Peter's Polish Pierogi Cupcakes with Stone Fruit Filling

This has been the weekend from hell! I apologize for not posting these sooner. This past thursday was Peter's 22nd birthday. His stunning girlfriend Olivia, along with babelette Amaya Keller, threw him a party at the Ukrainian East Village Restaurant to celebrate his birth & his heritage. Unfortunately I could not make it to the festivities but these cupcakes did.

When it came to developing Peter's cupcake a few things needed to be kept in mind...

1. Peter hates frosting. 

2. Peter prefers that his desserts are not too sweet. 

3. Peter is not a huge fan of chocolate cake. 

4. Peter loves fruit. 

5. Peter loves pierogis. 

The idea came to me while I was sitting at Think before class. "If Peter hates frosting...why not top a cupcake with a sweet pierogi. The filling can act like the frosting!" It was definitely an experiment, but he loved it! 

Peter's birthday cupcakes were: Almond Cake filled with sweet cream, topped with a stone fruit pierogi tossed in butter, cinnamon and sugar and finished with a strawberry.

I had never made pierogi's before. In the process of baking I realized I had never eaten one either. These treats were definitely a shot in the dark, but come on, what doesn't taste good tossed in butter, cinnamon & sugar? 

I used Pat Edgcomb's recipe for Pierogis Elegante from the Food Network. She uses a savory filling. If you'd like to give stone fruit pierogi's a go cook down sliced plums, peaches, nectarines...any combo you'd like, with a little sugar, lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Just be sure to smash the cooked fruit with a potato masher so that everything is broken up in small pieces. A sweet ricotta filling would have been nice as well.

Pat's Pierogis Elegante

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon butter, softened
• 1/2 cup lukewarm milk

1. In a large mixing bowl, add flour, salt, cream cheese, egg, butter, and milk. With your hands mix together until dough forms a ball. Turn out on a floured board and knead until smooth. You may add a little more flour to make the dough pliable. Divide dough into fourths. Put the pieces under a damp cloth, so it won't dry out. Roll the first piece to 1/4 inch of thickness and cut with a 3-inch cookie cutter or a glass. Put pierogi rounds under damp cloth while cutting the rest.

2. For each pierogi, place 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of the dough circle. Fold over to form a half circle. Seal edges by pinching together with your fingers. I then take a fork and press all along the edges. Repeat with remaining dough filling.

3. Fill a large pot half full with water and bring to a boil. Drop 5 or 6 pierogis in at a time. When they float to the top, cook for 1 minute. Place in a colander to drain. They will stick to paper towels. Repeat with remaining pierogis.

* At this point melt 1/4 cup unsalted butter and tossed the pierogis with cinnamon, sugar and the melted butter in a medium sized bowl. 

In retrospect, these would have been even more delicious pan fried with a little butter and then tossed with the cinnamon-sugar. Only 362 days until lucky 23 Pete...Enjoy!