Giant Perogy in Glendon, Alberta

A figure of a giant perogy (complete with giant fork), appears as a roadside attraction in the town of Glendon, Alberta.  The perogy stands at 25 feet tall. 

Fun fact: Glendon is also home to Stanley "Steamer" Smyl,  former NHLer and captain of the Canucks for 8 seasons.  Stan Smyl's number 12 was retired at the Pacific Coliseum in 1991, the first in Cancuck's history.

How To Eat A Perogy

There are various ways to eat a perogy meal, depending on one's preference.  First of all, a perogy is ready to be eaten once the dumpling comes out of its boiling water bath, and is quite tasty on its own with some cooked onions, olive oil or butter, and a little salt.  Some people like to fry them up in a pan until they are slightly browned on each side -  this gives a more crispy texture to the perogy.  As a child, I personally would never eat a perogy without some sour cream on the side (yes, what a brat), but now I like to eat them with plain yogourt, or just as is.

The perogies that I will be making here at Gran Pacifica will be made with olive oil (instead of butter), and lightly cooked in a pan with some onions.  Currently I am only making the potato and cheddar cheese variety, but in the near future I will vary the menu and add a potato, cheese and sausage (or bacon) option.

Perogies can easily be kept in the fridge for a few days and then heated up on the stove or in the microwave.  They freeze well also.  Just to note, I will only ever be serving fresh perogies, never ones that have been frozen.

A Classic Video of Baba Making Perogies

It's a great video of Baba in action - taken in Baba's kitchen by Tasha a couple of years ago.

Click on this youtube link to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET4ej_rmKoM

Baba, keeping her head warm

Perogy, Pierogi, Pyrohy

Perogies are a traditional Eastern European food, commonly found in countries such as Poland, Ukraine, and Russia.  The typical perogy is made with unleavened dough and stuffed with cheese, potato and onion, although there are many variations.  There are also different spellings for theses delicious dumplings; in Poland it is pierogi (the singular being pierog), in Ukraine it is pyrohy, and in Canada it is usually called perogy (dumbed down a bit, I suppose).  My grandfather was Ukranian, and my grandmother Polish, so I will be diplomatic here and use the simplified, Canadian preferred "perogy".

Baba- The Original Perogy Maker

My grandparents Peter and Helena Zobolotny (known as Gigi and Baba to their grandchildren), circa 1957


  My sister Tasha and I plan to open up our perogy shop in honour of our Baba, who made perogies in her kitchen until she was 90 years old.  Baba's perogies were meticulously made- a process that went on all day - and of course they were always made with love.

A Perogy is Made

photo to be uploaded soon.

Step Three- Assembling the Dumplings

Cooking the dumplings

The cheese and potato stuffed dumplings, ready to be dropped into a pot of boiling water

Me, toiling away in the perogy kitchen

Step Two- The Dough

The first dumplings

The rolled out dough

The ingredients

Step One - The Filling

The mashed potato, cheese and onion filling

Grated sharp cheddar cheese

Peeled potatoes boiling

Onions frying