Pierogi Casserole

by Kelly Garbato
(Easyvegan.info)

This Pierogi casserole literally melts in your mouth. It is almost like a potato and cheese souffle. And it really tastes like pierogis! It is one seriously yummy dish.

Pierogies are potato and cheese stuffed pasta dumplings originating from Eastern Europe. They are delicious, but can be time consuming to make. In this casserole recipe the pierogies are deconstructed and layered to save lots of work.



Ingredients:

1-2 white onions

6 white potatoes

10 to 16 ounces vegan cheddar cheese (optional)

1 pound lasagna noodles

1 stick (i.e., 1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons) margarine + 2 tablespoons extra

Water

Plain soy milk (optional)

Olive oil

Salt (to taste)

White or whole wheat flour (as needed)

1 or 2 medium-sized glass baking pans (9×12)


Directions:

1. In a large pot, bring 2 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil to a medium heat (2 for 1 onion, 4 for 2 onions).

2. Finely chop 1 to 2 white onions (depending on your taste) and add to the pot. Simmer on medium for ten minutes, or until the onions start to become tender.

3. Add 1/2 stick of margarine to the pot and continue to cook on medium, stirring every few minutes, until the onions have begun to turn a light brown/golden color. Remove from heat.

(Optional: Set some of the cooked onions aside to use as a garnish on the top layer of the lasagna.)

4. Peel, rinse and cut up six white potatoes. You can cube them into eighths, or cut them even smaller for faster cooking. Add to the onion/margarine mixture and cover with water or a water/soy milk mixture (roughly 8 to 12 cups). Toss in some salt to taste. Bring to a high heat and cook, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the potatoes have begun to soften. Remove the cover and continue to cook on medium heat until the potatoes have broken down and mixed with the liquid. Use a hand masher to facilitate the process if desired. Continue to stir the pot every few minutes throughout this step.

5. Optional: Towards the end of step #4, fold 10 to 16 ounces of shredded vegan cheddar cheese (i.e., Follow Your Heart, Teese or similar) into the mashed potato mixture. Cook on medium until the cheese has melted into the mashed potatoes. Continue to stir the potatoes.

Also optional: Alternately, you can add the cheese to the potatoes after mashing them (step #6) and before layering the potatoes with the lasagna noodles (step #9).

Which alternative you choose will depend on your favorite cheese’s optimal cooking temp – if the brand doesn’t consistently melt at 350 degrees (the lasagna’s baking temperature), you may want to melt it on the stove top instead.


The addition of vegan cheese will transform this “Potato and Onion Lasagna” into “Potato and Cheddar Lasagna.”

6. Remove the pot from heat and, if necessary, transfer the potatoes to a large mixing bowl. Stir in the rest of the of margarine (1/2 stick + 2 tablespoons). Using a hand mixer, blend until smooth and creamy. If the potatoes are too liquid-y, you may need to either add in some flour to thicken the mix and/or transfer the potatoes back to the pot and cook uncovered until some of the excess water has evaporated.

7. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

8. Setting the pot/bowl of mashed potatoes aside, cook 1 pound of lasagna noodles according to the directions on the package. Drain and rinse the cooked noodles with cool water.

9. In a large glass baking pan (9×12 or larger), spread a thin layer of mashed potatoes (or, alternately, a little bit of melted margarine) in the bottom of the pan. Add a tablespoon or two of olive to this “base” if desired. Next, layer the noodles and margarine until none remain.

Note: The mashed potatoes “puff up” a little when baked, so you may want to split the potatoes and lasagna noodles between two medium-sized pans, making two “short stacks” instead of one thick lasagna casserole dish. This will also make the baked lasagna a little easier to cut and serve (and the leftovers, cut and store neatly in Tupperware). Plus, “real” pierogies consist of a layer of potatoes stuffed between two pieces of dough, so a shorter stack of one or two layers potato/lasagna layers stays a tad truer to its boiled namesake!

10. Bake, covered, at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.


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Original Pierogi Casserole Recipe