Mock Pierogi

Clap hands, squeal with glee, if your polish and you know it clap your hands too. Thanks to Auntie Sue's creativity that got away with her one Sunday afternoon, and several test runs at various gatherings, you no longer have to make Pierogi the long handed way or suffer through bad brands of frozen ones, when the craving hits! And what's wonderful about this recipe, is you have a few flavors deliciously combined into one.. my stomach is deeply growling right now, this dish will be made later on this week!
Serve this with your favorite Kielbasa/Polish or other smoked sausage. Works great with just about any other kind of meat as well... Pork Roast... Roast Chicken.. okay memo to me.. do not write on blog site when getting close to dinner time, especially when its a recipe as good as this one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If there is a flavor or ingredient you do not like in here, substitute it or take it out, and it will still be just as delicious. I personally do not always use the sauerkraut and brown sugar...

1 Box of Medium Sized Shell Noodles

1 Bag of Sauerkraut ( 1 large can of kraut will work too, Auntie Sue and I just prefer the bagged)

6 slices to 1 pound of bacon, cooked separately then crumbled into nice semi-coarse crumbles

1 container of fresh button or baby portabella (Cremini) mushrooms, cleaned, stems removed and sliced, sauteed in butter separately.

1-2 Large onions (depending on how much onion you like)

1 handful of brown sugar ( Or to taste, if you want sweeter use more, less sweeter use less or none at all)

1 stick of butter

Small Curd Cottage Cheese ( Small or Large container depending on your taste)

Salt, Pepper and Garlic Powder to Taste

Start your pasta water, you need the noodles to be fresh and hot when tossing it with the sauce.

Rinse the kraut really well, then drain. Push it down in the colander until you get all the water out. (or use the kitchen towel method) Then take the kraut place on a cutting board and give it a rough chop. set aside. Clean and de stem mushrooms, saute in a about 2-3 tablespoons of butter. (do not add salt to them while cooking or they will loose their moisture.) In a frying pan melt a stick of butter and add the chopped onion. (you may need a little more butter depending on how much onion you use). Add kraut and saute together until onions are translucent and soft (not brown) Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste and a handful of brown sugar ( now with my hands and Auntie Sue's hands, which are about the same size, a handful means about 3/4 to 1 loose cup) Drain noodles, put into warm serving bowl, dump in cottage cheese immediately then the bacon, mushrooms and kraut mixture. Remember, you can add more, delete ingredients to whatever your taste is. Another delicious option, if you do not want to use shell noodles, are making my potato dumplings and using them instead of the noodles. The recipe can be found under side dishes.