Food traditions can connect family members across generations. Traditional Christmas foods worldwide include Italy’s Feast of Seven Fishes and England’s Christmas pudding. Another family food tradition might be rising before the sun and making frybread or tamales for hundreds of others, or simply eating a particular food or beverage together over conversation. Food connects us, and its preparation and consumption are activities that can bridge members of multiple generations.
Theresa Bigos, a Sun City resident, has a family tradition of making pierogis for Christmas.
Bigos said, “Our pierogi recipe has been a family tradition passed on from generation to generation. It goes back to my grandmother, Busia, in Poland, teaching my mother how to make them. From there, my mother and I continued making them together.”
Bigos continued the tradition, teaching her daughter, Jennifer Jacobsen, the art of pierogi making.
Jacobsen said, “We make them by hand. We have tried using the presses you can get, but we have the making down to a science, and it works best with our hands.”
The history of the pierogi is somewhat unclear, but the dish is believed to have originated in the 13th century; some say they were brought to Poland from the Far East via Kyivan Rus (modern-day Ukraine).
St. Hyacinth is the patron saint of pierogis, and there are several legends about his connection to the dish. One legend says he brought pierogi back to Krakow from Kyiv, while another says he was gifted pierogi after saving the Polish people from starvation during the Mongol invasion.
Bigos shared, “Now we have a group of master makers that include my daughter, daughter-in-law, granddaughters, and recently joining us, a granddaughter-in-law. It’s wonderful to see our family come together to continue this tradition.”
The first written recipe for pierogis appeared in Compendium Ferculorum, Poland’s first cookbook, published in 1682.
Jacobsen said, “My mom won a contest for her pierogi recipe. It was in the April 2007 issue of America’s Top Recipes.”
Jacobsen and Bigos with family making pierogis. (Photo provided)
The process of making the dish is elaborate.
Bigos said, “We have quite a system. I make the dough. My daughter, daughter-in-law, and granddaughter-in-law roll, fold, and fill the dough. The granddaughters boil, cool, and gently put them in pans, with each pan marked with the contents. We make close to 300. They are filled with potato, cheese, meat sauerkraut, and some blueberry.”
Jacobsen fondly recalled, “When I was younger, I always looked forward to the day we made the dish. I remember writing a note on Mom’s original recipe card: ‘Yeah, Pierogi Day in two days!’ The anticipation and joy were palpable.”
Many associate the dish with Poland, where it’s considered a national dish. Pierogi is a tradition at the Polish Christmas feast.
Bigos said, “There’s some work and time involved, but the outcome is rewarding. It’s a labor of love. When ready to serve the pierogis, they are pan-fried with butter and onions. We serve them on Christmas Eve, Wigilia. It’s delicious, or smaczny!”
Theresa and Jennifer wish the community “Merry Christmas, Wesolych Swiat.”
