Well, although I have a lot more to say on bread, I have to stop for a minute and write about just how hungry I get after a good Jung SuWon class.  Body, Mind, and Spirit all have to work together in perfect harmony, and that takes energy that must be replaced! 

Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim likes to challenge us and has us work hard!  I hear some people say the harder they work out, the less they feel like eating.  Not me!  The more I work out, the hungrier I get! 

So yesterday I remembered some good old rib-sticking Austrian food, comforting to body and soul, that my grandma used to make.  I can’t claim it came out as good as hers, but there sure werent’ any leftovers either! Here is an approximate recipe I received from a wonderful Austrian cook who also runs a restaurant there. 

This delicacy is called Schlipfkrapferl, and is basically the Austrian word for pirogi.  It seems like a whole lot of work, but it really isn’t, and you don’t need a detailed recipe either.  For a detailed recipe, let me see if I get permission to post it….

You can by some ready made won-ton skins if you want to do a short cut, but don’t expect that same taste.  Noodle dough is really easy to make.  I take some flour, maybe a couple of cups, make a well in the middle, and put in about 2 or so tablespoons of olive oil, some salt, and an egg or two, although it turns out just fine without the eggs too. 

Knead it all together into a soft, non-sticky dough, knead it well, and then cover it either with an upside down bowl, saran wrap, or whatever to keep it from getting dry on the surface.  Give that a break while you make the filling.  I usually have some cooked potatoes hanging out, just in case…..so I mashed those up, added salt, pepper, parmesan cheese, sauteed some garlic, onions and young spinach and added that to the potato mixture.  Season to taste. 

Put water into a pan – enough so that the Schlipfkrapferl have a lot of room to swim – add salt and a little olive oil, cover and bring to boiling.

Now put some flour on a work surface and roll out the noodle dough, fairly thin.  To cut out the dough, I usually take a mug upside down and cut out rounds like that.  But if you prefer triangles, or smaller or bigger rounds…whatever you like is just fine!

Put filling on the dough, and put a second round on the top, and with a fork, press around the edges and be careful not to let any filling ooze out.  Put these into the boiling water and boil (barely) for about 5 – 10 minutes. 

Lift them out of the water with a slotted spoon, and arrange on a platter.  If you want to be authentic, grate some cheese on them, and top with some onions that you have browned in butter.  Or, you can put any good spaghetti sauce over them, or simply eat plain as is.  Enjoy!

If this seems too complicated – tell yourself:  He can do She can do Why not me