Apple Ginger Pierogi

The August 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make pierogi from scratch and an optional challenge to provide one filling that best represents their locale. My go-to solution for dessert is always apples and ginger.

Dough Ingredients
2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/8 tsp ground turmeric
1/8 tsp ground coriander
1/2 to 1 cup lukewarm water

Filling Ingredients
1 cup finely chopped apple
1/2 cup minced ginger
1 Tbsp plain or vanilla yogurt
2 tsps cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt

Mix together filling ingredients and chill completely before use.

Apple ginger pierogi with fruit dip

Sift together seasonings and 2 cups of flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Break the egg into it, add a little water at a time (in my situation 1/2 cup was enough). Bring the dough together, kneading well and adding more flour or water as necessary. Cover the dough and let it rest 20 minutes.

On a floured work surface, roll the dough out thinly (1/8” or as thin as you can go) cut with a 4-inch round or glass. Spoon a portion (tablespoon will be the best) of the filling into the middle of each circle. Fold dough in half and pinch edges together. Gather scraps, re-roll and fill. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bring a large, low saucepan of salted water to boil. Drop in the pierogi, in a single layer in the pan. Return to the boil and reduce heat to medium. When the pierogi rise to the surface, continue to simmer a few minutes more (usually about 5 minutes), until they’ve started to puff out.

Toast in a toaster oven at 375F for 10 minutes or until puffy and light brown.

Shown here served with a fruit dip (2 parts yogurt, 2 parts cream cheese, 1 part confectioner’s sugar.

Just. Wow. Yum. Apples and ginger always win for me.

Cardamom chicken pierogi

The August 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make pierogi from scratch and an optional challenge to provide one filling that best represents their locale. This recipe is inspired by Elise’s Cardamom Honey Chicken

Dough Ingredients
2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/8 tsp ground turmeric
1/8 tsp ground coriander
1/2 to 1 cup lukewarm water

Filling Ingredients
1 pound cooked chicken, shredded
1 Tbsp honey
2 tsp sherry
2 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp pepper
salt to taste

Mix together filling ingredients and chill completely before use.

Cardamom chicken pierogi

Sift together seasonings and 2 cups of flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Break the egg into it, add a little water at a time (in my situation 1/2 cup was enough). Bring the dough together, kneading well and adding more flour or water as necessary. Cover the dough and let it rest 20 minutes.

On a floured work surface, roll the dough out thinly (1/8” or as thin as you can go) cut with a 4-inch round or glass. Spoon a portion (tablespoon will be the best) of the filling into the middle of each circle. Fold dough in half and pinch edges together. Gather scraps, re-roll and fill. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bring a large, low saucepan of salted water to boil. Drop in the pierogi, in a single layer in the pan. Return to the boil and reduce heat to medium. When the pierogi rise to the surface, continue to simmer a few minutes more (usually about 5 minutes), until they’ve started to puff out.

Toast in a toaster oven at 375F for 10 minutes or until puffy and light brown.

I’m not sure if it was the honey or the sherry or, really, I have no idea… but the dough was very chewy after it was cooked. I’m glad I enhanced the flavor of the chicken with flavored dough; a very worthwhile experiment.

I couldn’t come up with a sauce to serve with these (for dipping or on top). Sour cream didn’t at all taste right.

Spaniko-pierogi

The August 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make pierogi from scratch and an optional challenge to provide one filling that best represents their locale. Potatoes are local to me (my state ranks “first in per-acre yield of potatoes, far above other potato-producing states and countries, and 57 percent more potatoes per acre” than Idaho), but I thought I’d go with spinach (which my region has 2000-3000 acres dedicated to seed growth alone).

Dough Ingredients
2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 1 cup lukewarm water

Filling Ingredients
1 bunch of spinach, cleaned, rinsed, separated and drained
1/2 c feta cheese
1/2 onion, diced & sauteed in butter until golden brown
1 egg
1/4 tsp salt (optional)

Chop spinach leaves into “salad size” pieces. Place in a large, microwave safe bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute. The spinach should wilt to about 1/4 of the original size. You may want to drain in a colander. Let cool 3-5 minutes. Scoop your wilted spinach up in one clump if you can and cut it into bite sized squares. Transfer to a towel (or a pair of paper towels), and attempt to squeeze the remaining water out or let it drain in the towel for 5-10 minutes.

