Vareniki
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds (680 grams) yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced (weight is for whole potatoes)
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk, any variety
- 3 strips of cooked and crumbled bacon (soft)
- 1/2 large onion
- 2-3 sprigs of cut up fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- A few grinds of black pepper
- 3 1/2 cups (450 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for counter
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt (Diamond brand, use half for any other brand)
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup plus 2 to 3 tablespoons cold water
- sour cream
- butter
- vinegar
Instructions
Make the dumpling dough: Combine flour and salt in a large bowl with a fork. Add half the water and the egg and use the fork to mix them into the dough. Drizzle in all but last 1 tablespoon of remaining water, mixing as you pour until dough forms shaggy clumps. Use your hands (or a Kitchenaid mixer with the dough attachment) to bring the dough together inside the bowl, using the last tablespoon of water if needed. Knead it several times in the bowl before transferring it to your counter. Knead dough for 10 to 12 minutes (set a timer; don’t skimp! – or use the mixer for 7-10 mins) until it forms a smooth, elastic dough. Return to empty bowl and cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let rest at room temperature for 1 hour, which relaxes the dough and makes it easy to roll thin.
Make potato filling: Place potatoes in medium saucepan and add milk and salt; milk should just barely cover the potatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are cooked through, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and add butter and a few grinds of black pepper. Mash until very smooth, adjust seasonings to taste, and set aside to cool until needed. You can hurry this along in the fridge.
Make additional filling: Chop onions and bacon into small pieces and put into a pan. Fry together on medium heat until all the onion is done. Leave the bacon a bit soft so it blends better in with the potato filling. In the last minute or so, add minced/chopped fresh dill. Drain most of the fat from the pan but leave some for richer taste. Transfer everything to the mashed potatoes and mix well.
Form vareniki: Grab a spray bottle of water (or a dish of water and a pastry brush, although just your finger is sufficient for hand-formed dumplings), a rolling pin, and liberally dust a rimmed baking sheet with flour. Remove one-quarter of dough (for hand-formed dumplings) from bowl, keeping the rest wrapped until needed. On a very well-floured counter (Bonnie explains that the dough will only absorb as much flour as it needs and no more, so you cannot use too much) and roll it out on a lightly floured countertop until it’s thin enough that you can see light through it if you hold it up; you should be able to roll it to the thinness of pasta dough.
Cut out rounds of dough with a 3-inch round cutter or a drinking glass. Using two spoons, a small scoop, or a pastry bag, fill each round of dough with a blob of filling — about 1 teaspoon. Dab, brush, or mist the edges of the dough with water, then fold the round into a half-circle, pressing the edges to seal. Take the edges and pull them towards each other, pinching the corners to seal in a tortellini shape. As you shape a few dumplings, you’ll get a sense of how much filling you can stuff into each dumpling and still stretch the dough around it to seal. Transfer the shaped dumplings to your prepared baking sheet. Gather the scraps together back into the ball. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, rerolling the scraps after they’ve rested enough that you can roll them out again. (If they resist rolling, wait 5 minutes, try again, repeating this until the scraps roll as thinly as the first round did.) I like to slide my tray of vareniki into the freezer while working on the next batch; they’re easier to move around once semi-frozen. At this point, you can cook them right away — semi-frozen or fresh — or freeze them for future use. (Freeze the rest of the way on the baking sheet so they don’t stick, then transfer to sealed bag).
Cook your vareniki: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Adjust the heat as needed to maintain a healthy-but-not-too-vigorous boil. Add the dumplings and give it a few good stirs, making sure none stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook until the dumplings rise to the surface, and then 1 minute more (this will take 4 to 5 minutes). If you’re not sure if they’re done, you can always remove one and cut it in half — it should be hot in the center.