Zuza says: “Avocado in pierogi shouldn’t work, but it does. Picture waking up in the morning, slightly worse for wear. You had enough foresight to think this could be the case, so you have some of these pierogi pre-made, already boiled and sitting on a tray, drizzled with a bit of oil and ready to fry. Someone makes a jug of spicy Bloody Mary, someone else makes a simple tomato salad, you fry the pierogi until they are crunchy. You eat these together and moods are immediately lifted. The party continues.This recipe is inspired by my mum’s friend Ewa Sobiecka, whose avocado pierogi my mum aTe during a recent visit. If you would like to make these pierogi ahead for a morning-after breakfast, I recommend putting the boiled pierogi on a tray drizzled with oil, then covering them with cling film (plastic wrap) once they are cool. Chill in the fridge for the next day.”

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 300g plain flour, plus extra to dust
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tbsp butter, melted
• large pinch of salt
• 100–120ml warm water (from a pre-boiled kettle)

For the filling:

• 2 avocados, finely diced
• 4 eggs, hard-boiled and finely diced salt and black pepper, to taste

For the tomato salad:

• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 1 shallot, finely chopped drizzle of olive oil

To serve

• 1 tbsp butter, melted soured cream

Method

Combine all the ingredients for the dough in a large bowl and mix by hand to form a ball. Turn out and knead the dough on a floured surface for 6–7 minutes, then cover with a clean, damp dish towel and allow to rest at room temperature for 20–30 minutes while you prepare the filling.

Combine the avocado and eggs in a bowl and season well.

Make the tomato salad by slicing the tomatoes and arranging them on a plate. Top with the shallot, drizzle with olive oil and season.

Roll the pierogi dough out thinly (about 0.5mm is ideal) on a floured surface and use your favourite method to shape, fill and seal the pierogi. Cutting out lots of circles is generally the method a beginner should start with. There is no need for special cutters; I usually use an upturned water glass. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the middle of each circle, fold the dough over and seal the edges.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the pierogi in batches. Once they float to the top, give them an extra minute before removing with a slotted spoon. Shake off any excess water and transfer to a warm dish with the melted butter in it. Before serving, fry the pierogi in the butter for 2 minutes on each side until golden and crispy. Serve with soured cream, if you like.

Zuza says: “My love of any kind of fermented milk product made me fall immediately in love with this flexible, slightly sour, buttermilk pierogi dough. Polish food blogger Joanna Ptasia introduced me to this brilliant recipe, which has been a hit with my bób-loving family ever since. Bób (broad beans) was actually one of my daughter’s first words.”

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the filling:

• 500g shelled fresh broad (fava) beans (shelled weight)
• 1 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed (canola) oil
• 80g feta cheese
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp finely chopped mint
• 1 tsp finely chopped basil
• pinch of fresh freshly grated nutmeg salt and white pepper

For the dough:

• 300g plain (all-purpose) flour, plus extra to dust
• 150ml buttermilk, plus a splash extra (optional)

To serve:

• 30g butter, melted handful of chopped herbs (such as mint, basil and dill)
• soured cream

Method

Make your filling by boiling the broad (fava) beans for about 20 minutes, then peel away and discard the outer skins. Mash the beans in a bowl with the rapeseed (canola) oil or pulse them in a food processor, if you prefer. Crumble in the cheese, add the lemon juice and mash to a paste. Add the chopped herbs and nutmeg, taste, then season with salt and white pepper. To make the dough, put the flour in a bowl and pour in the buttermilk with one hand while mixing with the other. Once it comes together, stop adding the buttermilk (you may not need it all, so add it slowly) and form the dough into a ball. If you’ve added all your buttermilk and it’s still a little dry, add a splash more.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil.

Knead the dough for 6–7 minutes on a lightly floured surface, then cover and allow to rest for 20–30 minutes at room temperature. Roll out as thinly as you can (about 0.5mm is perfect).

Use your favourite method to shape, fill and seal the pierogi, placing them on a lightly floured surface as you go. Cutting out lots of circles is generally the method a beginner should start with. There is no need for special cutters; I usually use an upturned water glass. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the middle of each circle, fold the dough over and seal the edges.