Spaniko-pierogi in the toaster oven

Mix together with remaining filling ingredients and chill completely before use.

Place 2 cups flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Break the egg into it, add the salt and a little water at a time (in my situation 1/2 cup was enough). Bring the dough together, kneading well and adding more flour or water as necessary. Cover the dough and let it rest 20 minutes.

On a floured work surface, roll the dough out thinly (1/8” or as thin as you can go) cut with a 4-inch round or glass. Spoon a portion (tablespoon will be the best) of the filling into the middle of each circle. Fold dough in half and pinch edges together. Gather scraps, re-roll and fill. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bring a large, low saucepan of salted water to boil. Drop in the pierogi, in a single layer in the pan. Return to the boil and reduce heat to medium. When the pierogi rise to the surface, continue to simmer a few minutes more (usually about 5 minutes), until they’ve started to puff out.

Toast in a toaster oven at 375F for 10 minutes or until puffy and light brown.

I find phyllo dough to be expensive if purchased and a real pain to make from scratch. This works for me, and it’s awesome.

There’s a difference in using fresh spinach versus frozen spinach, and that difference is mostly moisture and texture. If you’re not sure how to clean fresh spinach, check out this vegancoach tutorial.

2-inch "Baked Potato" Pierogi

The August 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make pierogi from scratch and an optional challenge to provide one filling that best represents their locale.

Makes 4 generous servings, around 30 dumplings
Traditional Polish recipe, this is Anula’s family recipe

Dough Ingredients
2 to 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 1 cup lukewarm water

Filling Ingredients
3 big potatoes, cooked & mashed (1 1/2 cup instant or leftover mashed potatoes is fine too)
1 cup cottage cheese, drained I went with cheddar, and I omitted the Tbsp of melted butter
1 onion, diced & sauteed in butter until clear I went all the way to gold and sweet, with 1/2 tsp of garlic, too
3 slices of streaky bacon, diced and fried till crispy
1 egg yolk (from medium egg) Bah! I put the whole egg in!
1 tablespoon butter, melted omitted
1/4 teaspoon salt I put 1/2 tsp.
pinch of pepper to taste 1/4 tsp it is.
1/4 tsp of ground rosemary

2-inch "Sweet Potato Pie" Pierogi

1. Combine all the ingredients for the filling (it‟s best to use one‟s hands to do that) put into the bowl, cover and set aside in the fridge until you have to use it.
2. Place 2 cups flour in a large bowl or on a work surface and make a well in the center. Break the egg into it, add the salt and a little lukewarm at a time (in my situation 1/2 cup was enough). Bring the dough together, kneading well and adding more flour or water as necessary. Cover the dough with a bowl or towel. You‟re aiming for soft dough. Let it rest 20 minutes.
3. On a floured work surface, roll the dough out thinly (1/8” or about 3 millimeters) cut with a 2-inch (5 cm) 4-inch round or glass. Spoon a portion (teaspoon will be the best) of the filling into the middle of each circle. Fold dough in half and pinch edges together. Gather scraps, re-roll and fill. Repeat with remaining dough.
4. Bring a large, low saucepan of salted water to boil. Drop in the pierogi, not too many, only single layer in the pan! Return to the boil and reduce heat. When the pierogi rise to the surface, continue to simmer a few minutes more ( usually about 5 minutes). Remove one dumpling with a slotted spoon and taste if ready. When satisfied, remove remaining pierogi from the water.
5. Serve immediately preferably with crème fraiche or fry. Cold pierogi can be fried. Boiled Russian pierogi can be easily frozen and boiled taken out straight from the freezer.
6. Fry in a pan with melted butter until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes… OR toast in a toaster oven 10 minutes or until puffy… OR bake at 350F for 10 minutes or until puffy.

I freeze mine on a cookie sheet before boiling them, and I just increase the cook time by 2 minutes if it’s frozen when I first put it in – no problem. I was really favoring the boiled-then-pan-fried method, until I thought I’d test out the toaster oven; boiling then tossing in the toaster oven makes a nice puffy, soft, slightly chewy pierogi and has less oil than the pan-fried. Every cook method I’ve tried has been incredibly tasty, so long as I boiled them first, before doing something else, and they taste fine just boiled, too.

