Every now & then, meal prep requires a full team effort around here. This is one of those homemade activities that is fun for all ages- playing with dough, concocting a filling, forming and stuffing each little package of yumminess, and of course, enjoying them together. Homemade pasta or perogy dough is really simple to prepare, and if the young ones are having fun cranking out the dough, all the better!
I like to break this up into a few steps, or it can be become an overwhelmingly time-consuming activity, quickly. Working in the morning also is preferred for me- knowing it can be cleaned up and then just cooked closer to the dinner hour, or frozen for another day (sometimes food tastes better when you haven’t been preparing it for hours the same day, don’t you find?)
So here it is:
Homemade Roasted Yam Perogies (a variation from the Rebar: Modern Food Cookbook.)
Yields 6 dozen
Filling:
5 lbs yams
2 Tbsp butter
3-4 large leeks, chopped
1 lb grated gouda & crumbled feta
1/2 tsp caraway (optional- I like this alot!)
salt & pepper to taste
Dough
4 cups flour (I like to use 2 cups unbleached white with 2 cups wholewheat or spelt flour.)
3/4 tsp salt
4 egg yolks
1 cup boiling water
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1) Scrub yams, and poke holes throughout. Place on an oiled pan, add 1 cup of water to the pan and roast at 400 degrees F until soft. Cool, then peel & mash. (You can do this step the day before.)
2) Heat butter and saute the leeks salt & pepper until slightly caramelized. Combine with the mashed yams, cheeses & seasonings, then let cool until ready to use.
3) For the dough, mix the flour and salt together, then beat in the rest of the ingredients with a spoon until a smooth sough is formed. (I like to use our bread machine, Vitamix or food processor for this step…speed is good!) Let rest for about 30 min. Divide this dough into 4, then run through the pasta maker to make pieces about 1/8″ thick. Use a cookie cutter or glass rim with a 3″ diameter or so, place a teaspoon of filling in each and press the edges firmly to seal. Add a little water to help seal the dough, or crimp with a fork.
4) To serve, boil a large pot of water, and add 1 tsp salt. Cook 2 dozen perogies at a time until they rise to the surface, stirring occasioanlly (takes about 5 minutes.) Remove from the water, toss with melted butter and serve immediately- best with sour cream and chives!
