Pierogi

 

I posted this originally a few years ago.  I'm now updating the post, cause I can and also because I've got a lot of pierogi in the freezer.  

A few years back (20 + years ago) , we were living full-time in an RV,  a fifth wheel to be exact.   We were staying in a campground and had made quite a few friends there.  

One of those friends was of Slavic descent, and one day she offered to show us how to make pierogi, but we needed room to do it in.  So I offered her my kitchen to play in. 

I don't remember how many of us there were that day, but I think we had 4 or 5 women in there, in rapt attention as Marge made the dough.   

I had my Kitchenaid stand mixer out on the counter, and we made use of it. 

I'm not too sure how many potatoes we ended up peeling and cooking, but it was a few, and as I seem to recall, one of the group had to run over to her RV and grab some more potatoes for the filling and the dough.

I made some more pierogi the other day, but only made a small batch this time, but a small batch is still a lot.

Especially when you are the only one who eats pierogi.   But they do freeze, amazingly well.  

I personally love filling them with mashed potatoes, cheese, and onions, but feel free to play with the fillings, adding or deleting any part of them.  

Be aware, though, they do tend to shrink a little after being cut.   I used a new-to-me cutter, and it worked well.  I also used my new pasta machine to roll out the sheets of pierogi dough. I cannot tell you how happy I am with it.  

However you do it, having one of these little presses does make it a little easier.  I would cut them out a little bit larger than the diameter of the press.  They do tend to shrink a little, but they still work.   

I also discovered that you can take them straight out of the freezer and stick them into an air fryer. I used my combo air fryer toaster oven for this.  They came out beautifully.  The edges were lovely and crisp, and tasted so good with some sour cream and butter.  I mean, everything is better with butter, I think. 

Fill them with whatever you like. I've mostly done the classic Ruskie style, which is potatoes and twarog cheese, though I use Colby Jack.    I'm going to experiment a little.  I've never had sauerkraut inside, but I may give that a whirl, and Mushrooms sauteed with a little seasoning is also mentioned.  You can even fill them with some fruit, if you like.  I have lots of shells from my latest foray into Pierogi making, and will utilize them in future endeavors, ok, so they'll be cooking adventures.  

 

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Pierogi

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yield: Makes about 4 doz.

Author: Sid's Sea Palm Cooking - adapted from several recipes

Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 10 Mininactive time: 30 MinTotal time: 1 H & 10 M

You can make a quick and hearty meal when you keep a few dozen in the freezer.

Ingredients

Dough

• 3 1/2 cups flour mixture of AP flour and Bread Flour (add more if needed) + more flour for rolling out.
• 1 large potato- cooked and riced
• 3/4-1 cup potato water (from the boiled potatoes)
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt

Filling

• 1 Cup Cooked mashed potatoes, with no added butter or milk
• 1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese
• 1 small onion, finely chopped and sauteed in 1 teaspoon butter (optional)

Instructions

Dough

1. Cook the potatoes in salted water until done. Drain the potatoes, but keep the potato water. Set aside til cool. Rice up one potato, and place it into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the flour and 3/4 cups of the cooled, reserved potato water, salt, and the egg. Mix together for a few minutes. If it looks too dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, or if it looks too sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. The dough will be sticky. Let mix for a couple of minutes and turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Wrap well to keep from drying out and let rest for a few minutes while you prepare the filling.
2. Take a small portion of the dough and roll it out on a well-floured surface. The dough will be sticky to handle. Keep the remaining dough covered. Cut out circles with a floured glass or cookie cutter, whichever size you like. I used a 3-inch wide cutter. Add a teaspoon of the prepared filling to the center of the circle of dough and fold over to make a pocket, squeezing out the excess air, and making sure that the edges are pressed down firmly to seal. Use a fork here if you like, or if you have a dumpling press, use that. I did. It was easier. Do not overfill. You will probably only use a teaspoon of filling per pierogi. I used a melon baller to dip out the correct amount.
3. When rolling out the dough, you need to get it thin, about 1/8th thick. If you tear it, just moosh it back up and re-roll the dough.
4. When you've used up all the dough or filling, place the filled pierogi in a single layer on a freezer-safe cookie sheet or stiff cutting board and freeze. When frozen, place the pierogi into a plastic bag and put them back into the freezer until ready to use.
5. You can cook some up fresh, or wait til later.
6. When cooking perogies, fresh or frozen. Add to gently simmering water and cook them just until the pierogi float to the top. Serve with some fresh butter and sour cream.
7. You can also brown them in a pan after cooking, and serve with more butter, sauteed onions and of course sour cream or Créme Fräiche.. I like using my own homemade Créme Fräiche. and some homemade butter.