Boil the pierogi in batches until they float to the surface, then give them an extra minute. Remove the cooked pierogi with a slotted spoon, shake off any excess water and transfer them to a bowl with the melted butter.

Once all the pierogi are ready, make sure that they are all well coated in the melted butter and sprinkle over the chopped herbs to serve. Serve with soured cream, if you like.

Zuza says: “I created these beauties for a supper club, and they were such a massive hit that everyone had seconds! To make the dough a custardy yellow, you simply need to use egg yolks from hens that eat a varied diet with a lot of cornmeal, marigolds and the like. In Poland, there’s a farm we visit where the hens have a lovely life and eat mainly cornmeal and the yolks are also deep yellow. In the UK, I have found that Burford Brown eggs have the desired bright yolks. Investigate farmers’ markets near where you live.”

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the stewed rhubarb:

• 5 rhubarb stalks, cut into 2cm chunks
• 3 tbsp caster sugar
• 4 tbsp water
• 1 tsp rosewater

For the custard dough:

• 150g plain flour, plus extra to dust
• 1 deep yellow egg yolk
• 1 tbsp butter, melted
• large pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 50–60ml  warm water (from a pre-boiled kettle)

For the pink dough:

• 150g plain flour
• 1 tbsp beetroot powder
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tbsp butter, melted
• large pinch of salt
• 50–60ml warm water (from a pre-boiled kettle)

For the filling:

• 250g of white cheese, such as ricotta
• 1 egg yolk
• 3 tbsp vanilla sugar, or 3 tbsp caster sugar plus 1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
• 5 tbsp stewed rhubarb (from above)

For the custard:

• 300ml whole milk
• 1 vanilla pod, split lengthways
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 2 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)

To serve:

• 2 tbsp melted butter, for frying

Method

First, stew the rhubarb, as it needs time to cool. Put the rhubarb in a pan with the sugar and the water. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer until the sugar dissolves and the rhubarb falls apart; 7–8 minutes should do it. Add the rosewater near the end of the cooking time. Stir and allow to cool.

Make the doughs: I like to do this in two separate bowls. Starting with the custard dough, bring all the ingredients together with one hand, while pouring the water in slowly with the other. Mix the dough in the bowl at first and once it comes together, turn it out onto a floured work surface and knead for 6–7 minutes until it feels elastic. Cover with a clean, damp dish towel, while you make the pink dough in the same way.

Once you have made both doughs, combine the two and knead together for a minute or two, so that the combined dough has a marbled look. Cover with a clean, damp dish towel and allow to rest at room temperature for about 20–30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the filling. First, mash the soft cheese with a fork in a bowl with the egg yolk, then start adding the vanilla sugar (or caster/superfine sugar and vanilla extract) and finally, add half of the stewed rhubarb.

Roll the rested dough out onto a floured surface as thin as you can get it (about 0.5mm is ideal) and use your favourite method to shape, fill and seal the pierogi, placing the shaped and filled pierogi on a floured surface as you go. Cutting out lots of circles is generally the method a beginner should start with. There is no need for special cutters; I usually use an upturned water glass. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the middle of each circle, fold the dough over and seal the edges.

Meanwhile, make the custard. Pour the milk into a pan, scrape the vanilla seeds from the pod and add the seeds and the pod to the milk. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat off and allow to cool down to warm. Remove and discard the pod.

In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour (cornstarch). Add the milk a little at a time, whisking constantly.

Pour the mixture back into the cleaned pan over a low heat and continue to whisk. Once the mixture thickens, remove from the heat and pour into individual deep plates.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the pierogi in batches. When they float to the top, give them 1–2 minutes extra. Remove with a slotted spoon, shake off any excess water, and transfer to a frying pan with the melted butter in it. Fry for 1 minute on each side until slightly crispy.

Serve the pierogi on top of the custard with the remaining stewed rhubarb in the middle.

Pierogi by Zuza Zak (£18, Quadrille) is out now