I had the wonderful opportunity last year to visit Poland, where my husband was born and where most of his extended family still lives. His grandmother is a phenomenal cook, and while I was there for about about a month, I was her eager sous chef. One of my absolute favorite things that she made were perogies, which are those little dumplings which are most well known for being filled with potatoes and cheese. Every recipe that I've seen is a little different, and some of the ingredients that a typical polish housewife has access to are hard to find in the states.
Here is the filling recipe that I think she followed the first time she made them:
Peel and boil 6 potatoes, and finely mash when done. Mince 1 onion, and gently saute until translucent; stir into hot potatoes. Add about 1 to 2 cups of farmer's cheese. Season with salt, pepper, and any fresh herbs at your disposal. Eat some of it if you want. It's SO GOOD.
At that point, she put the filling into the fridge and let it sit until the next day. I didn't see how she made the dough, but I'm guessing any recipe for ravioli dough would work just as well.
Farmer's cheese has been notoriously difficult to find in the U.S. I've found it in Weaver's Street Market, in Carrboro, NC, and that's about it. As far as I know, it's very similar to a dry curd cottage cheese, but with a very soft texture. Cream cheese is comparable, however, it has a higher fat content than farmer's cheese. I've tried both kinds in making my own perogies, and you definitely notice the difference of textures between the two.
I made perogie filling yesterday, and spent maybe an hour today stuffing them. They're a little different than how Babcza made them, but also very tasty.
Peel and boil 5 potatoes, til soft, then mash with half a package of cream cheese. Saute 1 minced onion til it turns crispy and golden. Stir into potato mixture, along with a hefty tablespoon of minced chives. Season with salt and pepper.
For my dough, I just used a recipe I found online for perogie dough that looked like it would make enough for my filling as well. 2 cups flour, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 2 tbsp oil, and 3/4 cup chilled water. I had to use a little extra water when kneading it out, because I like a softer dough...it's less stressful on my wrists to roll out.
I'm not sure how they taste yet, since they all went into the freezer after I pre-boiled them. But I'm bettin' they'll be delicious!
