My heritage is English and German with a healthy dose of French-Canadian thrown in for luck. When I was growing up, a dumpling was a delicacy that came from the Chinese takeout two towns over. Then I had the great fortune to meet and eventually marry the wonderful Ms Cocktail. She is Polish, Polish and more Polish. She is also a great 
cook which she inherited from her mother (it’s also part of what inspires me, but that is an entirely different story).
One of the things that I got introduced to from Ms Cocktail’s mom is pierogies. These are little dumplings stuffed with various fillings that can range from cheese to potatoes to sauerkraut or even meat. The most important thing is that they are delicious little bombs of flavor. They can also be a touch time consuming to prepare which is why they are typically made in large batches and frozen for future use.
The making of pierogies is a several stage affair. The first stage is the making of the filling for the dumplings and while the filling is cooling, the dough is made to wrap the dumpling in. Then the dough is rolled out and cut into three inch circles (a biscuit cutter or a large drinking glass works well) which are then stuffed and crimped over into 
a half circle. These are then boiled for approximately three minutes to cook the dough. To reheat them for serving, they are fried in butter and depending on the filling, sometimes with onions as well.
Yesterday Ms Cocktail’s employer gave her the day off to observe Veteran’s Day (a big thank you to all that have given service to this country) and we thought it would be a good time to make up a batch of these little marvels. Several hours and a bag of flour later, we had our selection of pierogies finished. We made up three different types of filling: farmers cheese, potato and sauerkraut. To be fair, we did have to make two batches of dough. I’ve included the recipes for all three fillings below. Enjoy!
Pierogies
Sauerkraut Filling
1 1/2 cups (12 oz) sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup chopped onion
2 Tbs butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Mince the sauerkraut. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about five minutes. Add the sauerkraut and cook for an additional five minutes. Let cool. Enough for 20 pierogies.
Potato Filling
2 cups cold mashed potatoes (Author’s note: cut four white potatoes into cubes, add to boiling water, boil until easily pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Mash with 2 Tbs butter and 1.2 cup milk)
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 Tbs butter
1 tsp salt
1 tsp white pepper
Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about five minutes. Stir in the mashed potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Let cool. Enough for 20 pierogies.
Cheese Filling
3 lbs Farmer’s cheese
3 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
3 Tbs powdered sugar
1 tsp salt
Lightly beat the three eggs in a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Enough for 40 pierogies.
Dough
3 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup + 2 Tbs cold water
1/2 tsp salt
Combine all ingredients and stir until thoroughly mixed. You may do this by hand but I use a mixer.
To make the pierogies
Flour your work surface and your rolling pin. Take a chunk of dough about the size of a baseball and roll it out until it is 1/8” thick. Using a biscuit cutter or a drinking glass (I used a large coffee mug) cut as many circles out of the dough as you can. Place a heaping teaspoon on filling in the center of the dough, fold it over and crimp the edges with a fork. Set aside until ready for cooking.
Bring a large pot (wider is better than deep) of salted water to a boil. Add the pierogies to the water and boil from three to five minutes or until they float. Drain thoroughly.
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