Potato & Cheese Pierogies

Once more.

I am not Italian.

My stomach might be, but I have no heritage to back that up.  I'm a pretty good mimic when it comes to Italian cooking, but most of my cultural background is a bit more blonde-haired and blue-eyed.  My ancestors were most likely dining out on pierogies than raviolis.

And yes, I'm almost 100% certain that pierogi and ravioli are two words that are pronounced in the singular even when they're plural, but I much rather refer to them with esses on the end.  I don't know why.  I'm actually a huge stickler when it comes to grammar.  Oh, and I'm also aware that the letter "S" does not become "esses" when plural either.  Whatever.

It's my blog.  I do what I want.

Getting back to the major star of my story, I absolutely love, love, love pierogies.  The 2-for-1 carb attack of starchy potatoes and pasta makes this dish a seldom-seen dinner.  Yes, I may be a bit crazy, but I am somewhat nutrition-conscientious, despite the overwhelming number of desserts in my recipe box.

In all honesty, these really only come out once or twice a year in my house.  It's kind of tradition in our house to make them the day after Thanksgiving.  It's a super simple way to utilize left over mashed potatoes and gravy and transform them into something completely different.  You'll notice that I wrote the recipe that way as well.  If you're doing this outside of the holiday season, any gravy recipe will work.  Also, I used store-bought Ravioli pasta.  You can make your own, but I'm fortunate enough to have a local business nearby that produces homemade pasta available for purchase.  It definitely makes the process so much faster and easier.

I like to make a ton of these, and freeze a couple extra batches for the following year.  They still taste just as good and the prep work for dinner is minimal.

Oh, and this sauce I just found?  Seriously, where have you been all my life?  A perfect sauce for perfect little pierogies!

Or pierogi.  Or...

whatever.





Cheese & Potato Pierogies

3 cups mashed potatoes
1 yellow onion, finely diced
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 tbsp minced garlic
Salt & Pepper to taste
Ravioli noodles

Sauce:
(adapted from My Gourmet Connection)

1/2 cup leftover gravy
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped chives

Combine the potatoes, onion, cheddar and garlic.  Season to taste.

Spoon 1 tbsp of mixture onto 1/2 of a ravioli noodle.  Use water to seal the ends of the ravioli noodle together, making sure there are no leaks.

Boil a large pot of water.

Drop 4-6 pierogies into the boiling water at a time.  The pierogies should sink.  When they float to the surface, remove them from the water with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel.

Once the water has drained off, transfer the pierogies to a large pan over medium heat and saute in 1 tbsp of olive oil to brown and crisp the outside.

For the sauce, combine all of the ingredients together.  Pour over pierogies.




Listening to:  Owl City - Fireflies