoes.
• Add grated cheese and mix well.
• Cheese will melt and will be incorporated with the potatoes.
• In a frying pan, add butter, chopped onions and garlic and saute' for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add saute'ed onion/garlic to the potatoes in the saucepan and mix well.
• Add beaten eggs, salt and pepper and mix well.
• The amount of filling to use will depend on the size of Mini Form you will be using.
• If using the 4" Mini Form, use 1 heaping tablespoon of filling.
• The filling mix handles best when cooled.

HOMEMADE COTTAGE CHEESE PIEROGIES / PEROGIES - THE OLD FASHIONED

Steps:

• Cottage Cheese Filling: Combine the cottage cheese with the egg and season to taste with the salt.
• If the cheese is very dry, an additional egg (or egg yolk) or thick sour cream can be added.
• Mix the flour with the salt in a deep bowl.
• Add the egg, oil and water to make a medium soft dough.
• Knead on a floured board until the dough is smooth.
• Caution: Too much kneading will toughen the dough.
• Divide the dough into 2 parts.
• Cover and let stand for at least 10 minutes.
• Prepare the filling.
• The filling should be thick enough to hold its shape.
• Roll the dough quite thin on a floured board.
• Cut rounds with a large biscuit cutter, or as most old-world grandmothers did, with the open end of a glass.
• Put the round in the palm ofyour hand.
• Place a spoonful of filling in it, fold over to form a half circle and press the edges together with the fingers.
• The edges should be free of filling.
• Be sure the edges are sealed well to prevent the filling from running out.
• Place the pierogi on a floured board or tea towel and then cover with another tea towel to prevent them from drying out.
• COOKING: Drop a few pierogies into a large quantity of rapidly boiling salted water.
• Do not attempt to cook too many at a time.
• Stir VERY gently with a wooden spoon to separate them and to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
• Continue boiling for 3-4 minutes.
• The cooling period will depend upon the size you made it, the thickness of the dough and the filling.
• Pierogies will be ready when they are puffed.
• Remove them with a perforated spoon or skimmer to a colander and drain thoroughly.
• Place in a deep dish, sprinkle generously with melted butter to prevent them from sticking.
• Cover and keep them hot until all are cooked.
• Serve in a large dish without piling or crowding them.
• Top with melted butter- chopped crisp bacon and/or chopped onions lightly browned in butter.
• REHEATING: One of the great things about pierogies, is that they can be made in large quantities, refrigerated, frozen and reheated without loss of quality.
• Many prefer reheated pierogies as compared to freshly boiled ones.
• To re-heat, you can 1) pan fry pierogies in butter or bacon fat until they are light in color or 2) heat the pierogies in the top of a double boiler or in the oven until they are hot and plump or 3) deep fry them.

UNCLE BILL'S PEROGIE DOUGH

Steps:

• In a large size mixing bowl, mix together eggs, milk, whipping cream, sour cream and salt and whisk until well blended.
• Add baking powder and blend until incorporated.
• Add flour one cup at a time and whisk well the first two cups.
• Add the third cup and now mix using a large plastic spoon or a wooden spoon.
• Add the fourth cup and continue mixing with a spoon.
• At this point, you may not be able to pick up all the flour, so roll out the contents onto a lightly floured surface.
• Knead the dough until it becomes smooth and shiny.
• If the dough is still sticky add a bit more flour and continue to knead until it is not sticky and does not stick to your hands.
• Break dough off into chunks and roll between your hands to the size of a golf ball.
• On a lightly floured surface, firstly flatten the dough ball with the palm of your hand to about 1/2-inch thickness, then coat each side very lightly with some flour.
• Using a heavy rolling pin, (I prefer a marble rolling pin), start to roll out the dough.
• As you are rolling, the dough should stick to the rolling pin.
• When this happens and the dough is almost all the way around the rolling pin, peel the dough off as it should come off very easy.
• Place the dough back on the rolling surface with the side that was against the rolling pin should now be on the rolling surface.
• Very lightly, dust the top surface ONLY with a bit of flour.
• Start rolling again, roll back and forth, then side to side to try and keep the dough round.
• The dough should now be sticking to the rolling surface and not onto the rolling pin.
• You will note that the dough does not "snap" back to a smaller round.
• Should this happen, just re-roll again.
• When finished rolling, the dough should be about 1/16-inch in thickness.
• Open the Mini Form (photo above) and rub the surface with some flour, this will prevent the dough from sticking to the Mini Form.
• Place the rolled dough over the Mini Form and make sure that the dough is well over the edges of the Mini Form.
• Place about 1 heaping tablespoon of your choice of filling in the center of the dough.
• Pick the Mini Form up and close it slightly.
• If necessary, push the filling down just a bit.
• Now fold the Mini Form completely shut and press tightly.
• Hold the Mini Form closed and remove excess dough with your thumb or finger. This helps seal the edges of the dough.
• Use the excess dough to form more dough balls.
• Open the Mini Form and the perogi should drop out easily.
• Set perogi aside until you prepare more.
• Continue to make perogies with the remaining dough.
• You can use whatever size of Mini Form that you desire, the 3 1/4" or 4". Five and 6" Mini Forms are also available.
• COOKING INSTRUCTIONS.
• In a large cooking pot or pasta pot, fill 3/4 full with water and bring to a boil.
• Add 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil or a good vegetable oil.
• Gently add about 8 to 10 perogies to the pot, stir gently with a slotted spoon and bring back to boil.
• Cook, uncovered for 2 to 3 minutes or until perogies float to the surface.
• Remove with a slotted spoon into a bowl.
• The perogies may be eaten immediately with some butter or margarine, a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped green onions or chives.
• The amount of perogies may vary depending on the size of Mini Form you are using.
• If desired, preheat a frying pan to medium-high heat, add 3 tablespoons of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil or vegetable oil.
• Add some finely chopped onions to the frying pan and sauté for 2 minutes.
• Now add the perogies, cover and lightly fry until they are lightly browned on both sides, turning once.
• Serve immediately with more butter if desired, a dollop of sour cream, chopped green onions or chives and even some cooked chopped bacon bits.
• These perogies freeze well.
• After the perogies are boiled, place them on a cookie sheet (absorb any water with paper towels).
• Place sheet in freezer for at least 2 hours until perogies are frozen.
• Place them into freezer bags or vacuum seal bags in whatever quantities are best for you and return the sealed units back to the freezer.
• The perogies will last from 6 months to 1 year when frozen.

COTTAGE CHEESE PEROGIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together the cottage cheese, egg yolks, and 3/4 teaspoon of salt. Set aside.
• In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, 1 teaspoon of salt, and baking powder. Pour in the vegetable oil and cold water, and mix or knead into a smooth dough.
• Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface, and cut into 3 inch circles using a glass, can, or cookie cutter. Place a spoonful of the cottage cheese filling onto each circle. Fold in half, and pinch the edges together to seal.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Carefully drop the perogies into the water, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until they float. Remove from water with a slotted spoon, and place on a cooling rack set over a baking sheet to drain excess water.