Polish Feast

For dinner last night my friend and I made a Polish feast of kielbasa, homemade sauerkraut and homemade pierogi.  I chopped up the cabbage for the sauerkraut about 4 weeks ago and it had been fermenting in the basement, and it was finally ready to be eaten.  It was my first attempt at sauerkraut, and it came out really well.  Making sauerkraut is fairly easy, I basically just added a bunch of salt to some chopped cabbage and put it in a pot for 4 weeks (tons of recipes available online).  We mixed the sauerkraut with a chopped onion and 6 thinly sliced apples then put the kielbasa on top and let it braise for about 30 minutes.  The kielbasa absorbs the moisture from the sauerkraut, and the sauerkraut acquires some extra flavor from the kielbasa- it was fantastic!  We also made pierogi dough and filling and stuffed about 24 huge pierogis.  Here is the recipe we used:

Pierogi Dough
Servings: 24 huge pierogis

1 cup yogurt
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tbsp melted butter
1 egg
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Mix all the ingredients until they form a soft, pliable, but not too sticky dough (add more flour if necessary).  Let rest covered for 10 minutes.  Roll out the dough until thin.  Use a circle cookie cutter or a drinking glass to cut dough into circles.  Fill with filling and fold over.  Press the halves together so it looks like a semi-circle.  Seal the round edge with a fork.  Cook in boiling water for 10 minutes or pan-fry in butter.

Cheese and Potato Pierogi Filling

1 pound potatoes, peeled and cooked until tender
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk

Mash together until thick but not too dry (add more milk if necessary).

Garden French Lentils

Lentils are a fantastic little food.  These legumes are high in protein and fiber and very low in fat.  They are also packed with nutrients like folate and iron.  Their flavor is slightly nutty and they have a firm but smooth texture.  Lentils also cook quickly, without the need for presoaking, until other legumes.  I've been eating a lot of lentils lately, as they are a much healthier (for you and the environment) than meat. This is one of the best recipes I've tried yet!

Garden French Lentils 

Servings: 4-6

Time until finished: 45 minutes

1 1/2 cup french lentils (french lentils are also known as green lentils. Brown lentils will work too- but french lentils have a nuttier flavor)

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion diced

1 clove garlic, minced

10-15 grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

3 cups of uncooked spinach or kale torn into smaller pieces

pinch of salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 tbsp lemon juice

10 basil leaves cut into small pieces 

1/4 cup parsley cut into small pieces

Put lentils in about 4 cups of water then bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for about 40 minutes (or until desired tenderness).  In the meantime prepare veggies- they will only take 5 minutes to cook so wait until the lentils are almost done to cook them.  If using kale steam for 3 minutes.  Once lentils are almost done put oil in a saute pan or saucepot and saute onions until almost translucent.  Then add garlic, tomatoes, spinach/kale.  Pour water off lentils and add to the pan with the veggies.  Then add lemon juice, salt, and ground pepper.  Next turn off the heat and add the basil and parsley.  Enjoy!