Vareniki are a traditional Ukrainian dish that is usually made with a berry, veggie, or meat filling. I love berry vareniki so I used cherries, blueberries, and strawberries that were already in my fridge and made the dough from scratch. My mother-in-law shared this super easy way to make these sweet treats and it really cuts prep time down because I used a mold that makes about 38 at a time and is super easy to use! If you want to purchase this mold, or others (they have oreshitsi, pelmenitsi, and varenitsi) you can give them call (503) 698-8057 and ask for Nadya. 

Ingredients for vareniki dough:

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 cup of sunflower oil

5 cups flour

Ingredients for the filling:

berries

1/2 cup of sugar 

This is the varenitsa I used because I'm too lazy to make these by hand, but if you like making vareniki by hand, more power to you! 

1. Rise and mince all your berries. Using the whisk attachment on medium speed, whisk your milk, eggs, and oil until well blended. Then using your dough hook, add the flour (one cup at a time) and salt until well blended (this usually takes roughly 20 minutes).

2. Using the whisk attachment on medium speed, whisk your milk, eggs, and oil until well blended. Then using your dough hook, add the flour (one cup at a time) and salt until well blended (this usually takes roughly 20 minutes). Then wrap your dough in plastic wrap until you are ready to use it so the dough doesn't dry out.

3. Cut a piece of the dough and roll it out into a big circle making sure it stays nice and thick so when the bottom layer stretches, your dough doesn't rip or start coming apart from the top layer. Then, place it onto the varenitsa and start putting in your filling. I used about a quarter tsp of filling per varenik. Once your filling is in, add a pinch of sugar to each varenik. (Helpful tip: push down a little on the berries. This will make it easier to roll out your vareniki).

4. Next, roll out the top layer and place it over the berries, making sure the whole bottom layer is covered by the top layer. Then, roll out your vareniki and place them onto a cutting board and dust them with a bit of flour.

5. Fill a pot with water and let it boil. Then, gently place your fresh or frozen (do not defrost) vareniki into the boiling water and stir. Lower the temperature to medium/high and stir occasionally. Once they have floated to the top, cook for another 3 minutes and drain the water. Place the vareniki into a plate or bowl and add a little bit of butter to them so they don't stick to each other.

6. Serve your warm vareniki with sour cream, berries, sugar, or any other side you like and enjoy!