Hi everyone! This term, I’m going to continue the Iron Warrior’s time-honoured tradition of bringing questionably good recipes to you, the people. These may be of use if a) you’re broke, b) you’re supposed to be “studying” and are looking for something to pass the time, c) you somehow have time to pick up a new hobby, or d) if you need to attract friends. Seriously, one of the best ways to attract friends is by offering people food. I read it on the Internet so it must be true.
Anyway, here’s a recipe that I stumbled upon while figuring out what to do with the 5 boxes of $2 perogies I bought last week at Zehrs. It’s pretty good, though it can take a while to prepare. Getting some other people to help you out can significantly increase your cooking efficiency, or, if you’re cooking this by yourself, you can claim ALL THE FOOD for yourself and you’ll have leftovers for pretty much the whole week.
Perogy Casserole (serves 6-8)
Ingredients:
- 18-20 (one box) frozen perogies
- Half a red onion
- 8-10 button mushrooms
- 6-8 slices of bacon (substitute with any deli meat you like; diced Kolbassa sausage is a particularly good substitute, or just skip the meat for a vegetarian option)
- 2 cans cream of mushroom
- 200 g cheddar cheese (half a large block of cheese – you can never have too much cheese though; add more, if desired)
- 6 slices of Havarti or mozzarella cheese (optional)
- Oil, butter or margarine for frying
Preparation:
First, start boiling a pot of water, which will be used to boil the perogies. While the water is heating up, microwave the bacon: place some paper towels on a microwave-safe dish, put up to 8 slices of bacon on the paper towels, and place some paper towels on top of the bacon as well, then microwave the bacon for 4-6 minutes. You could also cover it with wax paper and microwave in 30 second intervals until done.
Now, you can start cooking the onions and mushrooms: first, dice the onions and slice the mushrooms, then heat up some cooking oil, butter, or margarine in a pan to medium heat. Once the oil is hot enough (test by flicking a droplet of water in the pan – if it sizzles, the pan is hot enough), put the mushrooms in the pan. Put the mushrooms in first, stirring them occasionally, then after a couple of minutes, add the onions to the pan. Keep the pan on the heat, and stir for a couple more minutes until the onions are cooked.
By now, your water will probably be boiling, so you can add the perogies to the pot. Cook the perogies until they start floating in the water (despite what the instructions on the box say, perogies don’t take 3 minutes to cook), and once the perogies are done cooking, add them to a large casserole dish. Open the two cans of cream of mushroom, and add them to the casserole dish as well, along with the mushrooms and onions. Take the bacon out of the microwave as well, and rip it into little pieces, then add the bacon to the casserole as well. Finally, grate the cheddar cheese, and add it to the casserole as well. Mix all the ingredients, and make the mix level in the casserole dish, then, if you want, add cheese slices on top. Now that the casserole is ready, put it all in the oven and cook for 20 minutes. And voilà, your very own perogy casserole!
Join us next issue for more Half-Baked recipes – featuring dessert!
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