Filling

1. Sauté onions, grate cheddar cheese, and add to the cooled, riced mashed potatoes. Mix well and set aside.

Created using The Recipes Generator

Sour Cream Noodles

Did you know it's National Noodle Month?  Well, neither did I until Wendy of A Day In the Life of the Farm told us, and this week, the Sunday Funday bloggers are celebrating that fact, with all kinds of delicious noodle recipes.  And I had to get in on the fun.   

I love noodles, well, pretty much any kind of pasta.  I'm good with it all.   Fresh, dried, artisan...  

I've been making my own noodles for years, from the basic egg noodle recipe, one egg, one cup of flour, salt, and cook.    I made some for a blogging event a few years ago, and they ended up in this dish, Rakott Teszta, a Hungarian noodle dish.   It was so good, I brought it to a potluck, and it disappeared quickly.  I've made Gyoza wrappers, aka wonton wrappers.   And used them in some Wonton Soup.  And they were amazing.   

I was complaining to a friend that I was missing my pasta machine, which is in storage, and she said she had one and gifted it to me, so I'm all set to make pasta this week.  Although I did use it for my Pierogi dough the other day.   My back didn't like all that rolling-out business, so I made the machine do the work.  And life is good.  

I decided to make some egg noodles again, but did a little twist on them.   These were cut using the fettuccine setting.    I sprinkled some semolina over the top to keep them from sticking to each other. 

I added some semolina to the basic dough.  I let them dry for a bit, then cooked some up, well, I par-cooked them.  BTW, if using freshly-made noodles, they need hardly any cooking at all.  Just enough to 'set' the egg and flour.   I layered them in a small casserole dish and made what I'm calling sour cream noodles.   

I blitzed the sour cream and cottage cheese in the blender along with some grated parmesan cheese.  Tossed the par-cooked noodles in the 'sauce' and then put them into a casserole dish and baked them, just long enough for the noodles to finish cooking and the sour cream/cottage cheese/parmesan to envelop the noodles and make the sauce. 

 Perfect for a Meatless Monday, if needed.  There's lots of protein from the cottage cheese, the parmesan, and the other cheeses as well.   I'm also thinking it would be nice with some lovely shrimp in there, or maybe even some cooked chicken... if you need meat.   I'm also thinking you could add all kinds of veggies to it as well. And I may just do so in the future.  Some asparagus, mushrooms maybe, along with some sliced cooked chicken...  So many delicious possibilities...  

Check out what my fellow Sunday Funday bloggers made: 

• Culinary Cam: Chamomile Soba Noodles 
• A Messy Kitchen: Garlic Lover's Pasta
• Karen's Kitchen Stories: Kung Pao Noodles
• Mayuri's Jikoni: Manchow Soup 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Protein Packed Noodle Bowl 
• Food Lust People Love: Savory Garlic Rice Noodles 
• Sid's Sea Palm Cooking: Sour Cream Noodles 
• Sneha's Recipe: Vegan Thai Peanut Butter Noodles 
• Our Good Life: Winter Comfort Food: Butter Noodles 

And for those who would like my recipe: 

Sour Cream Noodles

Yield: 3-4

Author: Sid's Sea Palm Cooking - Adapted from many recipes

These noodles are bathed in a sour cream sauce and baked to perfection.

Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh noodles or 1 1/2 cups parcooked Egg Noodles.  Cook the fresh noodles for about 1 minute or the commercial egg noodles for 5 minutes. 
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup Cottage Cheese
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp. Onion Powder
• 1 tsp. Garlic Powder
• 1 cup finely shredded Italian cheese mix, divided

Instructions

1. Place the sour cream, cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, spices, and 1/2 of the shredded cheese mixture in a blender or food processor to break up the cottage cheese curds and process to a smooth sauce.
2. In a bowl, mix the sauce with the noodles and place them into an oven-safe dish that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Sprinkle the reserved cheese evenly over the top of the noodles.
3. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the cheese melts over the top of the dish and it has been warmed through. I like it to get some color on top.
4. Remove from oven and serve while hot.

