CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE PIEROGI
PG Tested For dough
2 large eggs, divided ½ cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon kosher salt 2 cups (8½ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon water
For filling
4 medium (avocado-sized) yellow Idaho potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 tablespoons butter, divided
Milk, for potatoes
½ cup grated white Irish cheddar cheese
2 cups finely shredded or chopped green cabbage
4 ounces corned beef, chopped
Onions sauteed in butter for serving, optional
Prepare dough: Whisk 1 egg, sour cream or yogurt, butter and salt in bowl. Add flour to large bowl. Gently stir wet ingredients into flour. The dough will initially be very dry and shaggy, seeming as if it will never come together, but have no fear: Keep stirring and it will pull itself into shape.
Once dough starts to come together, press and smash it against the sides of bowl with your palms, picking up dough bits and essentially kneading it within the bowl until it forms a ball.
Tip dough and any remaining shaggy flakes out onto a clean work surface. Knead until smooth, about 1 minute. Cover dough with a bowl and let rest at least 15 minutes. Whisk remaining egg and water in small bowl for egg wash.
While dough is resting, make filling: Cook potatoes in a large pot of salted boiling water until fork-tender. Remove to a large bowl, mash with a fork or potato masher and then stir in 1 tablespoon of butter and as much milk as you need to
make the potatoes creamy. Add grated cheddar and stir until cheese is melted and well combined.
In separate pan, melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter. When it sizzles add shredded cabbage along with a tablespoon or two of water and cook cabbage until it is soft and wilted. Stir in corned beef and set aside.
Assemble pierogies: Line a rimmed baking sheet with waxed or parchment paper.
Divide rested dough into 4 equal pieces with a bench scraper or knife. Set aside 3 pieces and cover with mixing bowl. Roll remaining dough as thinly as possible into a rough 8-by-12-inch rectangle.
Using a 3- inch round cookie cutter (I used a pint glass), cut out 6 rounds of dough. Resist the temptation to re-roll dough scraps for additional rounds. It seems wasteful but dough won’t be as tender the second time around.
Spoon teaspoon of mashed potatoes and cabbage/corned beef mixture into the center of dough rounds. Using your finger, swipe a small amount of egg wash around the dough edge.
Fold dough over filling into a half-moon shape, then gently but firmly seal pierogi by pinching and squeezing edges together with your thumb and index finger. Start with 1 pinch at the top, then move to the “corner” of the pierogi and pinch along the edge back to the top. Repeat on opposite side to finish sealing. Transfer to baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough rounds and filling.
To cook, pierogies can either be boiled (2-3 minutes for fresh, 4-5 minutes for frozen), pan-fried in oil or butter ( 2 minutes per side), or deep- fried in at least 2 inches of 350-degree vegetable oil (3 minutes for fresh and 5 minutes for frozen).
Serve with sauteed onions on top, if desired.
Makes 24 pierogies.
— adapted from “Pierogi Love: New Takes on an OldWorld Comfort Food” by Casey Barber