Recipe for: Pierogi with cottage cheese and beet greens, drizzled with sage butter - photo 1
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Recipe for: Pierogi with cottage cheese and beet greens, drizzled with sage butter

Main dishes Vegetarian Dishes 90 min Medium 27 views ~21.67 PLN * - (0)
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Description

Delicate dumplings filled with creamy cottage cheese and fresh summer beet greens, served with aromatic sage butter. The dish combines the cool, slightly tangy flavor of the cottage cheese with the green, young taste of the beet green leaves and a refreshing hint of lemon (optional). The sage butter adds a salty, buttery finish with an herbal note. This classic Polish vegetarian dish is perfect as a light lunch or main course for a summer gathering; it pairs wonderfully with sour cream, dill, and fresh pickled cucumber. Textures: soft dough, creamy filling, crispy fried sage leaves.

Ingredients Used

Ingredients (13)

Servings:
4
  • Wheat flour 400 g
  • Chicken egg 1 pcs (~60 g)
  • Water 180 ml
  • Cottage cheese 400 g
  • Botwinka 1 bunch (~300 g)
  • Onion 1 pcs (~150 g)
  • Rapeseed oil 15 g
  • Butter 80 g
  • Sage 30 g
  • 🌿 Spices
  • Salt 8 g
  • Black pepper 4 pinch (~2 g)
  • ✨ Optional
  • Dill 1.5 bunch (~30 g)
  • Lemon 1.3 pcs (~100 g)
💰 Estimated dish cost: ~21.67 PLN (5.42 PLN/serving)
* Prices missing for some ingredients

💡 Click an ingredient to mark it as used

Preparation steps

Cake

1

Sift 400 g of wheat flour onto a clean work surface or into a large bowl. Make a deep well in the center of the flour. Crack one room temperature egg into the well. Add 3 g of salt (part of the total amount). Pour in about 120 ml of lukewarm water and start mixing with a fork, first incorporating the inner part of the well so that the flour gradually absorbs the liquid; add the remaining water (60 ml) if necessary, if the dough is too dry.

Ingredients: Wheat flour, Water, Salt
Use a large wooden spoon or a mixer with a dough hook. If you don't have a mixer, start mixing with a fork and then knead by hand. The water should be lukewarm (not hot).
2

Remove from the bowl and knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 6–8 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic; it should stop sticking strongly to your hands but remain soft. Shape into a ball, lightly brush with canola oil (about 1 teaspoon), place in a bowl, cover with a cloth, and let it rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Ingredients: Rapeseed oil
If you don't have a mixer with a hook, knead by hand for 6–8 minutes. Do not knead longer than 10 minutes, as the dough may become too tough.

Filling

3

Prepare the beet greens: thoroughly wash 300 g of beet greens, remove the thicker stems from the leaves, and chop the stems and leaves into strips about 0.5–1 cm wide. If you have small beets, slice them thinly.

Ingredients: Botwinka
Use a large cutting board and a sharp knife. Wash the leaves several times to remove sand from the stems. Do not squeeze too hard, leave some moisture.
4

Chop and peel 150 g of onion. Heat 15 g of rapeseed oil in a medium skillet (best with a diameter of 24–28 cm). Sauté the onion for 4–6 minutes until it becomes translucent and slightly golden. Add the chopped beet greens and sauté for another 4–5 minutes, stirring, until the beet greens soften and lose their raw smell. Finally, season with 1 g of salt and 1 pinch of black pepper.

Ingredients: Onion, Rapeseed oil, Botwinka, Salt, Black pepper
The pan should be well heated, but not very hot — fry on medium heat to avoid burning the onion. Use a wooden spatula for stirring.
5

Transfer the cooled mixture of beet greens and onion to a large bowl. Add 400 g of cottage cheese. Mash the cottage cheese with a fork or pass it through a sieve to achieve a smooth consistency. Add 1 g of salt, 1 pinch of pepper, and optionally finely chopped dill (30 g) and grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon) — mix everything thoroughly to create a uniform filling. Taste and season as needed.

Ingredients: Cottage cheese, Botwinka, Salt, Black pepper, Dill, Lemon
If the filling is too watery, drain the excess juice from the beet greens before adding it to the cheese. The filling should be moist but not liquid.

Shaping the dumplings

6

Divide the rested dough into two equal parts. Roll out one part on a floured surface to a thickness of about 2 mm. Cut out circles using a glass with a diameter of about 7–8 cm. Place a teaspoon of filling (about 15–18 g per pierogi) in the center of each circle.

Ingredients: Wheat flour, Cottage cheese, Botwinka
Use a glass or a cutter with a diameter of 7–8 cm. Don't add too much filling — the dumpling will be difficult to seal.
7

Moisten the edges of each circle with your finger, fold in half, and seal the edges tightly by pressing with your fingers to create a decorative crimped edge (you can use a fork to press the edges). Make sure the edges are sealed — the dumplings should not open while cooking.

Ingredients: Water, Wheat flour
Use a little water — too much will make the dough soggy. If the edges won't stick, dust them lightly with flour and try again.

Cooking and Finishing

8

In a large pot, bring 2 liters of water to a boil (use a larger pot so the dumplings have space). Add 5 g of salt to the water. When the water is boiling, add the dumplings in batches (do not add them all at once). Gently stir with a wooden spoon to prevent the dumplings from sticking to the bottom. Cook for 3–4 minutes from the moment they float to the surface (the dumplings should be soft, the dough not raw). Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate.

Ingredients: Salt, Water
Maintain a gentle simmer, not a vigorous boil, so the dumplings do not fall apart. If cooking in batches, keep the boiling temperature consistent.

Sage butter

9

In a separate pan, melt 80 g of butter over medium heat. When the butter starts to foam and takes on a slightly nutty aroma (3–4 minutes), add 30 g of sage leaves one by one and fry for 20–40 seconds until the leaves become crispy. Be careful — the sage can burn quickly. Turn off the heat and set the pan with the butter and sage aside.

Ingredients: Butter, sage
Use a non-stick frying pan with a diameter of 20–24 cm. The butter should be golden-brown — if it starts to darken or burn, reduce the heat.

Serving

10

Transfer the cooked dumplings to a plate. Drizzle them with hot sage butter so that some of the butter seeps onto the dumplings, and the crispy sage leaves are placed on top. If using, sprinkle with freshly chopped dill and drizzle with a few drops of lemon juice. Serve immediately while the butter is still fragrant.

Ingredients: Butter, sage, Dill, Lemon
Use a wide deep plate on which the dumplings will look nice. Additionally, you can serve sour cream in a bowl next to it.

Fun Fact

💡

Pierogi are one of the most recognizable dishes of Polish cuisine, and fillings made with cottage cheese are traditionally served both sweet and savory. The use of young beet greens is a summer variation – in the past, young beet leaves were used in the spring-summer season as a quick, colorful addition.

Best for

letni obiad rodzinne przyjęcie piknik (po wcześniejszym zgrillowaniu masła szałwiowego i schłodzeniu pierogów)

Tips

🍽️ Serving

Serve immediately after drizzling with sage butter so that the leaves remain crispy. Serve the dumplings with sour cream or natural yogurt and fresh dill. You can also briefly fry the dumplings in a pan after cooking to achieve a lightly browned crust.

🥡 Storage

Cooked pierogi should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. To reheat: sauté in a pan with a little butter for 3–4 minutes on each side or heat in the oven at 180°C for 8–10 minutes. Raw pierogi should be arranged in a single layer on a tray with flour and frozen; after freezing, transfer to a bag — cook without thawing, cooking time will increase by about 1–2 minutes.

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