2010 marks the sixth year that I have hosted an annual Pierogi Party at my house. And in 2010, I expanded…I also helped organzie a Pierogi Party for my family back in Wisconsin. Let me explain, and there are plenty of pictures, too.
In 1990 I moved from Wisconsin to Florida. It was hard at times being away from my family at Christmas, but part of the way I remained “in touch” was to celebrate Christmas Eve just like we did “back home.” Over the years, i have learned a lot more about that tradition and its history, but I have never failed to celebrate it.
Christmas Eve dinner in Polish homes i called Wigilia and consists of many different traditional foods. One of them is pierogi, hand made and stuffed rounds of dough that are boiled and sometimes fried. Because they are quite labor intense, they are considered very special and often times only made at Christmas time for Wigilia. I’ve always made my own pierogi, having learned how many years ago at the side of the expert, my mother.
Some years ago I made a new friend in Orlando, the wife of a coworker, Ewa. Ewa is originally from Poland, but she claims that I am more Polish than she is. So it happened that six years ago we decided to celebrate Wigilia together and in preparation for that, got together a few weeks earlier to make pierogi. And so our tradition was born, the Pieorgi Party. In 2010, we held the sixth annual Pierogi Party. Over the years the participation has varied, but always has included Ewa and her huband Joe, along with me.
This year I was fortunate to spend Thanksgiving in Wisconsin with my family. The holiday are always a busy time, and I know that by the time Christmas is close, both my mother and my sister Jean are running around trying to do many things, including making pierogi for their family gatherings (Jean and some of her family live 4 hours away and so they often celebrate Wigilia at her house for her family). Add to the mix, my niece Lexi wanted to learn how to make pierogi. She is currently studying Polish (as an elective) in college and has taken an interest in Polish things.
And so I decided (decreed was more like it) that the Friday after Thanksgiving, a bunch of us would gather at Mom’s (grandma’s) and make pierogi. We made about 18 dozen, 9 of sauerkraut and mushroom, and 9 of potato and cheese. We then froze them and divied them up, some for Jean and her Wigilia, and the rest for Mom and hers. And, even though I’ll be miles away at home in Florida, I’ll be a part of their gatherings as I helped make them as well.
So, this year, in 2010, I was at two pierogi parties. And I’ve posted a bunch of pictures to document some of the fun. They are posted here: http://poland.leonkonieczny.com/Albums/2010%20Pierogi%20Parties/. Bardzo Smaczne!
