Recently I made 90 cheese and sauerkraut pierogies to be cooked that afternoon. It never happened. A change in plans resulted that made cooking them impossible. Should I cook them anyway then freeze? No thank you. Reheating these gems was not a choice. Cooking them fresh was always the goal. Into the freezer they went, on the parchment lined cookie sheets. Would these morsels of yum withstand the temperature shock once out of the freezer?
My dumpling dough had always been thinner than most. (I try to reduce the carb. footprint in these Ukrainian morsels of delight. I had never frozen mine, ever, before cooking them). Today the boiling test would reveal my skill as a dough maker for these dumplings. Most recipes use milk and eggs in the dough. I do not.
Reducing dairy and calories is always my goal in formulating any recipe.Those dairy items are not always welcomed by a vast majority which brings me to the cheddar or cottage cheese that can dominate the various kinds of pierogies, most times.The ratio of potato versus cheese is a personal choice left to the pierogy maker.
Two cookie sheets of raw pierogies had been frozen for a month in freezer bags that would tell the tale. Could my delicious entrees withstand the sudden temperature drop when boiled? Hope was in the air. Except for two that broke apart, nearly all my dumplings remained in tact. I was ecstatic. What does this mean? I now have supreme power within reach of being able to make these pierogies when time permits then freeze them. I just need to watch how I roll. The thinner my dough the greater risk of breakage on fragile dough. Power in the kitchen has once again been restored.
It may not be a big win but finding 'just like homemade anything' frozen is a tough act to find. One brand of pierogies I bought years before Covid was so like my own that I was able to serve up like homemade whenever the mood hit till everything changed.
The taste of these store bought dumplings in their coloured bags- pink, yellow, green and blue- had changed. The dough was chewier with a 'diluted' filling' now the standard
Had the recipe changed? Had the company been sold? I noticed the ingredients' list in the sauerkraut type was longer. Fillers perhaps? My lovable cottage cheese in the pink package did not have potato in the original. Now it was in a blue package with potato listed first and cottage cheese second. Fooling the consumer?
Stop playing around with tried and true recipes. Charge more for the original if your costs have risen. Problem solved. Substituting flavour enhancers to mitigate your problem forces me, the customer to change 'suppliers' and make her own in the current dilemma. I can taste the difference. I cannot be fooled.
At present, two grandsons, aged 5 and 8, know how to make pasta and pierogies and love the homemade difference. The older boy once said homemade pasta was life.They are learning fast. I am teaching them the cost variance that exists between home made and store bought. They understand health and wealth are found in the kitchen.
They can see it, taste it and smell it and understand the cost differential. We can be fooled sometimes but learning how to make what we love to eat sets a standard so easily reached by our children and grandchildren. It takes so little to reach an engaging child where food is concerned. Children want to know.
I used to buy a few bags of your pierogies each time I needed more. Now it might be one if the need arises. Adding fillers to your product and potato with cottage cheese to hide the recipe change was disappointing. The cost is higher now too but your sneaky error in judgement makes this customer look elsewhere: my kitchen.
The coloured packages of your pierogy type delighted me whenever I went shopping for these lookalikes. But you changed the recipe and quality of your product. Shame on you. I have already put 40 of my homemade pierogies, ready to cook, anytime, into the freezer. I made a new batch today in no time.
Fool with the customer and sales could disappear. Mine are better. Yours used to be a great alternative but why the change? Did you think your new recipe would go unnoticed. It did not. You lose but so do I! Have a great day.
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