Perogie, Pierogi, Pyroghi

This is not a new invention of mine.  A friend, Nancy, was leaving for Brazil to attend a heritage conference, when she realized that more cash in the pocket was helpful.  From there, she not only made soup, delicious breads, amazing cookies, and many other delights, but perogies as well.

She went with Roasted Garlic and Bacon Perogies.  A very good choice.  I believe that they sold very well, leading to a very good time in Brazil, with many stories upon her return.

That's what Eastern European soul food leads to, in case you're wondering.


So, for the most recent edition of "Perogies for the People" - see the Drunk Strawberry Perogie for more details - I decided to carry on the idea.  Really, unless your a vegetarian, are you going to turn down bacon?  I think not.  However, I did tinker with it a little, as I wanted the filling a little less bitter (As that can happen from a lot of roasted garlic).  To do this, I added some of the left over bacon fat, and then I added some finely chopped onions. 

In case you're wondering - and I say this with a lot of confidence - these will taste better than something you find in the store.  If you're new to perogies, this should be one of your first recipes.  After you finish eating them, plan on sitting down next to a loved one, and dreaming the rest of the evening away.  (If you're concerned about the calories, wait until the next morning to work them off - this is not the time to worry in the first place)

Now, without further ado, it's time to learn how to create dish that will keep people coming back to your table:


10 medium potatoes, peeled, diced, and boiled
2 heads of garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
8-10 strips of bacon
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
4-5 tbps bacon fat

.Preheat oven to 350.  Cut the first 2-4 cm off of the top of the garlic, so that you can easily squeeze them out.  place them on aluminum foil, and prepare to wrap them completely with it.  Before firmly packing them together, spoon the olive oil on top.  Place in oven for 35-45 minutes.
Cook bacon, but do not make it cripsy.  It will not stay cripsy inside the perogie, and the chewy texture is better than no texture.  It also leaves more flavour.  Once it is cool enough, cut bacon into small pieces.  If you've gone for the more crispy bacon, ensure that the pieces are quite small, so as to not poke through the dough.
Mash the still-warm potatoes with bacon fat.  Remove the garlic from the oven and foil, then each clove from its paper-like shell.  Mash with fork, then mix into potatoes.  Mix in onions and bacon as well.  Taste test to evaluate whether you might need salt or pepper.

Put 'er in the dough, and get boiling and frying!

Husband's feelings on the matter:  Yum, Very good.

N (Not Nancy) - Thought the original (Orange spice/Swiss Joe's Season-all) perogies packed more flavour.  However, he tried the perogies with crispy bacon, which didn't leave as much bacon-ness as one would want.  I've since changed it to ensure that crispy bacon never enters the hollowed walls of perogies again.  (At least, not in my house)

B - (He ate it post N's suggestions) - Delicious.  Do not use an sour cream, as it will take away from the flavour, possibly hiding it away.