Vareniky Food

PIEROGI WITH FARMERS CHEESE (VARENIKI RECIPE)

Steps:

• Mix sugar, farmers cheese and egg, until it's fully mixed in. Set it aside.
• Whisk eggs together with sour cream, lukewarm water and milk until you get an even texture.
• To the liquid ingredients, add in flour, sugar and salt. Knead the dough by hand or a stand-up mixer until it's no longer sticky.
• Roll out the dough on a well floured surface. Using a cup, stamp out circles. Flour the cup to make it easier to cut circles.
• One by one fill your circles with filling, placing the filling in the center.
• Fold over the edges and tighten them up with your fingers, making sure it's firm enough for your filling not to fall out.
• Bring a pot of water up to boil. Add 10-20 pierogi, cook until they float up to the top. Drain and top with melted unsalted butter. Optionally, serve with sour cream, jam or sugar.Tip: If freezing the pierogi, use a floured cooking sheet or cutting board. Once the pierogi are fully frozen, move them to a ziplock bag.

VARENIKY

Steps:

• To mix the dough, combine the milk, sunflower oil, egg yolk, flour, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl. You can use an electric mixer or knead the dough by hand until it forms a smooth, stiff dough. Shape the dough into a log, wrap it in plastic wrap, and set aside.
• Soak the dried porcini in 1/2 cup hot water for 45 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the potatoes in boiling salted water to cover until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and allow to steam dry for a minute or two.
• Chop the rehydrated mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Mash the potatoes, adding the mushroom-soaking liquid to moisten.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the chopped onions; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chopped mushrooms.
• Mix the mashed potatoes, onions, and mushrooms; season with salt and pepper to taste. Set the filling aside while you roll out the vareniky dough.
• Cut the dough into discs about 3/8 inch thick and 2 inches wide (1 cm thick and 5 cm in diameter). Flatten or roll each disc on a lightly floured surface to make a thin circle. Drop the filling by tablespoonfuls into the center of each vareniky; fold the dough in half and pinch the edge to seal. Repeat until all of the dumplings are filled.
• Bring the gallon of water and tablespoon of salt to a boil in a large pot. Add the vareniky to the boiling water and stir once, gently. Simmer until all of the dumplings have floated to the surface, about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain well before serving.

UKRAINIAN OLHA'S VARENYKY (PEROGIES)

Steps:

• To make the dough, combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and add the soft butter and evaporated milk; stir gently until all the liquid is absorbed. Add water only as needed, kneading continuously until dough sticks together. Place dough into a greased bowl, turn to coat, and let rest for 30 minutes.
• To make the potato filling, place potatoes into a saucepan with water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside. Melt 1/2 cup butter in a medium skillet, over medium heat. Saute onions in butter until tender. Mix the onions into the potatoes along with the cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• To make the sauerkraut and cabbage filling, pour the drained sauerkraut into a large saucepan. In a medium skillet, saute 2 onions in 1/2 cup butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir the onions into the sauerkraut along with the cabbage and chicken bouillon cube. Cook over low heat until liquid evaporates. Season with pepper and remove from heat. Allow the mixture to cool, then run through a grinder or food processor.
• Remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out to 1/8 inch in thickness. Cut into 3 inch circles. Place one tablespoon of filling onto one side of the circle. Fold the other half over and press the edges to seal. Place finished dumplings onto a floured tray and keep covered.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop 10 or so dumplings into the water at a time. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, then remove to a colander to drain. Place finished dumplings onto a lightly oiled dish and turn them to coat with a thin layer. This will keep them from sticking together. Serve dumplings with fried onions and sour cream. Cooled dumplings also can be fried in oil and butter for a nice crispy surface.