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Roasties (Roast Potatoes)

This week on Sunday Funday, we've been asked to cook with a root or roots.   Mayuri is our hostess this week.  

 I've made these a few times now.  Roasties, so totally and completely YUM, and so easy to make as well

 

In fact, the last time I made them, they disappeared so fast, even though I thought I'd made a lot, it wasn't enough.  Lesson learned, next time I'll make more, but in the meantime, I've had a craving for them, so I decided that they would make a nice side dish with a steak.   These are pretty British in origin, but they translate well to this side of the pond.   And then I forgot to take the steak out of the freezer so I subbed in a pork chop.  

Let's use some magic buzzwords here as well; they can be vegan, and they're also Gluten-free.  

Personally, I like making them with beef fat, but I've also made them successfully with oil.  Your choice...

Potatoes have got to be one of the most perfect foods.  You can turn it into candy, all the way up to some lovely fermented vodka.  You can mash, fry, bake, and boil them as well.   My late husband loved mashed potatoes, so when I made potatoes, I mashed them for him.    Personally, I love a plain boiled red potato with some butter.  One of my mom's favorite open-faced sandwiches was a layer of fresh, boiled new potatoes on a slice of rye bread.  As a kid, I never could understand why she liked it so much, but as an adult,  I understand.

Which brings us to these little and not-so-little nuggets of deliciousness. 

  Usually served alongside a nice Sunday roast, which is about the perfect thing for the Sunday Funday bloggers.   

Did I mention they're not just delicious but also easy to make?  Cause they are and look and taste amazing, perfect for impressing, if you need to.  

And most people will have the right kind of potato in the house already, at least if you buy russets.   One note here, red potatoes or any kind of firm waxy potato will not work as well here.  I use Russets or Yukon Gold potatoes.   I had some Russet potatoes in the pantry, but they decided they needed a second life and sprouted.

They're heading out to the back yard and will be put into a pot of dirt, ready for their second life.  I bought some Yukon Potatoes for this recipe, and they worked well.  

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees or 400 if using a convection oven.  Melt the beef fat if using, and prepare a baking sheet by spraying it with some non-stick spray. Peel the potatoes and quarter them.  I add them to some salted boiling water and cook them for about 8-10 minutes. 

Just long enough for the outer edge of the potatoes to cook.  Take them off the heat, drain them, then let them sit for a couple of minutes so that any excess water can steam off.    You can then either shake the pan with the potatoes in it vigorously.

Or put the potatoes into a large bowl that you can shake.   I should have put mine into a large bowl to shake. I ended up shaking them so hard that a couple of pieces of potato jumped out of the pot and ended up on the floor.   You do this so that the outer layer of the semi-cooked potatoes looks a little like they're kinda mashed.    You do want them roughed up a lot.  At this point, I pour the melted beef fat over the potatoes and toss again.   

Then I distribute them evenly on a baking sheet, separating them so they have a chance to roast.  Then into the oven for 20 minutes, after which I'll use a thin spatula (my fish spatula works well here) to loosen and turn the potatoes over, and then let them cook for another 20-30 minutes or until they're a lovely golden brown.  

The outer crust of these roasties is crisp, and the interior is so creamy and delicious. 

You can infuse the fat with some garlic and rosemary for an extra flavor boost, as it's melting, just drain it through a sieve before adding to the potatoes. If you don't, you risk the garlic becoming very bitter and acrid.   I tried it and decided that next time I'll up the garlic. 

No real recipe to follow, just do you.   I made enough potatoes for myself for dinner, but a word of warning here.  Make more potatoes than you think you'll need; they will go fast. 

