BIEROCKS TOTALLY ROCK!!!

On our last trip to Ithaca (Dec), we stopped at the Farmer's Market http://www.ithacamarket.com/home.php
to get a bite to eat before heading out to start our Holiday Shopping Spree at the Cayuga Lake wineries. The Farmer's Market has an array of different ethnic food vendors so there's a lot to choose from. While walking down the isle I noticed a sign on a warming/steaming pot... HOT STUFFED BUNS $1.50 each!

Well, that hit the spot. It was a cold and windy day. This is just what we need. They had a choice of 3 kinds but I only remember 2 of them because those are the ones that we bought. We got one that was onion and bacon and the other was spinach, feta and garlic. And YES, I took pictures of them as we were driving!

They look like softballs. They were DELICIOUS!!! We couldn't stop talking about them. We were disecting the insides with every bite!

After we got home I posted the question, on my favorite web site, of what these buns were actually called because I wanted to make them. I found out that they were called Bierocks, sometimes referred to as Runza. They are German and often made with cabbage and ground beef.

I went on http://www.allrecipes.com/ and found a recipe that got good reviews. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pams-Bierocks/Detail.aspx

I used that recipe for the dough and then made our version of the fillings as we remembered them from our trip. The recipe made 18. I thought there would be a lot left over for another dinner. WRONG!!! All 18 were eaten! I didn't stuff the ones with the onions and bacon enough but the flavor was still there! We will be making these quite often.

Pam's Bierocks
SUBMITTED BY: PUSHKEMAA PHOTO BY: Michelle S "A German dish, these sweet dinner rolls are stuffed with ground beef, onion, and cabbage. A great alternative to the Finnish pasty!"

PREP TIME
50 Min
COOK TIME
25 Min
READY IN
1 Hr 30 Min
Original recipe yield 20 stuffed rolls

INGREDIENTS

2 cups warm water
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup margarine, softened
1 egg
2 teaspoons salt
7 cups all-purpose flour

I didn't make this filling but this was part of the recipe
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
6 cups shredded cabbage
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup melted butter

**The fillings that I used are:

-I defrosted a box of frozen chopped spinach and squeezed out the water. I then mixed it with crumbled up Feta Cheese and chopped garlic. There were no measurements. I just added until I liked the flavor.

-I sauteed chopped onions and chopped smokey bacon that we got from Oscar's Smoke House in Warrensburgh., NY. http://www.oscarssmokedmeats.com/

I'll miss going there being that it was a must stop on the way home from Plattsburgh.

And that's it. Replace those filling recipes in place of the filling part below *.

DIRECTIONS
Prepare dough: In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Mix in sugar, margarine, egg, salt and 1/2 of the flour. Beat until smooth; add remaining flour until dough pulls together. Place in oiled bowl. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight, OR let it rise for 1 hour.
*In a large heavy skillet, brown meat. Add onion, cabbage, salt and simmer 30 minutes. Cool until lukewarm. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C.) Coat a cookie sheet with non-stick spray.
Punch down dough and divide into 20 pieces. Spread each piece of dough out on an un-floured surface and fill with approximately 2 tablespoons filling. fold dough over and seal edges. Place on prepared cookie sheet and let rise for 1 hour.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Brush with butter and serve.