Pierogi (varenyky)

Filling:
Caramelize the onions. Put the onions in a pan with a drizzle of oil and pinch of salt over low or medium low heat. When they are starting to turn golden, add the butter. When they begin to lightly brown, add the sugar. Cook until caramelized.

Wash and dice the potatoes. Put them into a medium pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so that they simmer very gently and cook until completely tender when pierced, 20-25 min. Drain in a colander. Return to the pot.

Set the pot over medium low heat and cook the potatoes, stirring often, to get rid of residual moisture. You don’t want them to brown, so turn down the heat if needed.

When the potatoes look like they are covered in light fuzz, turn off the pot and add the butter, some black pepper and salt. Mash it in until potatoes are smooth. Mash in the cheddar, then the sour cream.

Stir in the cooked onions using a spoon. Taste and correct for salt and acidity. Cool completely. The filling can be made 1-2 days ahead and refrigerated.

Dough:
Put the flour, then the wet ingredients, then salt into a food processor. Use a dough blade if you have it. Run it until no dry flour remains.

Get all the dough clumps out onto a work surface and knead for 5 min by hand.
If your dough sticks after the first minute of kneading, add a dusting of flour.

Dust the ball with flour, put it in a bag or sealed container, and let rest 30 min and up to 6 hours at room temperature.

Rolling and shaping:
Cut the dough into 8 pieces and work with one piece of dough at a time. Roll the dough to 5 on the roller. (If you want to use every last bit of dough, your very last pierogi will get rolled out to 6).

Place it on a lightly floured surface. Use a 3 inch (7.62cm) cookie cutter to cut the circles. Put scraps back in your bag or container.

Use a 1 inch scooper to place balls of filling in the center of each round. Pick each filling ball up and roll it briefly to make it into a flatter log, then put it back.

Pick up a filled dough round and pull the edges up toward each other. Start in the center and press, working your way towards one edge, then go back towards the other edge. Go over the edge again to make sure it is sealed.

Press your thumb and index finger together on the dough, then quickly slide them over one another (in a motion similar to snapping). Repeat all around the edge.

Lay the pierogi out on your trays. Continue until you have gone through all the fresh dough and put scraps back in your bag or container.

Let the scraps rest 30 minutes, then start making pierogi again. If the dough becomes too dry to seal, use a pastry brush to lightly brush each circle with water before adding the potato.

Cover with plastic wrap, and store in the fridge for up to 4 hours. If you notice too much condensation, uncover.

To Freeze long term: Place the baking sheet into the freezer uncovered, just until they are hard, about 1 hour. Immediately, move to a zip lock bag. If they aren’t moved to a zip lock bag promptly, they can dehydrate and crack. Don’t defrost. Cook from frozen.

Cooking and Serving:
If you are having Braised Cabbage, prepare that first. When it is done, start cooking your pierogi.

Put the softened butter in a large bowl.

Bring a large pot of water to a gentle boil and salt to taste. Add no more than 10 pierogi at a time and cook in batches. Stir gently and return to a gentle boil, adjusting the heat as needed.

When the pierogi float and stay on the surface, they are done.

Remove pierogi with a slotted spoon or spider into the bowl with the butter and use a spatula to stir to coat.

Spoon 10 pierogi onto each plate, and if you made braised cabbage, add a wedge to each, then spoon the sauce over. If you are not serving them with braised cabbage, top them with a dollop of sour cream.