Check out what my fellow Sunday Funday bloggers are sharing:

Cook With Renu: Beetroot Paneer Rice With Leftover Rice (Easy Lunchbox Recipe) 

Sizzling Tastebuds : High Protein Beetroot Burgers 

Sneha's Recipe: Ginger Almond & Poppy Seed Vadi 

Amy's Cooking Adventures: Roasted Beet Galette 

Sid's Sea Palm Cooking: Roasties 

Mayuri's Jikoni : Arbi Ka Paratha 

Food Lust People Love: Chantenay Carrot Ginger Soup 

Karen's Kitchen Stories: Parsnip and Leek Soup with Cumin and Mustard Seeds 

Making Miracles: Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie 

Mildly Indian: Alu kangmet |Manipuri potato mash

Banana Pancakes

So this week, the Sunday Funday group is posting recipes using almonds.    Camilla of Culinary Cam is our hostess this week, and here's what she said 'February 16th is National Almond Day. Let's share any recipes you like with whole almonds, sliced almonds, almond meal, or even almond butter. Sweets, savories? Bring it on. Hosted by Camilla. 

Mayuri's Jikoni : Almond Date Balls 

Sid's Sea Palm Cooking: Banana Pancakes 

Sizzling Tastebuds: Basil Almond Pesto 

Karen's Kitchen Stories: Chinese Almond Cookies 

A Day in the Life on the Farm: Copycat Panera Thai Chicken Salad 

Sneha's Recipe: Energy High Protein Shake 

Culinary Cam: Gató de Almendras Mallorquín 

A Messy Kitchen: Grain Free Almond Flour Cinnamon Pancakes 

Making Miracles: Lemon Almond Muffins 

Mildly Indian: Roasted almond cookies 

Food Lust People Love: Smoky Spicy Roasted Almonds

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I shared a recipe for what I think is the best Banana Bread I've ever had last week; it had almond flour in it.  But, for some reason, I've got a bit of a sweet tooth going, and it's still Banana Month, so I thought I'd have some fun and play with some ripe bananas and some almond flour.  This is actually a remake of a post I did a few years ago about Banana Pancakes, but I've remade it, hopefully a touch healthier, or not, but it's still delicious.    

I love substituting almond flour wherever I can.  I just love the taste, and while it's nutritionally more dense, as in more calories than regular flour, it's perfect for those people who are celiac, avoiding gluten, or are sensitive to gluten.   

And I usually have bananas on hand, ripening way faster than I can eat them.  Which is why I currently have a few bananas in the freezer, ready to be made into Banana Bread.   But this recipe actually calls for a fresh, ripe banana.   

I don't know about you, but I buy bananas at a certain stage and end up not eating them.  They get overripe, at least to my taste, so then I place them in the freezer.    OK, so I'm picky.  

I like bananas, but they have to be almost totally ripe, still a touch green on the skin, and very firm.  More than that, they go into the freezer for the next batch of banana bread.   As soon as those dark spots start forming on the peel, they're too ripe. I know, fussy, fussy, fussy.  But I like what I like.    I also like adding some coconut and chopped pecans when I make the pancakes. 

 And you know, they're really kinda healthy, so long as you don't add a bunch of syrup and butter.   

Here's the recipe:

Banana Pancakes

Yield: 2

Author: Sid's Sea Palm Cooking - Adapted from many recipes

Bananas, eggs and almond flour makes for a great pancake.

Ingredients

• 1 ripe banana - mashed
• 1 egg
• 4 tablespoons almond flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons each of coconut and chopped pecans - optional. Add to the batter, before cooking, if desired.

Instructions

1. Mix the mashed banana, egg, almond flour, and baking powder together. If using the coconut and chopped pecans, you can add them here.
2. Spray a frying pan with some non-stick vegetable oil, heat over medium heat.
3. Dollop 1/4 of the mixture into the pan, and cook until set. These do not act like regular pancakes; you'll need to lift a corner of the pancake with a spatula to check for color and flip them when they reach a nice golden color. There is no gluten, and the pancake will not act like a regular pancake.
4. Serve with butter and golden syrup.

 

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Banana Bread, low sugar and gluten free.

 A friend shared this recipe with me. It was one she'd cut out of a magazine.   It immediately piqued my interest for a few reasons: the minimal amount of oil and sugar per loaf.  And it was also gluten-free.   

It's also Avocado and Banana month, and I honored the Avocado with my Spicy Avocado Deviled Eggs earlier this week, and now we get to the other part of the month, the Banana.  

