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.

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.

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.

The 2010 February Daring Cooks Challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to present a mezze table. The required recipes were pita bread (here) and hummus.

Recipe adapted from Flatbreads & Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid

2 teaspoons regular dry yeast (.43 ounces/12.1 grams)
2.5 cups lukewarm water (21 ounces/591 grams)
6 cups all-purpose flour (17.5 -21 ounces/497-596 grams)
1 tablespoon table salt (.50 ounces/15 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil (.95 ounces/29 ml)

Directions:
1. In a large bread bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir to dissolve. Stir in 3 cups flour, a cup at a time, and then stir 100 times, in the same direction to activate the gluten. Let this sponge rest for 90 minutes.
2. Sprinkle the salt over the sponge and stir in the olive oil. Mix well. Add more flour, a cup at a time, until the dough is too stiff to stir. Let the dough rest 10-15 minutes.
3. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Rinse out the bowl, dry, and lightly oil. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until at least doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes.
4. Place a pizza stone, or two small baking sheets, on the bottom rack of your oven, leaving a 1-inch gap all around between the stone or sheets and the oven walls to allow heat to circulate. Preheat the oven to 450F (230C).

5. Lightly flour the top of the dough and both sides of your hands. Gently punch down the dough. Divide the dough in half, and then set half aside, covered, while you work with the rest. Divide into 8 equal pieces and flatten each piece with lightly floured hands. Roll out each piece to a circle 8 to 9 inches in diameter and less than 1/4 inch thick. Keep the rolled-out breads covered until ready to bake, but do not stack.
6. Place 2 breads, or more if your oven is large enough, on the stone or baking sheets, and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, or until each bread has gone into a full balloon. If for some reason your bread doesn’t puff up, don’t worry. Wrap the baked breads together in a large kitchen towel to keep them warm and soft while you bake the remaining rolled-out breads. Then repeat with the rest of the dough.

Makes 16 large pitas.

Shown here with kalamata olives, Almost Turkish Piyaz, hummus, cucumber raita, and tabouli.

Recipe adapted from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden

Prep Time: Hummus can be made in about 15 minutes once the beans are cooked. If you’re using dried beans you need to soak them overnight and then cook them the next day which takes about 90 minutes.

1.5 cups dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight (or substitute well drained canned chickpeas and omit the cooking) (10 ounces/301 grams)
2-2.5 lemons, juiced (3 ounces/89ml/6 Tbsp)
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed (2 tsp)
a big pinch of salt
4 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste) OR use peanut butter or any other nut butter—feel free to experiment) (1.5 ounces/45 grams)
2 tsp ground sumac

Directions:
1. Drain and boil the soaked chickpeas in fresh water for about 1 ½ hours, or until tender. Drain, but reserve the cooking liquid.
2. Puree the beans in a food processor (or you can use a potato masher) adding the cooking water as needed until you have a smooth paste.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Adjust the seasonings to taste.

I normally like to edit the Daring Cooks recipes to make them more understandable outside the DK, but in this instance, I thought I’d keep all of the extra notations in the ingredients. Really, if you’re using dried garbanzo beans, your directions are different than if you’re using canned beans. And sometimes your canned beans are too firm and need to be boiled anyway. It’s something you’ll just have to decide each time you try to make hummus. If you’re lucky like me, you have a pressure cooker that does all the work for you, in 30 minutes or less.

Adapted from Burcu’s Antalya Bean Salad (Antalya Usulü Piyaz) on Almost Turkish Recipes.

2 cups of cooked northern beans
1/2 onion, cut finely in half-moons
1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
1 Tbsp crushed pepper
2 hard boiled eggs, sliced or diced

Dressing:
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 cloves of garlic, minced

Mix together dressing ingredients, set aside.

In a small bowl, knead onion slices with 1 tsp salt. Rinse and drain.

In a medium large bowl, mix together beans and onions. Stir in dressing, coat well. Fold in parsley and eggs. Sprinkle with crushed red peppers.

Serve chilled or room temperature.

Adapted from Holy Land Brand’s website.

2 cups dry bulgur wheat
2 cups very hot water
1 cucumber, chopped and blotted with paper towel
1-3 small tomatoes, chopped
3 green onions, finely chopped
2 cups fresh chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, minced

Dressing:
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon pepper, or to taste
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

In a small bowl, mix together dressing ingredients, set aside.

Soak the wheat in the hot water until the water is absorbed, about 30 minutes. Drain any excess water, if necessary, and squeeze dry.

Combine the salad ingredients, including wheat, in a large bowl. Gently stir dressing into the salad.

Serve chilled or at room temperature. Makes about 8 cups, 12 to 16 servings.

This made a whole lot of salad. We ate it for almost 4 days, with lots of help from friends, in pita bread with other assorted yummies. I’ll definitely be halving this recipe in the future (I don’t think quartering it will work very easily).

Recipe adapted from The Indian Grocery Store Demystified by Linda Bladholm

1 medium cucumber, peeled and most of the seeds removed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (.1 ounce/3 grams) OR use a small pinch of dried cumin—to taste
2 cups plain whole milk or Greek yogurt (17 ounces/473ml)
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
fresh cilantro, chopped, a couple pinches or more to taste
cayenne pepper, just a pinch to use as a garnish (optional)

Directions:
1. Peel cucumber, de-seed, and dice. Blot off moisture with paper towels.
2. Toast cumin seeds for a few seconds in a small, heavy frying pan over high heat.
3. In a bowl, stir yogurt until it is smooth.
4. Mix in the cumin, garlic and coriander leaves.
5. Stir in the cucumber and sprinkle with cayenne. Chill before serving.