Revisiting Rations, Part 9: Gnome

Revisiting Rations, Part 9:  Gnome

What's this?  Looks like some sort of chicken nugget plate or something.  But hey, it's Monday, so it's time to get down to brass tacks.  Today, we discuss a ration fit for the diminutive folks with the pointy hats and fishing poles (okay, not really).  It's Gnomic food day!

What we have is a bowl full of what I'm calling pierogi roulette with some dilled cheddar cheese, an herbed mustard dipping sauce, and some mint schnapps.  Prost!

Pierogi

Let's start off with getting a fact straight:  pierogi is a plural word.  It's the plural form of pierog.  You don't order three pierogis, but rather three pierogi.  So what are they?

Well, they're little mini hand pies, basically.  They are a national dish of Poland and really quite good.  They can be filled with, well, almost anything, and these kind of are.  After making the pies/dumplings/ravioli/whatever you want to call them, you boil them, then fry them in butter and onions.  Traditionally, they are served with onions and sour cream, but we went a little different here (because I don't trust sour cream to last at all).

So, here, we have a pork, bacon, and leek pierog:

A potato, farmhouse cheese, and leek pierog (it's hard to get just a few leeks):

A mushroom and sauerkraut pierog:

A gingered sweet potato pierog:

And even a blueberry pie pierog.  This one has some cranberry and mulberry added as well:

These make handy, portable food, and while they are better fresh and hot, they can be munched on later.  The dough makes a handy barrier to keep everything nice and safe from any nastiness, and boiling and frying them helps to preserve said dough as well.

I should point out that these are seriously delicious.  This was a fun little ration to work on.

Herbed Mustard Sauce

Pierogi can be a somewhat dry experience.  There is a lot of dough and not a whole lot of moisture inside the delicious little dumplings, and as such they are nearly always served (in my experience) with sour cream (and sometimes applesauce).  However, we are focusing on rations and as such, I needed a sauce that would survive a day or so at room temperature.  Hence, this herbed mustard.  Chives, dill (of course), and a little bit of parsley were blended into one of my standard mustard recipes with just a little bit of honey for sweetening.  In case it's not obvious, someone (and I won't name who!) sampled a bit before shooting.

Dilled Cheddar Cheese

Disaster struck most of my cheese in the form of some weird bug that got into the waxed cheeses, causing them to spoil.  Oddly, the unwaxed cheeses came out fantastic and weren't touched by insects, so hey, there's an advantage.  In the future, any waxed cheeses are going to be sealed with plastic to prevent that from happening.  Lesson learned.  So, this dilled farmhouse cheddar is still going strong after months of aging.  It's hard, it's dry, it's crumbly, and it's delicious.

Mint Schnapps

It's the return of the cute little bottle!  Hint:  it's a Patron single-serving bottle, but it works wonders for showcasing liquers.  This is a neutral grain spirit that's been soaking up sugar and mint for a few months.  It definitely freshens your breath after a mustardy bite of pierogi, and it packs quite a punch, too.

How Long Will it Last?

Good question!  Here, the acidic mustard, the dried cheese, and the spirits aren't going anywhere as long as you keep them dry, cool-ish, and away from bugs.  The pierogi, of course, don't have quite the same shelf life, but they should easily last several days if one is careful not to break them open.  If you want to freshen them up, reheat with some butter and/or lard and they're delicious several days later.  Believe me, I've tried.

Also, oh my gosh I have my very first follower on this blog!  Thanks so much, and you know who you are!