Quick or Lazy: Linyvi Varenyky (Pyrohy)

Here is a quick dish for busy days which requires no filling or laborious shaping.

2 cups dry cottage cheese         

1 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. melted butter

½ to ¾ cup flour

3 eggs, beaten

Press the cottage cheese through a sieve. Beat in the butter, eggs, and salt. Add enough flour to give the desired consistency for shaping. Place on a well-floured board and shape into a long narrow roll. Flatten the roll and make a slantwise criss-cross pattern with the back of a knife. Turn the roll over and criss-cross the other side in the same manner. Cut slantwise into 2 inch pieces. If smaller portions are desired, make the pieces slightly larger and then cut into triangles. Drop them in small batches into a large quantity of boiling, salted, stir very gently with a wooden spoon, and cook from 3 to 4 minutes, or until they are well puffed. Then remove to a colander and drain. Place the Varenyky in a warm dish, sprinkle with melted butter, and toss lightly to have them evenly coated. Keep hot until all are cooked. Top with browned buttered bread crumbs and serve with sour cream. To reheat left over Linyvi Varenyky, fry them in butter until they are a light golden colour.

Fillings for Varenyky (Pyrohy), Cottage Cheese Filling

This standard recipe may be varied as desired. Dry curd cheese is of course preferred for the filling because a wet, creamy one will melt, giving flat and empty Varenyky. When egg yolks are used in the dough for Varenyky, the leftover egg whites may be beaten and mixed with the cheese, but the mixture may require chilling before using it, if the consistency is thin. With a dry curd cheese a Tbsp. or more of thick sour cream will improve the filling. Some enjoy cottage cheese filling with a subtle flavour of fresh minced dill.

1 Tbsp. grated onion

1 cup or more cottage cheese

2 Tbsps. butter                 

Salt and pepper

2 cups cold mashed potatoes

Cook the onion in the butter until tender. Combine it with the potatoes and cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Sauerkraut Filling for Varenyky Pyrohy

Varenyky with a sauerkraut filling are always listed on the menu of the Christmas Eve supper but they may be served at any time of the year. When preparing the Varenyky for the Christmas Eve meal, replace the animal fat with vegetable shortening or cooking oil. Custom dictates that no animal fat be used on Holy Night.

3 cups or more sauerkraut

2 Tbsps. sour cream

1 medium onion, diced   

            Salt and pepper

4 Tbsps. bacon fat or butter     

Rinse the sauerkraut well in warm water, squeeze dry, and cut very fine. Cook the onion in the fat until tender. Add the sauerkraut and cream, and season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper. Cook it over a low heat for about 15 minutes, or until the sauerkraut is tender and the flavours are blended. Do not overcook. Chill thoroughly.

Sauerkraut and Mushroom Filling

Follow the preceding recipe for Sauerkraut Filling. Add 1 cup or more of diced mushrooms to the cooked onion. Cook the mushrooms briefly with the onion. Add the sauerkraut and proceed as directed.

Cabbage Filling for Varenyky Pyrohy

1 medium head cabbage           

4 Tbsps. butter

1 medium onion, diced  

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Remove the outer leaves and core from the cabbage. Cut the cabbage in coarse pieces and cook it, uncovered, in boiling water for about 6 to 8 minutes, or until the cabbage is barely done. It should retain some crispness. Drain, cool, squeeze very dry, and cut the cabbage very fine. Cook the onion in butter until it is tender. Add the cabbage, lemon juice, and season to taste. Cook these ingredients for a brief period to blend the flavours. Chill thoroughly.

Mushroom Filling for Varenyky Pyrohy

Much as in B. C.; in the Ukraine the climate is mild and summer showers are frequent, so the woods are full of edible mushrooms. Each homemaker usually has an abundant supply

1 small onion, minced fine

2 to 3 Tbsps. butter

2 cups diced, cooked mushrooms

Salt and pepper

2 egg yolks

Cook the onion in the butter until tender. Add the mushrooms and cook together for about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the mixture from the heat and beat in the egg yolks. Minced dill may be added for flavour, if desired. Cool thoroughly.
©Al (Alex-Alexander) D. Girvan. All rights reserved.

Quick and Easy, Scrumptiously Delicious, Simple, Italian Style Cooking.

Detailed Contents: Note-Cooking Pasta-Butter Sauce for Pasta-Milanaise Sauce-Romana Sauce-Cannelloni a la Toscana-Noodles with Aour Cream-Spaghetti Carbonara-Pennine with Ricotta-Macaroni and Chese-Spageti, Home Style-Spagetti and Meat Balls-Spagetti a la Caruso-Macaroni with Lobster and Shrimp Sauce-Macaroni shrimp Bake-Pennine a la Rustica-Rigatoni with Pork Chops-Spageti Marinara-Macaroni with Beef and Green Peppers-Pennine with Chicken Cacciatore sauce-Chicken and Noodles-Macaroni Amatriciana (an old Roman Recipe)-Basic Lasagna, My Way, with a touch of class-Lasagna Timballo-lasagna Verdi, Lenten Style-Fetticine with Ragout Bolognese-Linguine with Red Clam Sauce-Spaghetti with Tuna Fish Sauce-Spagetti Tetrazzini-Ravioli Pastitsio.