VARENIKI (RUSSIAN-STYLE POTATO DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• For the filling: Saute onions with oil in a pan until softened and brown.
• Grate warm potato into a bowl and add the sauteed onion, salt and pepper. Mix together to evenly distribute ingredients into a mash-like mixture.
• For the dough: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• Add flour and salt to the cleaned bowl of a stand mixer and slowly mix. Add water and oil. Mix completely. Remove dough and work into a roll, then a log shape.
• Slice a thin piece of dough and roll into a thin 4-inch round. Place 1 tablespoon potato mixture in the center of the dough circle, then fold circle into a half-moon and seal the edges. Place on the lined baking sheet. Fold over the edge of the dumpling, like a pot sticker. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Refrigerate for about 10 minutes to hold their shape.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add dumplings; they will rise to the top once they are finished cooking.
• For the garnish: Caramelize onions in some oil in a frying pan until golden brown and crispy, 5 minutes. Plate dumplings and lay caramelized onions on top with salt, pepper and sour cream.

UKRAINIAN BLUEBERRY DUMPLINGS (VARENYKY)

Steps:

• Gather the dough ingredients.
• In a large bowl, mix together flour and salt. Add the egg and enough water to make a medium-soft dough.
• Knead in a stand mixer or by hand until smooth. But don't overwork the dough because it will become tough.
• Halve the dough and cover with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 30 minutes.
• Gather the filling ingredients.
• In a medium saucepan, combine blueberries, sugar, optional liquor or lemon juice and cinnamon and cook over low heat until blueberries come to a boil.
• Reduce heat, simmer 2 minutes and remove from heat. Set aside.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll one dough half 1/8-inch thick. Using a 3-inch round cutter or a glass, cut out circles of dough. Remove scraps.
• Place a circle in the palm of your hand and, using a slotted spoon, place 3 or 4 blueberries on each round (leaving the sauce in the pan).
• Fold the dough over to form a half-circle and press the edges together until well sealed and there is no air trapped in the dumpling, and the edges are free of filling.
• Alternatively, the dough can be cut into 2 1/2-inch squares, filled and folded into triangles.
• Place filled dumplings on a lightly floured surface and cover with a tea towel to prevent drying. Re-roll scraps and continue with remaining dough.
• Drop 6 varenyky at a time into boiling, salted water. Stir gently to separate and prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Boil rapidly for 3 to 4 minutes. Cooking time will depend on the size of the varenyky and thickness of the dough.
• Varenyky are done when well puffed. Remove from water with a slotted spoon or skimmer and drain well in a colander.
• Place in a shallow dish and coat generously with melted butter, tossing to prevent sticking. Cover and keep hot until all the varenyky are boiled.
• Gather the remaining ingredients.
• Make the blueberry sauce by adding cornstarch to the blueberry liquid left in the saucepan and heat over low until slightly thickened.
• Dust cooked varenyky with confectioners' sugar and serve with a dollop of sour cream. Drizzle blueberry sauce on the varenyky or pass in a small pitcher at the table.

BASIC RUSSIAN VARENIKI OR PELMENI DOUGH (RUSSIAN PIEROGI)

Steps:

• Whisk together egg and sour cream until well combined.
• Whisk in 1 1/4 cup milk and 3/4 cup water.
• Using a spatula, mix in four, 1 cup at a time.
• Place the dough onto a floured surface. Using a food scarper, knead the dough by turning and folding it with the food scraper. Dust the dough with flour as you need it until it is soft and doesn't stick to your hands (you'll need around 1 cup more flour). Knead for 6 to 8 minutes. Don't add too much flour or the dough will become hard to work with.
• Place the dough under a bowl and let it sit at room temperature for about 1 hour.
• Cut the dough into 4 to 6 pieces. Work with one piece at a time and keep the rest covered with plastic wrap.
• Form your chunk of dough into a log and cut off small pieces, one at a time. Pieces should be a little larger than a gumball. Dust your rolling pin and cutting board with flour and roll out a piece of dough until it is 1/8" thick and 3" diameter.
• Fill these circles with the desired filling (potatoes, cherries, blueberries or meat). Fold the dough over the filling to form a crescent and seal the edges tightly with your fingers. If making pelmeni (meat filling), pinch the two edges together to form a "diaper" shape. Place the finished pierogis on a cutting board dusted with flour until ready to boil.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. As you finish the first batch of pierogies, place them in boiling water. After they float to the top, cook about 2 to 3 minutes more, then remove them with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Drizzle the pierogies with melted butter.
• Repeat steps 7 through 9 with the rest of the dough.

