Monday 24 November 2014

Lazy Perogie Casserole



I don’t care what anyone says – cakers are pretty intelligent. I often think of us as kitchen technologists. There’s nothing we love more than taking something apart and figuring out how to put it back together in half the time. Just look at Cabbage Roll Casserole. You get all the taste in just minutes. (Unfortunately, you still get all of the stink. Make sure your Wizard gel stick is close by.)

Another great example of caker ingenuity is this Lazy Perogie Casserole. Do you know how long it takes to make actual perogies? Like, a long time. Just ask my Ukrainian uncle. But with this casserole, you get to eat and enjoy your life. You’re welcome, Uncle Orest!

Lazy Perogie Casserole tastes just like the real thing. The only thing it lacks is bacon. Or should I say, artificial bacon bits. You know the ones I mean. They’re the colour of bricks and look like fish food. But they taste good and you don't even have to cook them. Thanks, caker kitchen technologists!

Come back Friday for the final Bazaar-o-Rama round-up, my tour of church holiday bazaars. Then, on Monday, December 1, Caker Christmas season officially gets underway! I’ll post holiday recipes and crafts three times a week leading up to my Caker Christmas party, my annual shindig where I force invite Eyetalians to make – and eat – caker food.

12 to 15 lasagna noodles
2 cups cottage cheese
1 egg
¼ teaspoon onion salt (optional)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups mashed potatoes
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 cup butter or margarine
1 cup chopped onions

Line 9 x 13 inch casserole dish with cooked noodles. Mix cottage cheese, egg and onion salt; spread over noodles. Add another layer of noodles. Mix cheese, potatoes, salt and pepper; spread over noodles. Cover with remaining layer of noodles. Melt butter; add onions and sauté. Pour over noodles. Cover with foil. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes and serve with sour cream.


Source: This Legion is Still Cooking, Royal Canadian Legion Cowichan Branch 53, Duncan, British Columbia

14 comments:

  1. I believe perogies are called 'verenikas' In the Ukraine.
    Or so says my Ukrainian aunt Lydia.
    Anywho..
    Looks tasty & awfully 'ethnic' for us cakes!

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    1. Maybe Aunt Lydia and Uncle Orest know one another! If so, we can arrange a verenikas making day. They make. We eat.

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  2. What was this like?
    The noodles look kind of crispy/leathery/hard.

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    1. It was good! I used the no boil noodles. The top layer was a little leathery but the other layers were okay. If you make this, I'd go with boiled noodles.

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  3. There's a version of this with a tin of rinsed sauerkraut, mushrooms, and boiled egg noodles that's pretty good too.

    Can Grandma Clara come join Aunt Lydia and Uncle Orest for some vareniki? She wasn't so great with dumplings but she can bring the super-strong homemade cherry wine (which I kick myself for not learning to make).

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    1. Grandma Clara is welcome to join the party anytime. So long as she's got a barrel of cherry wine, we've got a plate of vareniki with her name on it. Extra sour cream, too.

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  4. I've made this casserole and it's tasty! I'm all over any recipe with "Lazy" in the title. All the perogie taste, none of the perogie fuss. Here's another time saving trick if you are really craving perogies in their original dumpling form. Make the usual perogie filling which takes no time at all- basically mashed potatoes with onion & cheese. Then you simply buy some wonton wrappers from the frozen section of your grocery store and voila- no fussing for hours with rolling, cutting and pinching of the dough.

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    1. Madame M, what a genius idea! I made ravioli with wonton wrappers once, but they tasted kind of weird. Or it could've just been my cooking.

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  5. I will be making this!!
    My people have vareniki, too. They are different from perogis in that potatoes are not involved at all. Our ‘lazy vareniki’ involve a little more effort: you make the vareniki dough, mix cottage cheese into it, roll it out, and make noodles. This version seems to be much easier (and has a lot more butter: LIKE).

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    1. Yes, there's a LOT of butter. So much, in fact, that after you're done eating, your lips will be sliding all over the place. But I saw a cover of TIME magazine at the mechanic's on the weekend and it said butter is okay to eat again. So I'm having it for breakfast tomorrow.

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  6. I had mashed potato left over from the weekend and I fleetingly considered making this - but then I came over all eye-talian and made gnocchi instead. Served with sage butter sauce - lots of it. Yummo!

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    1. Believe it or not, but I once made gnocchi. Once.
      Making anything that starts with a "g" and a "n" is bound to be difficult.

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  7. I may have to try this one. I've only had frozen perogies, so I won't be lamenting that they don't taste like Grandma's. The fact that I'm sure neither of my grandmothers ever got near a perogie helps, too.

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    1. You should give this one a whirl. It'll taste like heaven and you'll have your grandmothers to thank. Or not thank.

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