Note: Recipes of European origin, especially those for Italian food, will often call for veal or ground veal. Because of the number of bull calves born into the dairy industry, in Canada, one would think there would be much veal available. Such is not the case, however, as most of the veal is exported; or the calves are used for other purposes; with the result that veal is often totally unavailable in Canadian supermarkets.

In any case, our veal is not the same as the traditional milk fed, blue, (or often from unborn calves); European veal; and the substitution of suitable quality lean beef will make no noticeable difference to any of these recipes.

Mention Italian food and many of us immediately start thinking about, meatballs, pasta, or spaghetti, spaghetti sauces and of course pizza.

Readers of this book now know that none of these are truly Italian foods. Pasta was adopted from China.

 Few, if any, of the pasta sauces; so popular in North America; are, or were, ever used in Italy. Surprisingly, since the tomato originated in South America, or not too, in view of some fairly recent archaeological discoveries; proving that the tomato was known in China a thousand years ago, many of these sauces are actually of Chinese origin.

 The foundation for Pizza, now more American than anything else, may  actually have been laid by Neanderthal man,  the Phoenicians, the Greeks, or any other of the ancient peoples who learned to mix flour and water together to make a form of bread or hardtack.

But this is a Canadian cook book and we Canadians have always considered them as so being; and as I am also Canadian, hence for the purposes of this chapter, I do not believe I will be judged too harshly for treating them as being Italian. Below are some of the more popular macaroni  or pasta styles- many a connoisseur claims that each has a distinctive taste all its own.

Pasta may be served in any or every course of a meal. Six men can eat one pound or three pounds.

Cooking Pasta

Packaged pasta usually comes with directions for cooking. As a rule, however, allow 3 to 4 quarts water and 4 teaspoons salt for each pound of pasta. Bring the water to a boil in a large kettle, add the salt, and add the pasta gradually so that the water maintains a brisk boil. Cook the pasta according to taste, 8-10 minutes for al dente, until it is firm to the teeth, or 10-15 minutes for more tender pasta. If the shapes are large, cook only a few at a time, to prevent them from sticking together. Drain the pasta in a colander, pouring boiling water over them to and add a little butter or margarine to keep the shapes separated. A little vegetable oil added to the water in which the pasta is boiled serves the same purpose.

Butter Sauce for Pasta

Mince a generous handful of fresh parsley picked from the stems. Add the parsley and ½ pound butter to 1 pound of any cooked pasta. Toss the pasta until the butter is completely melted, add grated Parmesan cheese to taste, and toss the pasta until the cheese is thoroughly mixed with the pasta

Melanise Sauce

Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet and sauté 1/4cup thinly sliced mushrooms and ¼ pound smoked ham, diced, for a few minutes. Pour the mixture over 1 pound cooked pasta and add 1 cup each of shredded Swiss cheese and hot tomato purée. Toss the pasta well and add salt and pepper to taste.

Romana Sauce

In a saucepan over low heat combine 1 pound cooked minced diced parsley, 1 Tbsp. minced fresh basil or 1 Tbsp. dried sweet basil, and 2 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced. Stir in grated Romano grated cheese and black pepper to taste. See also Tomato Sauces

Cannelloni a la Toscana

Sift 1 1/3 cups flour and a pinch of salt onto a pastry board, make a well in the center, and in it put 1 egg and 1 egg yolk, both well beaten. Using the fingers, mix the paste gradually until it is well blended. If all the flour is not incorporated, add a few drops of water; if the paste is too soft, add more flour. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. Roll out the dough 1/16 inch thick, cut it into 3 ½ inch squares, and let the squares dry for 1 hour. Cook the squares in boiling salted water for 8 minutes, or until they are almost tender and drain them on damp towels.

Fill the cannelloni with this filling: Sauté 6 chicken livers with 1 onion and 1 garlic clove, all minced, in 3 Tbsps. Butter for about 5 minutes, or until the chicken livers are lightly browned. Put the mixture through the finest blade of a food grinder with 1 ½ cups diced cooked veal or chicken and season with ¼ tsp. thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Bind the mixture with 2 eggs. Put a little of the filling on each square and roll them to form tubes. Arrange the cannelloni, side by side, in a large shallow baking dish. Cover them with 1 ½ cups tomato sauce and sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake in a moderately hot oven (350 F.) for 15 minutes, or until they are heated through. 

Noodles with Sour Cream: Also a very popular dish with Russian and Ukrainian families.

Ingredients:

1-12 ozs. pkg. noodles

1cup   dairy sour cream

2 Tbsps. soft butter or margarine

¼ cup diced fresh chive

¼ cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Dash pepper

Dash paprika

Preparation:

Prepare noodles in a large amount of boiling salted water. Drain well and return to saucepan. Blend together remaining ingredients. Add to noodle

Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients:

½ lb. bacon cut in ½ in. dice

½ cup diced onion

¼ cup butter or margarine

3 eggs, beaten

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tbsps. finely minced parsley

Dash pepper

1 lb. spaghetti or spaghettini (fine spaghetti)

Preparation:

Sauté bacon and onion in butter until bacon is slightly crisp and onion caramelized. Combine beaten eggs, grated parmesan cheese, parsley, and pepper. Prepare pasta in large amount of boiling salted water. Drain. Return to saucepan. Add hot bacon mixture to hot spaghetti. Eggs will cook slightly on contact. Blend thoroughly. 6-8 servings.

           

The next three recipes are a favourite dish with children; of all ages.