Pierogi Casserole

I made this for dinner for the family one night and was just wingin’ it (as I often do), the difference this time is that I actually remembered to write down what I was doing, just in case this was a winning recipe or as my kids would say “this one goes on the menu Mom!”  Referring to the restaurant that they say I should open one day….who knows… 😉 …maybe.

I was impressed by how tasty this recipe is, yet it’s not ingredient heavy.  This maybe because there were a few items missing, some key ingredients that I originally wanted to include, such as onions and cheddar cheese. I ended up using mozzarella instead of cheddar and the chives from my garden replaced the onions.

• Servings: 4-6
• Difficulty: Easy
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Ingredients

• 1kg bag of frozen pierogis
• ½ cup + 2 Tbsp. of butter (separated)
• 2 Tbsp. of flour
• ½ cup of milk
• 1 cup of water
• 1 cup of cheddar cheese (separated into ½ cups)
• ¼ cup of chopped chives
• 5 strips of bacon (cooked and diced)
• Salt and pepper

Directions

1. Turn on oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place ½ cup of butter in a 9 x 13 casserole dish and place in oven for 10-15 mins until melted.
3. Remove casserole dish from oven and empty the bag of pierogis into the dish (lay them in gently so as not to burn yourself with the hot butter).  Mix them with the butter in the dish.
4. Return casserole dish to the oven and set the timer for 20 minutes.
5. Place a small saucepan on medium heat on stovetop and add 2 Tbsp. of butter.
6. Add flour to butter and mix quickly for 2-3 minutes. Whisk in milk and water.
7. Continue whisking mixture until it starts to bubble and thicken.
8. Once mixture thickens turn heat to low and add ½ cup of cheese, mix until well incorporated. Add salt and pepper to taste.
9. Remove dish from oven after 20 mins and pour cheese mixture over the pierogis and sprinkle with remaining cheese, bacon and chives.
10. Return dish to oven for 10 minutes.

My go to side with many of my carb heavy dishes is a side salad, but some raw carrots and cucumber would be nice as well.  Again, I did use mozzarella in my original recipe as I did not have cheddar on hand and it was very delicious.

Try it and let me know what you think.

Until next time.