Linyvi Varenyky (ліниві вареники, lazy curd dumplings)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •A wide pot
• •A slotted spoon
• •A clean tea towel or cheesecloth for draining curd
• •A lightly floured board

Instructions

1. 1

   Dry the curd

   If your curd cheese feels wet, wrap it in a clean cloth and squeeze gently over the sink. You want it crumbly and damp, not leaking. Wet cheese asks for too much flour, and too much flour is how lazy varenyky lose their tenderness.

   Supermarket cottage cheese works if you drain it well and press out the loose whey. A bit more modern, but it still feeds people properly.
2. 2

   Mix the dough

   Mash the curd with the egg, sugar, salt, and vanilla if using, then stir in the flour. Stop when it comes together as a soft, slightly sticky dough. It should hold its shape when pressed, but still feel tender under your fingers, not tight or rubbery.

3. 3

   Shape the pillows

   Dust the board lightly with flour and divide the dough into four pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about as thick as your thumb, then cut on the slant into small pillows. Press each one lightly with the side of a knife or your finger if you want a ridge for butter to cling to.

   Keep the dusting flour light. Flour belongs on the outside for handling, not worked deep into the dough where it can make the dumplings heavy.
4. 4

   Boil until floating

   Bring a wide pot of salted water to a lively boil, then lower it so the surface moves but does not throw the dumplings around. Drop in half the varenyky and stir once from the bottom so none stick. When they float, let the water settle back into its gentle sound, then lift them out with a slotted spoon.

   Boil one test dumpling first. If it frays badly, knead a spoonful more flour into the dough. If it comes out dense, leave the rest alone and handle them more gently.
5. 5

   Butter and serve

   Slide the hot dumplings into a warm bowl with butter and turn them carefully until glossy. Serve at once with cold smetana, a little sugar, and sour cherry jam if you have it. The contrast is the whole pleasure: warm curd, cool cream, sharp fruit.

Chef Tips

• •Dry curd is the deciding ingredient. If yours is wet, drain it first; adding handfuls of flour to fix wet cheese gives you heavy dumplings.
• •The dough forgives uneven shapes. It does not forgive rough boiling, so keep the water moving gently once the dumplings go in.
• •For a savory bowl, leave out the sugar and vanilla, add a little more salt, and serve with butter, smetana, and dill. Not every morning wants sweetness.
• •Leftovers are excellent pan-fried in butter until golden at the edges. That second-day breakfast has its own little following.

Advance Preparation

• •Drain wet cottage cheese the night before in the fridge if needed.
• •The shaped dumplings can wait on a floured tray in the fridge for a few hours. Cook them from cold, straight into the water.
• •Cooked leftovers keep chilled for 2 days and are best reheated in a buttered pan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 210g)