VARENIKI (UKRAINIAN FILLED DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• In a food processor, blend the flour and 1/2 tsp salt. With the motor running, add the egg yolks and the oil through the feed tube. then pour in the water, in a slow steady stream, until the dough forms a ball around the blade. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead until smooth, about 2 minutes. Cover with a cotton towel and let stand for 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough in half and shape into two balls. Keep one ball covered with the towel while working with the other ball. On a floured surface with a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough to a very thin sheet, about 1/16 inch thick, making sure it doesn't tear. With a round cookie cutter, cut out circles about 3 inches in diameter. Gather the scraps into a ball and set aside, covered.
• Have a bowl with the egg white near you. Place a heaping tsp of the desired filling in the middle of each circle. Fold the dough over the filling to form a semi-circle. Brush the edges with the egg white and press the edges firmly together with the tines of a fork to seal. Place the vareniki as they are made on a lightly floured large baking sheet about 1 inch apart and keep covered with a damp cloth.
• When you have finished making this batch of vareniki, roll out the 2nd ball of dough and make a second batch. Add the leftover scraps left from the first batch, knead into a ball, and roll out for a final batch of vareniki.
• Meanwhile, in a large pot, bring 6 quarts of salted water to boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium so the water simmers and carefully lower half the vareniki into the water. Boil, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking, until they rise to the surface, and are cooked through, 6 to 7 minutes. With a slotted spoon, carefully remove the vareniki to a colander and drain thoroughly. Transfer to a deep serving bowl and toss with half the butter.
• Cook the rest of the vareniki in the same way.
• Makes 50 to 55 vareniki. (Serves 4 people as an entree.).
• For the Potato Filling:.
• Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saute, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, combine the potatoes and cheese. Add the sauteed onion along with the cooking fat and mix well. Season with salt and pepper, then use to fill the vareniki.
• For the Cheese Filling:.
• In a large bowl, combine all the filling ingredients and mix thoroughly. Use as a filling for the vareniki.
• For the Sauerkraut Filling:.
• Rinse and squeeze thoroughly to dry the sauerkraut.
• Saute the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until it renders its fat. Remove the bacon and reserve. Drain off all but 2 Tbsp fat.
• Add the onion to the skillet and saute, stirring frequently over medium heat until nocely browned, almost 15 minutes. Turn the heat up to medium-high, add the sauerkraut, and saute, stirring, until softened and cooked throughout, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, sugar, and broth. Reduce the heat to low, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before using to fill the vareniki. Use the reserved bacon as a topping.
• For the Cherry Filling:.
• If you are using the fresh cherries, mix them with the 1/2 cup sugar and leave in a warm place for several hours until they begin to give off their juice. Strain the juice. You should have about 2 cups. If less, add canned or bottled cherry juice.
• If you are using canned cherries, drain them thoroughly and reserve 2 cups of the syrup. Mix the canned cherrieswith the 1/4 cup sugar. Reserve several cherries for garnish.
• In a small saucepan, bring the reserved juice or syrup to a boil over medium-high heat. Let boil until reduced to about 1 cup. Remove from the heat, stir in the liqueur, and let cool to room temperature. Reserve to pour over the filled and colled vareniki.
• Toss the cherries with the cornstarch. fill each vareniki with 2 fresh or 4 canned cherries, sealing especially tightly.

UKRAINIAN SWEET CABBAGE VARENYKY (PIEROGI DUMPLINGS)

Steps:

