Polish Pierogi - Potato & Cheese Pierogies

This traditional Polish treat but in Poland we called this Russians pierogi.  Pierogi can be made with various fillings like sauerkraut & mushroom, meat, and even fruit ( with the berries are delicious).
The recipe, both the dough and filling can be different. Many families have own recipe for pierogi. Of course their is always the best and this is my family too :-). Some like thick dough others like soft. In our family, we like how there is a lot of cheese, and most of the recipes is a lot of potatoes. 

How good it is that parents visited me. Mom's pierogi taste the best, and my dad makes it looks the best.

For the dough:
2 cups of plain flour *
about 1/2 a cup of lukewarm water (enough so that the dough was flexible)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 tabletspoon oil 

* I try made from gluten free , this is possible, but often fall apart during cooking (I will try to find a good proportion of it to share recipe) 

For the filling:
500 g russet potatoes*
750 g curd cheese* - it tastes similarly, so you can use farmer’s cottage cheese
chopped green chives
salt and pepper to taste

*Potatoes can not be too moist (young potatos). The dumplings are not suitable for potatoes, which we use to puree. Potatoes are best sellers in winter, because they have the least water.

*curd cheese - a mild, soft, smooth cheese made from skimmed milk curd.

 For the garnish:
sour cream or Crème fraîche
chopped chives or green onions


Method:

For the filling:
Place potatoes in a pan of cold, salted water and bring to the boil. Cook until tender (but not too long!). Drain well, then place in a large bowl and mash until smooth. Set aside to cool. Add cottage cheese to mashed potato, then add chopped green chives. Using your hands, mix until well combined. Add salt and a lot of pepper to taste.

1 step - My mom makes

2 step - My dad makes

For the dough:
Mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, adding  slowly and in increments until the mixture is adequately hydrated. Knead into a pliable,  let the dough rest for about 10 minutes.
Then divide the dough into half place 1 half cover with plastic wrap. The other roll out on a floured surface roll it thin use a circle cutter. Place a spoonful of the cheese mixture to one side and fold in half and pinch ends together to seal. Then drop them into boiling water until they float to top.Take out of water you can eat them like that or pan fry in butter or oil but they taste the best fried with a side of sour cream. 

Version for busy mummy :-)
If you do not think you can handle making pierogi, you can make pancakes using the filling only. For pancakes, the filling must be quite dry. Add eggs, and as it will be necessary also potato flour, then use the breadcrumbs and fry in the hot oil, until they get golden brown. Sometimes these pancakes fall apart, but I do not know whether it is due to the moisture in potatoes or in cheese but eggs should solve the issue.

ENJOY