ERIE, Pa. (AP) - It does not matter which side of 90 Mary Mroz is on. On a Saturday morning in March, at the home of one of her four daughters, the loving and energetic family matriarch of four generations was on a roll.
For more than a half-century, Mroz - the last remaining member of 10 siblings of the Dylewski family - has joined the women of the family in making pierogis for Lent, using the recipes that her mother created long ago.
“It’s all about family, but if you’re a stranger, there’s always a chair available to sit down and join us,” Mroz said while at the head of the table where she is rolling out dough with her daughters, grandchildren and great-grandson.
With Mroz at the center of the production, the kitchen of daughter Pat Devine was abuzz with activity. The group made the dough, then boiled, baked and fried various ingredients to fill the pastries. Mary Mroz pushed the rolling pin to flatten the dough, and her helpers cut circles either 5 or 6 inches in diameter to make four batches of pierogis, 48 per batch. They are freezing them until Easter weekend.
“Busha, can I cut this one?” asked great-grandson Matt Bond, son of Devine’s daughter Jennifer. The 9-year-old then, under Mroz’s watchful eye, pressed the oval cutter for the circle of dough. Made of flour, eggs, baking powder, salt and water, the dough is wrapped around various fillings. The leftover dough is cut into noodles, fried and seasoned for a tasty treat called haluski.
“Everybody has a preference, so there is, like, six or seven different recipes we have,” granddaughter Jennifer Bond said. “There are fillings with cheddar cheese, farmer’s cheese, seasoned mashed potatoes, sour cream, caramelized onions, chives, peppers and sauerkraut. They are all delicious.”
Laughter and chatter filled the kitchen as the process went on for hours, everybody taking turns at the work stations.
In the thick of it, Mroz, who also has two daughters who live in Colorado, remains as sharp as the kitchen utensils she uses.
“Mom gets around very well, and even though we don’t want her to do it, she is still able to drive to the store, go to church or do errands without any help,” her daughter Chris Bayle said. “She’ll never tell you her age, and the way she acts, no one would believe her anyway.”
Polish family customs stand the test of time. Mroz’s niece Kate Ditrich said the pierogi production will move to her home in 2015.
“Everybody takes their turn between the Mroz family and my family, the Lozowskis,” Ditrich said. “We participate in the Wigilia (a Christmas Eve meatless supper celebration), and on Easter Saturday the blessing of the baskets. And it still revolves around Aunt Mary.”
Ditrich’s daughter Emily Bell drove in for the pierogi session from Burlington, N.J. She brought along the latest fourth-generation member to the pierogi party, 8-month-old granddaughter Lillian.
“We want to start them young, though this never gets old,” Ditrich said.
“It’s well worth the trip to be part of this,” Bell said. “I think Lillian senses the excitement.”
The heady aromas and flavors of these well-loved specialty foods heighten the anticipation of Easter weekend for all involved.
“They even taste better because it’s done with love,” Mroz said.
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Information from: Erie Times-News, https://www.goerie.com
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