Cabbage Pirozhki or Piroghi

This recipe involves three steps: making the dough, making the filling, and assembling the pies.

Ingredients for dough

• 2½ cups sifted flour
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup vegetable shortening
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 egg
• Ice water

Ingredients for filling

• 5 cups chopped cabbage (2 small heads of cabbage)
• 2 Tablespoons salt
• 4 cups boiling water
• 2 chopped onions
• 4 Tablespoons butter
• 1 Tablespoon dill or parsley, minced
• 2 hard-boiled eggs

Procedure

1. Make dough: Sift dry ingredients together. Add shortening and butter into dry mixture, mixing with a pastry blender or a fork until the mixture looks like oatmeal.
2. Beat the egg slightly in a measuring cup and add enough ice water to make ½ cup fluid. Pour egg and water into the flour mixture and mix well.
3. Roll out the dough on a board or countertop dusted with more flour. If the dough seems sticky, sprinkle the surface of the dough and the rolling surface with more flour.
4. To make piroghi (large pie): Roll dough into a rectangle approximately 24 inches x 16 inches. It is ready for stuffing.
5. To make pirozhki (small pies): Take eggsized balls of dough, flatten, and roll out. Repeat with remaining dough. The small pies are now ready for stuffing.
6. Make filling: Remove the tough outer leaves from 2 heads of cabbage, and cut the heads into quarters, removing the tough core. Chop the cabbage leaves finely.
7. Mix cabbage with salt in a bowl and let stand for 15 minutes. Pour the cabbage into a colander in the sink and drain.
8. Heat 4 cups of water to boiling and carefully pour boiling water over the cabbage in the colander. Let drain.
9. Next, melt the butter in a large skillet and add the chopped onion. Sauté until softened (about 5 minutes).
10. Add the drained cabbage to the skillet and continue cooking, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until the cabbage is soft (about 30 minutes).
11. While the cabbage is cooking, remove the shells from the hard-boiled eggs and chop the eggs.
12. Add dill or parsley and chopped eggs to the cooked cabbage and cook for 2 or 3 minutes longer. Remove from heat.
13. Preheat oven to 375°F.
14. To assemble piroghi: Transfer the dough rectangle to the greased cookie sheet.
15. Spread the cabbage mixture over ½ the dough, fold the dough over and pinch the edges together.
16. To assemble pirozhki: Fill each pirozhki with about 1½ Tablespoons of the cabbage mixture.
17. Pinch edges together and place on a greased cookie sheet with the seamless edge up.
18. Bake the piroghi for about 30 minutes, until golden.
19. Bake the pirozhkis for about 15 minutes.

Serves 8 to 10.



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