I found that I liked the 4-inch circular cutter over the 2-inch cutter. The difference is a tablespoon of filling in a 4-inch or a teaspoon of filling in the smaller one. If you’re looking for bite-size, go with the 2-inch cutter; we prefer to make them finger-food rather than bite-size, and the 4-inch works for me. Cooking time is only increased by a minute or two, depending on how big the boiling pot is and how many pierogi are in the pot!

Other filling ideas:
meat and cabbage … soybeans … sauerkraut, mushrooms and carrots …
sweet potatoes and marshmallows … fruit …

Fan-tans, for guests (made 16)

Adapted from Buttermilk Rolls in the Joy of Cooking.

Makes 12-24, depending on how you want to rock it.

4 c cheap all purpose flour
3/4 c plain yogurt
3/4 c milk
1/4 c sugar
2 T melted butter
1 T active dry yeast
2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda

4-8 T softened, spreadable butter at room temperature

Combine yogurt and milk, mix well. Spoon out 1/3 to 1/2 cup of milk mixture and heat to about 110 F. Stir well and often.

Remove from heat and add yeast, stir well. Let set 3-5 minutes or until frothy.

Stir yeast mix into original yogurt mix. Add baking soda, salt, and sugar, and mix well. Add 2 cups of flour and 2 T melted butter. Stir or mix until incorporated, then add remaining 2 cups of flour.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover (with a towel or greased saran wrap). Let rise until more than doubled in bulk, about 3 hours.

Punch down dough and knead lightly in the bowl. Separate the dough into 2 parts. Roll each part into a square about 1/8 inch think. Let sit 2-3 minutes.

Spread softened butter in a thin layer over both pieces. Cut into strips 1 to 1 1/2 inches wide. Stack them into 6 or 8 layers. Using an extremely sharp knife or kitchen string, cut pieces off the stacks 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide. Place cut stack pieces into greased muffin tins, with the cut edges facing up. Cover with towel or greased saran wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size again. (Click here for a great example on how to do this, plus another great fan-tan recipe.)

Bake 15-20 minutes, in a preheated 425 F oven, until well browned.

Most often when I make these, I only make 12 rolls, and the rolls look like stay-puffed marshmallows trying to fit into a thimble. They’re pretty epic, and sometimes they stick together completely, and I can just dump the whole pan upside down to get them out.

Deviled Egg Potato Salad (Leftovers)

Not for Dad. Serves 4-6.

4-5 medium potatoes
2 hard boiled eggs, diced + 2 hard boiled egg yolks
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1-2 celery stalks, sliced
1-2 dill pickles, minced
2 tsp pickle juice
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp ground yellow mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika
salt & pepper to taste

Wash potatoes well, remove sprouts and blemishes, and either peel or don’t peel them. Cut potatoes into bite size or larger cubes. Place potatoes in a large pot, and fill with water 2 inches higher than the highest potato. Cook covered or uncovered 20-40 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Drain well.

Rinse potatoes with cool water, drain well, and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together mayonnaise, hard boiled egg yolks, celery, pickles, pickle juice, dijon mustard, dry mustard, salt, paprika, and optional salt & pepper to taste. Be sure to crush the egg yolks to make them smooth. It should taste on the salty side. Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.

Add potato and egg pieces to the dressing and mix well. Chill for 20-30 minutes to let the flavors settle.

If you’re wanting a picnic salad, you really shouldn’t use eggs.

I use a full teaspoon of salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, so that I don’t have to salt and pepper my salad on my plate. Most people will probably be fine with just 1/2 tsp of salt, though.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad

1/2 pound fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup toasted almond slivers
1/2 cup thinly sliced strawberries
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 green onion, finely chopped

dressing *
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Alternatively, I hear this is really good with pre-made raspberry vinaigrette.

Serves 4.

What a crisp, summer, fresh, wonderful salad!

I mixed up the salad and then drizzled the dressing on top. I put a full 1/2 cup sugar in the dressing, but it was just way too sweet for me. Next time, I’ll chop it in half and add to taste.

