These perogies are deliciously soft. The Ukrainian babas make it like this; they don't use fancy gadgets, it’s actually quicker and easier to make perogies the old fashioned way. You will need additional flour to kneed and roll the dough and to shape the perogies. But don't be liberal with the flour, add the flour sparingly. If you add too much flour, the perogies will be hard to seal and the end product could be stiff. The recipe yields 24 perogies. You can freeze uncooked perogies on floured trays and then transfer the frozen perogies to zyplock bags. To cook frozen perogies, plunge perogies into rapidly boiling water. They are as good cooked frozen as cooked on the day you make them. When reheating leftover perogies in the microwave, I always add a bit of water and cover them with a plastic dome. That way they nicely soften up. The flavour changes though. Perogies are best eaten right out of the boiling water. One more thing! If you have access to kefir, substitute 1/2 cup of full fat kefir for the 1 cup of full fat yogurt. Kefir elevates this recipe to the magnificent, but kefir is not readily available everywhere. If you use kefir, you will get fewer perogies, oh about twenty. Scroll down, photos tell the story.
PEROGIES
Dough:
2 cups flour 1 large egg
1 cup full fat yogurt
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
Filling:
2 potatoes, cooked and mashed
1/2 small onion, diced
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
• Place the flour in a mixing bowl and make a well in the middle.
• Add the baking soda, salt, and egg.
• Add the yogurt and mix everything together.
• Kneed the dough and form it into a ball.
• Place a little bit of flour on the cutting board and put the dough on it.
• Cover with the bowl and let it sit for 1 hour, minimum 30 minutes.
• While the dough rests make the filling.
• Peel and mash the cooked potatoes.
• Dice the onion and sauté in 2 Tbsp butter.
• When onions are soft add them to the potato mixture.
• Grate the cheese and add to the potatoes.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Stir in the beaten egg.
• Combine potato mixture and set aside.
• Roll the dough into a long snake and cut it into 24 pieces.
• Dust each piece of dough with flour while roughly shaping it into a flat circle.
• Dusting the rolling pin often, flatten each circle to a 3-inch diameter.
• Spoon a tablespoon of the filling on top of each circle.
• Fold a circle in half and seal in the center, sides, and in between.
• Give a once over to make sure the perogy is well sealed.
• Bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Rolling boil is important.
• One by one quickly drop the perogies in the boiling water.
• Give it a gentle stir to keep perogies from sticking to the bottom.
• Maintaining constant rolling boil, boil the perogies for 1 minute.
• Put 1 Tbsp of butter inside the serving bowl.
• With a slotted spoon take perogies out and pile them into the bowl.
• Pour 1/4 cup of melted butter on the top and shake the bowl slightly to butter all the perogies.
• Serve the perogies with lots of sour cream.
