Beet Leaf Holopchi

Our hosts for January were KatBaro of A good Appetite and Giz & Psychgrad from Equal Opportunity Kitchen. (The pictures through out this post are from Temperance of High on the Hog and Psychgrad of Equal Opportunity Kitchen. ) Here is KatBaro's post.

Happy New Year everyone. This month I am hosting the challenge with Giz & Psychgrad from Equal Opportunity Kitchen. For this month's recipe we chose a Ukrainian dish called Holopchi. It's a big like a cabbage roll but its not. It seemed like a good comfort dish for winter.

Here's the recipe along with some notes from Giz

Beet Leaf Holopchi
from The Keld Community Ladies Club in Ashville, Manitoba. The last publishing of this cookbook was 1976 and I doubt it's even in circulation anymore.

This is not your usual cabbage roll - can you imagine a bread dough wrapped in beet leaves and baked in a creamy, garlic, onion and dill sauce.

Bread Dough:

2 pkgs. yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp sugar
2 cups scalded milk
4 cups warm water
1/4 cup melted butter
8 cups flour
3 eggs, beaten
2 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp Sugar
6 1/2 cups flour
a couple bunches of beet leaves

Note: When I first saw this recipe I thought it was wrong - how many recipes need THAT much flour. I used the recipe and indeed had to add more to get the right consistency. AND I ran out of dough before I ran out of beet leaves.

Directions

1. Dissolve 1 ts. sugar in 1/2 cup tepid water, sprinkle with yeast and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. To the milk-water liquid add the melted butter, dissolved yeast and 8 cups of flour. Let rise in a warm place until double in bulk (about 1 hour)
3. Add salt, beaten eggs, sugar and remaining flour.
4. Knead well until dough is smooth and top with melted butter or oil.
5. Place in a warm place and let rise until double in bulk. It will take about 2 hours. Punch down . When dough has risen to double in bulk, place a piece of dough, the size of a walnut on a beet leaf and roll up (leaving sides open)
6. Place holopchi loosely in a pot to allow for dough to rise to double in bulk again.
7. Arrange in layers, dotting each layer with butter.
8. Cover tightly, bake in a moderate oven of 350 F for 3/4 to 1 hour. Serve with dill sauce or cream and onion sauce. (I like to cook the holopchi with the sauce but you don't have to. You can add it later - just make sure you have enough butter in roasting pan before layering your beet leaf rolls.)
I baked mine longer - about 1 1/2 hours and was happy with the result

Sauce

1/2 cup butter
2 cups whipping cream
8 small onions (I used chives)
2 handfuls of chopped fresh dill (this makes the whole dish)
2-4 large cloves of garlic, chopped fine

Melt butter in saucepan. Add onions (chives) garlic, dill and cream.
Let it come to a boil and then turn down the heat.
I like to cook the holopchi with the sauce but you don't have to. You can add it later - just make sure you have enough butter in roasting pan before layering your beet leaf rolls.

This is not a 5 minute recipe. When you commit to making it - it's an adventure - most definitely a worthwhile one. This recipe filled an open roaster and a turkey sized roaster.


From the Forum:

Even though I thought this was a very strange concept, I am reporting back to you all that it was quite good.
Lauren of I'll Eat You

It was wonderful! This was my first R2R and a 'keeper' recipe for sure.
Snapper of Our House In The Middle Of The Street

I tucked some pork chops under the holopchi and boy were they great, they came out so tender.
Temperance of High on the Hog