These are more like pierogi that I've had in that the dough is thicker and eggier than most kreplach, which have an almost translucent, angelic quality. They are delicious by themselves with mustard or goat cheese, and I am sure they would also make an outstanding contribution to chicken soup.
I still haven't figured out how to make knishes, alas.
INGREDIENTS -- DOUGH:
- 3 medium eggs, beaten
- 2 tbsp. schmaltz
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- About 1 1/2 cups flour (see instructions below)
- An extra egg yolk (for glazing)
- 3 lbs. russet potatoes
- 1 lb. onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp. chopped garlic
- 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
- 3 tbsp. schmaltz
- 1 medium egg, beaten
- Salt and pepper
Slice the potatoes ahead of time. Bring some water to a boil while working on the first steps of the dough. Throw the potatoes in while you're doing that. Then you can prepare the onions and mushrooms. While they are still in their early stages of sauteeing, mash the potatoes and add the egg (while stirring onions occasionally). That way, it's all ready to be combined when the onions are done. After you've done that, get to work rolling out the dough. Finally, boil as much as you'd like to eat now and freeze the rest for later.
DIRECTIONS -- DOUGH:
- Beat the eggs together with the schmaltz, salt and baking soda.
- In a mixing bowl, add about 3/4 cup of flour and combine thoroughly with a spatula. This will have a sticky, pasty consistency.
- Add more flour a very little bit at a time--2 tablespoons at most--mixing very thoroughly, just until the dough is no longer sticky. You will have to use your hands after it starts to thicken up.
- Knead until it's a totally even, dense ball of dough. Cover the mixing bowl and let stand for about 45 minutes (about the time it will take to make the filling).
DIRECTIONS -- FILLING:
- Bring a pot of water to a boil. Slice the potatoes into 3/4"-thick rounds but do not peel them. Boil them to desired consistency.
- Meanwhile, heat the schmaltz in a saucepan. (WARNING: schmaltz burns faster than vegetable oil.) When the schmaltz is hot, add the mushrooms and onions.
- Sauté the onions and mushrooms on medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until they begin to turn gold.
- Add the garlic and continue to cook until the onions caramelize, stirring constantly.
- Mash the potatoes and stir in the egg thoroughly. Add a bit more schmaltz if it's not smooth.
- Once the onions and mushrooms are ready, add them to the potatoes. Season with plenty of salt and pepper.
- Knead the dough a bit to warm it up.
- Roll out the dough as thin as you possibly can. For me, it helped to roll it as much as I could, then cut that much into quarters and roll that as much as I could, and finally to cut those quarters in half and roll each eighth to the appropriate thinness.
- Cut the dough into 3" diameter circles. Put a dab of filling in the middle of one, then put another over it and pinch at the edges. You can curl the edges back over onto themselves, too, and then pinch them down with a fork.
- Brush the top of each kreplach with a bit of egg yolk.
You only want to cook as many kreplach as you're going to eat immediately. Fortunately, kreplach freeze beautifully in an airtight container.
FREEZE: You want to minimize the exposure to air, while also laying them flat so they don't freeze together or deform. A trick I use for this sort of thing is to lay a zip-loc bag on top of a baking sheet, and then to put the kreplach inside the bag and freeze them. Once they're frozen, you can remove the baking sheet.
BOIL: Bring some water to a rolling boil. Place the kreplach in gently. They will sink straight to the bottom. They are almost done when they begin to rise to the top, after 4-6 minutes. Give it another minute or so more. Remove from the water. Serve immediately.
DO NOT DEFROST! You can boil them directly from the freezer; it just adds an extra minute or so to the cooking time.
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