When Chris and I planned our pierogi making adventure, we talked about meat and potato fillings. Dessert never even crossed our minds. But then the day he came I was browsing Anne Applebaum’s From a Polish Country House Kitchen: 90 Recipes for the Ultimate Comfort Food and I noticed that she had pierogi with a strawberry filling, meant to be served as dessert. By complete coincidence, 
I had just purchased strawberries the day before. As far as I was concerned, it was a sign!
It is also very timely, because it is not often that this Ohioan can get seasonally appropriate spring ingredients onto the blog before people are searching for the recipes. All the berry recipes start popping up and we don’t see our first strawberries until June. But, while these are not as good as those local strawberries, the first domestic strawberries of the year are a very exciting ritual for this midwestern family! It means spring really is coming (all evidence to the contrary)–and at least they actually smell like strawberries!
Alex helped us the entire time we made pierogi, but Sammy got involved only for the strawberry ones, helping to cut out the circles of pasta dough. As you might notice, the strawberry ones have a fancier edge–that is because I did them. I also used the leftover strawberries in vodka to make a strawberry sauce. I liked the dessert as a whole, but just individual pierogi were still too heavy on the pasta for me. Alex on the other hand inhaled them as fast as I made them! (And yes if you are wondering I did allow my kids to eat them. There was not that much raw vodka in them at the end of the day and I chose not to worry about it.)
- recipe of rolled out pasta dough found here
- 3 pints fresh strawberries cleaned, hulled and cut into large chunks
- 3 T vodka
- 2 T granulated sugar plus additional sugar for sweetening the strawberry sauce if using
- 1 T confectioners' sugar
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Toss the strawberries with the vodka and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Cover and marinate in the fridge if making in advance by several hours; otherwise just leave on the counter for up to an hour.
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Toss the strawberries a few times while they are marinating.
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Using a slotted spoon, place the equivalent of 1 whole strawberry (in pieces) on each circle of pasta dough. Fold the pasta over and crimp along the edges to seal.
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Place in lightly salted boiling water. Once the pierogi float, let boil for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.
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Fry in butter over medium high heat until lightly browned on both sides.
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Sift powdered sugar over the fried pierogi.
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Applebaum serves them with sour cream and brown sugar but I preferred this sauce:
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Once you have folded all of the pierogi, place the remaining strawberries and liquid into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add sugar to taste, with a tablespoon of confectioners' sugar. Boil for 10-15 minutes, until thickened. Serve over the fried pierogi with a dollop of whipped cream.
These look wonderful! I love berries…and vodka 😉
Yeah I’m pretty sure with only three tbsp of vodka they were fine! I’ve seen nutella filled pierogi before but I love that these are fruit-filled! Nutella and strawberry would also be excellent methinks…
Oh goodness, I would inhale those in a second!! I love pierogies and I stuff them with whatever I have on hand. Best comfort food, ever! 🙂
savory pierogies are all well and good, but this is where my infatuation lies. 🙂
That sauce would be awesome with this new Columbus based vodka that I tried recently– OYO Honey Vanilla Bean Vodka, made by Middlewest Spirits. I don’t care for vodka normally, but this stuff was so good. Hope you can try it when you get back to C0lumbus!
Wow that looks so good. Can we get this in the mail? 😉
Wow this Pierogies looks so delicious! Love it
This is something about making pierogies that relaxes me. Maybe it’s because I know how worth all of the hard work will be in the end! Or maybe it’s because I’m polish?
I’ve only had savory pierogi before…what have I been doing with my life?!? 😉
I love potato and cheese pierogies–but strawberry pierogies? Oh my word!!!
Love the use of vodka!!