Pierogi recipe.... NOT A DIET RECIPE...... wanted to share..

Hi! My grandmother just recently passed away and I was going through my recipes over the Easter break and looked at a bunch from her. Why I am posting this is a lot of the "Old World" recipes are being lost. Often our lives are too busy to cook the way our grandmothers and great-grandmothers did. This recipe is my grandmother's mother's from Poland, it was written in Polish on my grams card and then translated in English on the back, I took the translation and typed it up to share with you. If anyone has any questions about making these, let me know I will be happy to give you a tip or two. As much as my family likes these, we only seem to get together to make them for Christmas and Easter.. But I make a LOT to freeze so we have them for a bit. I hope someone enjoys these. It was always fun making them with her, she always had a comment or tewo on the way I would knead the dough.....tough Polish lady! You will notice some brand name things in there, I put them in cause that is what she would buy.

Pierogi's (#1):

5 C. flour (Verna used Gold Medal)
2 Tbsp. salt
2 eggs
1 stick margarine, melted ( Verna used margarine, not butter)(orig. recipe calls for unsalted butter)
1 1/4 C. water or milk

10 medium potatoes, boiled and mashed with:
1/2 lb New York White Extra Sharp Cheese, shredded
Mash the potatoes and cheese by hand, never use a hand mixer.

Put the flour in a large bowl, add salt. Make a "well" and add eggs and melted margarine. Knead slowly and add the water until the dough is soft but not sticky. Knead VERY well. Put onto a floured board. Cut dough into 3 or 4 balls, cover the balls you are not working with, with a damp towel. Roll out to 1/8" thick, keep flipping over the dough as you roll it out. Cut with a glass, fill carefully as not to over fill, fold over and pinch with fingers and then edges of a fork, sealing firmly. Cook a few at a time in boiling salted water, remove with a slotted spoon when they float to the top.
* You can add 1 lb. onion, sautéed, to the filling if you wish.

To Bake:
Don't boil, just put pierogi onto a lightly floured cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees until lightly browned. Add a little bit of hot water to soften and then put into melted butter.

**Sauerkraut filling: Use the bagged kind of sauerkraut. Squeeze the juice out REAL GOOD, in balls, like baseballs. Sauté some onion in butter until browned, add the sauerkraut and brown together.

Tips:
1. Do not add salt to the water you boil the potatoes in.
2. Do not rinse the potatoes after boiling.
3. Add the cheese to the potatoes while they are still hot.
4. Do not add too much cheese to the potatoes or the filling will run.
5. Hand mash only.
6. Use the course side of the cheese grated to grate the cheese. not the fine side.
7. Knead the dough VERY, VERY, well.
8. After boiling pierogi's, rinse with COLD water.