• TO MAKE THE FILLING: Cut the cabbages into quarters. Steam until very tender, approximately 20 to 30 minutes. Drain and cool. In a strong but thin linen towel, squeeze as much of the liquid from the steamed cabbage as possible. Squeeze only a small handful at a time. Discard the juice.
• Grind the squeezed cabbage with the fine blade of a meat grinder. Add the cream cheese and softened butter and season highly with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• TO MAKE THE DOUGH: Whisk the egg, milk, water, and sour cream together. Add the flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Turn out onto a floured board and knead until smooth and elastic. This may take 10 minutes. Add as little additional flour as possible.
• Put ball of dough under an inverted bowl until ready to use.
• To make the varenyky, cut the dough into 4 pieces. On a floured board roll out piece of dough into a round 1/16 inch thick. Keep rest of dough covered. With a cookie cutter or glass tumbler (2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter), cut the dough into rounds. For each varenyk take 1 round of dough, stretch it a bit with your fingers, and spoon about 2 Tablespoons of the cabbage onto the center.
• Fold the circle in half and press the edges together. Crimp the edges with your fingertips into a decorative pattern if you wish. Be sure to seal the edges well or the filling may fall out during cooking. Put finished dumplings on a towel or tray that has been lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Continue rolling dough until all the filling has been used up.
• Bring a very large kettle of water to the boil. Add 1 Tablespoon salt to the water and cook about 20 varenyky at one time in simmering water until they are tender and float (about 5 to 6 minutes.) Remove to a serving dish with a slotted spoon and dribble with butter and a bit of oil, to prevent sticking. Gently fold the varenyky in the oil. Leftover varenyky can be fried in butter and oil with fried onions.
• Makes approximately 8 dozen dumplings.

VARENIKI

Steps:

• Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry the onions over medium heat, stirring regularly until they are golden brown, then drain them of their oil and place on plate lined with paper towel.
• Peel and boil the potatoes in a large amount of lightly salted water.
• Drain the potatoes using a large skimmer and keep the boiling water for cooking.
• Place the cooked potatoes in a large bowl and, using a potato masher, mash the potatoes, gradually adding the boiling milk. Add the butter and, optionally, a little boiling water from the potatoes and mix until a slightly firm consistency is obtained.
• Add the fried onions and mix. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• In a small skillet, melt the butter.
• Fry the onion over medium heat for 1 minute then add the sugar.
• Cook over low to medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring regularly.
• Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and set aside in a warm place for serving.
• Combine sifted flour, salt, eggs, milk and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Knead a homogeneous dough. Cover and let stand 30 minutes, away from heat.
• Divide the dough into 2 or 3 pieces and roll out each piece of dough to a thickness of ⅛ inch (3 mm).
• Using a cookie cutter, cut circles about 3 inches (7 cm) in diameter.
• Place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle of dough, fold them in half to form a semi-circle and pinch the edges with wet hands.
• Heat a large amount of boiling salted water in a casserole dish.
• Immerse the vareniki in simmering water and cook them for 3 minutes.
• Drain.
• Place the boiled vareniki in a bowl or deep dish.
• Sprinkle with fried onions, salt lightly, pepper, and mix gently.
• Finally sprinkle with chopped spring onion.

VARENIKI- UKRANIAN PIEROGIES

Steps:

• In a food processor, blend the flour and the salt. With the motor running, add the egg and the oil, and then pour the water in a slow, steady stream until the dough forms a ball around the blade. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead for about 2 minutes, until smooth. Cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 30 minutes. Divide the dough into 2 balls. On a floured surface, with a floured rolling pin, roll out one of the balls very thinly, to about 1/16th of an inch, making sure that it doesn't tear. With a cookie cutter, or a cup, cut out circles about 3 inches in diameter. Place a heaping teaspoon of the desired filling in the middle of a circle. Fold the dough over to form a semi-circle. Brush the edges with the egg and press firmly with the tines of the fork to seal. Place the vareniki as they are made on a large, lightly floured, platter, and cover with a damp cloth, while making the next batch. Repeat with the second ball of dough. Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to moderate and carefully lower half of the vareniki into the water. Boil, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until they rise to the surface, about 6 to 7 minutes. With a slotted spoon, carefully remove the vareniki into a colander and drain thoroughly. Transfer into a deep serving bowl and toss with half of the butter.
• In a small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat and saute the onion until deeply colored, about 10 minutes. In a mixing bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients. Add the Sauteed onion along with the cooking fat and mix well. Fill the vareniki and cook as directed.
• In a large skillet, saute the bacon over medium heat until it renders its fat. Remove the bacon and drain all but 2 tablespoons of fat. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until nicely browned. Turn the heat up to medium-high, add the sauerkraut and saute, stirring until limp and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add the sugar and broth. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before filling. Use the reserved bacon for topping.;
• Combine all the filling ingredients and mix thoroughly. Fill and cook as directed. This filling can be either sweet or savory, so add salt or sugar, accordingly. Serve with sour cream and confectioners' sugar, if sweet.