I’m glad I didn’t mix the dressing in with the salad… It makes 4 bowls of salad, but the dressing makes enough for 8-12 bowls, depending on how liberal you are with dressing. I’ll definitely adjust that for next time, too.

The June 2010 Daring Cook’s Challenge was hosted by Evelyne, of Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and Valerie, of The Chocolate Bunny, and they chose delicious pâté with freshly baked bread.

I served my vegetable pâtés as individual pâté instead of a layered block. I’ve included the red pepper recipe I skipped, as well as my version of the other two layers.

White Bean Layer

Yields one 25 by 12,5 cm (10 by 5 inch) terrine or loaf pan

Line your pan with plastic wrap, overlapping sides.

White Bean Layer
16 ounces cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed, drained thoroughly
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
2 garlic cloves, pressed
salt and pepper to taste

Boil beans in large saucepan for 30-60 minutes, until soft. Drain thoroughly. Mash beans in large bowl. Add lemon juice, olive oil, oregano and garlic and blend until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread bean mixture evenly on bottom of prepared pan.

Red Pepper Layer
7-ounce / 210 ml jar roasted red bell peppers, drained, chopped
3/4 cup / 180 ml crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ounces)

Combine peppers and feta in processor and blend until smooth. Spread pepper mixture evenly over bean layer in prepared dish.

Pesto Layer

Pesto Layer
2 garlic cloves
1 cup fresh basil leaves
1 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup ricotta cheese, partially drained

Mince garlic in processor. Add basil, parsley and pine nuts and mince. With machine running, gradually add oil through feed tube and process until smooth. Mix in ricotta. Spread pesto evenly over red pepper layer.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

To unmold, invert pâté onto serving platter. Peel off plastic wrap from pâté. Garnish with herb sprigs and serve with sourdough bread slices.

I lined my cupcake tin with saran wrap, placed pecans and almond slivers in the bottom of some cups, then filled them with bean, pea or pesto mash. After chilling in the refrigerator overnight, I gently flipped them out onto my cutting board to make cute little mini pâtés.

I kept them in the freezer until an hour before I was going to use them. Over the course of few weeks, I tried each of these with pita bread, whole wheat bread toast, and a variety of crackers. The bean layer tasted best with some cream cheese on a pita, and the pesto layer tasted great on everything (I love basil and pine nuts).

Pea pâté

The June 2010 Daring Cook’s Challenge was hosted by Evelyne, of Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and Valerie, of The Chocolate Bunny, and they chose delicious pâté with freshly baked bread.

Adapted from Sesame Sweet Pea Spread in 356 Ways to Cook Vegetarian by Kitty Morse.

10 ounces petite peas
1/4 cup tahini (sesame paste)
1/4 cup dry sherry
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and cook onion and garlic until softened (3-4 minutes). Add peas, sherry, and salt. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook until peas are soft (4-5 minutes). Stir in lemon juice, and let cool 5 minutes.

In a blender or food processor, puree pea mixture. Add tahini and process until well blended.

Pea Pâté with Pecans

Serve chilled, formed or not.

I lined my cupcake tin with saran wrap, placed a pair of pecans in one cup, then filled them with pea mash. After chilling in the refrigerator overnight, I gently flipped them out onto my cutting board to make cute little mini pâtés.

This was the recipe I selected instead of doing the roasted red peppers from the DC challenge recipe. Maybe it was the sherry, maybe it was the tahini, I’m not quite sure, but something just didn’t seem right tasting to me after it chilled in the refrigerator. I liked it better warm, as a spread, than cold as a pâté.

Bulgur Chicken Salad

Adapted from Clean Eating Magazine (March/April 2010).

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded or cubed
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup fine-grain bulgur wheat
1/4 cup almond slivers, toasted
1/4 cup mint leaves, chopped (optional)
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp ground cumin or to taste
salt and pepper to taste

In a small saucepan, bring chicken broth to a boil. Place bulgur in a small-medium bowl. Add chicken broth to bulgur and let set for 5-10 minutes, until most or all of the broth has been absorbed.

In a medium bowl, mix together oil, lemon juice, and seasonings. Add shredded chicken, and mix well to coat. Add almonds and mint, toss to coat. Add bulgur and mix well.

Serve cold or room temperature.