I've been making a good banana bread for years, but honestly, I wasn't crazy about how much oil the recipe called for, so when my friend, Lisa, shared this recipe, I sat up and took note.   It's still really delicious, and for those of us who seek a little less sugar and oil in our diets, well, all I can say is this,  WOOHOO!!!!  

My only quibble when I read the recipe was that I didn't have any oat flour on hand.  And when I raised that little quibble to my friend, she told me she'd made her own oat flour from some oatmeal she had on hand.  I fixed that little issue, though.  I took some of the oats I'd purchased, threw them into my blender, and whizzed them into flour. Best part, it costs about .05/oz., versus .34/oz. for the processed oat flour, and I don't know about you, but that is a pretty significant saving.  And I do like to save, where possible.  

I also used up the frozen bananas I had.  I buy bananas a lot, but usually don't eat them quickly enough, and they get overripe.  At which point I consign them to the freezer, in their original packaging.   When I want to bake banana bread, I usually have enough for a couple of loaves of banana bread.  

Hint:  I take the bananas out about a half hour or so before I'm ready to bake. I then cut off one end of the frozen banana, squeeze out the innards into a bowl, and set it aside as I gather the rest of the ingredients.     I also like to lay a banana slice lengthwise on top of the bread and use the natural division in the banana to separate it into thirds.   

I have to admit to not really caring for Banana Bread that much, but if I'm going to eat it, I want some walnuts in it. 

And since I made a second batch of bread and was feeling a touch lazy, I decided to use my gluten-free flour in it, instead of the oat flour.   It did make a big difference.   The oat flour seemed to make the bread very soft, whereas the gluten-free flour made it look more like traditional bread.  

I also taste-tested both, and ummm, can I just say, they were both pretty darn tasty.    I do think I prefer the one with the walnuts and gluten-free flour, though, but I wouldn't say no to the one made with the oat flour either.   I also want to add I've made a lot of recipes using bananas.  And while Banana Bread is not really high on my list of faves,  I've made Oatmeal Banana Muffins, and I also love making these Banana Coconut Pecan Pancakes from time to time.   A friend of ours always ordered the Banana Coconut Pancakes when we'd go out for breakfast.  I can't remember if there were pecans on them as well, but I like pecans, so I usually add some.    I also live in the south, and I'm not sure, but I think that everyone who lives here has to have a Banana Pudding recipe.  I honestly do not know if it's still a requisite for living here, but just in case...   I've also made a Banana Bundt Cake a few times.  Talk about a sugar rush, this delivers it.  

As you can see, I've celebrated Bananas a lot.    And now for this edition of Banana Month. 

 

Here's the recipe: 

Banana Bread - gluten free

Yield: Makes 2 small loaves or 1 large one

Author: Sid's Sea Palm Cooking - Adapted from many recipes

Prep time: 10 MinTotal time: 10 Min

Love banana bread, but don't like all the oil in it? Try this method, it's a low-sugar, gluten-free loaf of deliciousness.

Ingredients

• 3 ripe bananas + 1 ripe banana, divided lengthwise into thirds, using the extra third for the batter.
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/4 cup Canola or vegetable oil
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups firmly packed almond flour
• 1 1/4 cups oat flour - made from quick oats or Gluten-free flour. The texture will be different with each one.
• 1 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp. fine sea salt - I use extra fine Himalayan Salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 8x4 or 1 9x5 pan/s with nonstick spray, then set aside while the batter is made.
2. Mash bananas in a bowl until smooth, add the eggs, honey, oil, and vanilla, and mix well.
3. Divide a banana into thirds lengthwise, using the banana's natural divisions. Add one-third of a banana to the mashed bananas and set the other two pieces aside.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix well.
5. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and mix until well combined.
6. Pour batter into the two pans, evenly, and place the 1/3 piece of banana on top, and press down lightly.
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes, checking after 35 minutes to see if the bread is browning too quickly, and test for doneness by inserting a toothpick; if it comes out clean, the bread is done. If the bread is not done, place a piece of aluminum foil over the top, and continue baking for another 10-15 minutes.
8. Cool the bread in the tins on a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes before removing the bread from the tins. Let cool completely before slicing and serving. Store in an airtight container.

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