19 Oct A colourful pierogi workshop
Pierogi workshops to raise money for kids in Gaza
I’ve tried raising money for families in Gaza the past few years, but until now my efforts were in vain. Two things changed: my pro-Palestine followers turned up on Instagram in their masses and pierogi workshops. Everyone loves pierogi. I wrote a book about them and it’s my most popular cookbook to date. I did some in-person pierogi workshops for Ukraine, which were really successful, but I wasn’t sure how I could do it for Gaza. People are a lot more divided on this topic. 3 years ago I understood this. However, now it’s become painfully clear what’s happening that you’d have to wilfully ignore that in order to think otherwise. I have no patience for these people anymore. While I feel like the tide has turned somewhat, it seems like the correct actions are still not being taken. People are oversaturated and overwhelmed, and many just don’t know what they can do to help. A pierogi workshop is a gentle and therapeutic way to raise money. I’ve always maintained that the dumpling making process is a healing one and this is especially the case when you know you are doing some good in the world.
Pierogi workshop number 2
I’ve done two Pierogi for Palestine workshops to date. In the first one we made simple pierogi with 2 fillings. The one I did a couple of days ago was all about colours. I always use natural colours, of course, such as turmeric, beetroot, spirulina, cacao. Experimenting with colours is fun, as pierogi dough is somewhat similar to playdough, except we’re making food that we also eat afterwards, which makes it more fun in my eyes. A friend joined with her kids and it worked really well. I will market this one at children in the future, as it’s a great way to get them interested in cooking. I plan to do a few different pierogi workshops, to show as many different doughs and fillings as I can and help as many families as I can. Now, the winter is coming, so the situation is even more difficult. I don’t think any mobile homes have even been allowed in, and everything else continues to be restricted. It makes me so angry when I think about it, the cruelty of it is unfathomable. I’ ve decided to channel this energy into dumplings, as I believe that’s more helpful than arguing with obstinate people online (or bots, who knows anymore).
Recipe for 2 colours of pierogi
We made three different colours/flavours. Each time you roll the dough out it will be tougher to roll, I suggest making single colours first, then creating a marbled dough by sticking the remaining dough bits together and leaving under a damp tea towel for 5min, then rolling out again. You may roll for a third time, but after that, I would simply cook the offcuts. I’m happy to share these pierogi recipes we made last week with you, however, it’s always best to see how it’s done and do it with someone who has some experience if you’ve never done it before.
A colourful pierogi workshop
Course: BlogCuisine: polishDifficulty: intermediate4
servings50
minutes30
minutesEach dough makes about 8-10 pierogi, with some left over to make marbled dough. Pasta flour is best but any plain flour will do. Water should be as warm as your hands can handle!
Ingredients
- Pink
100g flour
1 teaspoon beetroot powder or beetroot juice (instead of water)
50ml warm water mixed with 1 tsp mild oil
pinch of salt
100g feta cheese (instead of bryndza)
1 teaspoon each of fresh mint and parsley
white or black pepper, to taste- Yellow
100g flour
1 teaspoon turmeric
50ml warm water mixed with 1 tsp mild oil
pinch of salt
potato, cooked and diced
1 small onion, finely sliced and caramelised
80g twaróg/ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon soured cream (if using twaróg)
- Chocolate
100g flour
1 tablespoon cacao or cocoa
50ml warm water mixed with 1 tsp mild oil
80g sweet potato (medium potato), cooked
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch nutmeg/allspice
- To serve
Soured cream, butter, caramelised onion for savoury, sesame seeds for sweet, more herbs for herby filling
Directions
- Place the flour in a bowl, combine with the pinch of salt and start pouring the warm, oily water in whilst making the dough with the other hand. You. may not need all the water. If all the water runs out and the dough is still dry, you can wet your hands and add water that way. Knead the dough for about 4-5min, then leave to rest under a damp tea towel.
- To make the fillings, combine the filling ingredients in a bowl and mash together a bit. Try them and season to your liking. You may want to add more sweetness to the sweet potato filling, in which cse, you can add some honey or maple syrup. I usually drizzle this over the pierogi once cooked.
- Boil a large pan of water and add some salt to it.
- Rollt he dough out thinly on a floured surface, to about 0.5-1mm thickness. Use a glass to cut circles out of the dough, place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the middle, then seal them into a half moon shape.
- Once the water is bubbling, cook the pierogi in batches. Once they float to the top, give them a minute more, then take them out with a slotted spoon. You can also fry the pierogi later in some butter, if you like them crispy.