Until another mom got me thinking, it had never occurred to me to make perogies from scratch. I had always found store-bought, traditional potato and cheese perogies to be too heavy for personal consumption. But, kids love them, so it is not uncommon for many parents to find a frozen bag of grocery store perogies at the bottom of the freezer.
When this other mom arrived from a vacation in London, she was raving about a great perogie place she had visited. This sparked yet another gourmet, fast food at home idea. The search for perfect perogie dough began.
Perogies are dumplings made from unleavened dough. I tested three dough recipes, but they called out for a healthier option. Here it is.
The From Scratch Method
Process 2 cups flour, a pinch of salt, 30g unsalted butter, 1 lightly beaten egg and 1/2 cup kefir in food processor until mixture just forms a ball. Do not over process.
Dough should be covered with plastic wrap and allowed to rest in fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Roll out dough on floured surface, and punch out desired size with cookie cutter. Scraps can be reused; nothing needs to be thrown away.
Consider substitutions. By substituting half of the flour with spelt flour and adding kefir instead of sour cream, I had upped the nutritional value by adding more fibre, B vitamins and protein. Spelt also added a great nutty flavor, without compromising the texture.
Tizzard’sTips:
- After assembly, perogies can be frozen in batches before or after they are boiled in water. Once frozen, the perogies can be cooked from frozen, no thawing necessary.
- For a healthier option, try baking your perogies instead of boiling and then frying them.
- Consider filling the perogies with something sweet instead of savoury. Use an ingredient that is in season as inspiration. Apple Pie and Apple Cranberry Perogies with a drizzle of maple syrup and a dollop of Greek yogurt on top are a hit with my kids. With the holidays coming up, they are perfect to have stashed in the freezer for some unexpected entertaining.
