Wareneki

If you can't speak German . .I'm dreadfully sorry for yesterdays riddle .. .
Say it with me. .
Vah. . ren. . eh. .chea. .
For the life of me. . I don't know why it is spelled with a W instead of a V. .
you might have guessed if I said started with a V. .
or. .
you might have guessed if I would have called it perogies. .
but alas. . I'm a Mennonite gal. . .
and so we say. .
say it again. .
Vah. . ren. .eh. . chea. .
Yes, one of the smartest things I did when my newly acquired husband 30 years ago ..
said .. .stay home and cook .. .
I stayed at home and cooked.
I grew up in a time that women still were often in the home being homemakers. .
it never seemed odd to us that I would do this as well.
I laugh now at the pictures of him before the wedding and then again a year after the wedding.
I fattened that boy up a bit.
I learned to make noodles and vah. . .(say it). . ren. .eh. .chea. .
and made him smile. .
At nineteen years old. . . I understood from my mother. .
. . .that it would be in my best interest to learn to cook. .
almost as good as his mother. .
so that is what I focused on.
His mother is seriously the best cook. . everything she makes is fantastic. .
but. . .
I figured out what her son liked to eat. . .and then . . .
I made it. . .more often than she did. .
and . . .
voila. .
I had him eating out of my hand. . .for life.
When he came home after a hard day at work ..
there I was. . .with a smirk. . . and a kitchen full of wonderful smells. .
I had learned a few other things from my mom as well. . .
but that is enough of a lesson for today. .
Have a wonderful day my friends. .
oh the recipe. . its on the MGCC blog .. of course.

Comments

  1. After someone guessed "Wareneki" yesterday, I googled it and thought "yum." I did my wifely duty and fattened my DH up quite nicely, but I succeeded (or would that be a failure?) in fattening myself up, too. (Gotta start walking again...)

    I grew up with German grandparents and that inspired me to study German in high school and college, but I've forgotten so much. I do remember that W is pronounced like V and V is pronounced like F and I remember only one full sentence from all that studying. Oh, well. (Boy, could my German grandma cook! I wish I had written down more of her recipes.)

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  2. Loved your post Lovella..I did the same thing, I stayed home, took care of the children, cooked and cleaned and never thought anything about it. I've always been glad that I could. My Mom didn't allow me to make anything with yeast so I learned the hard way after I was married...oh my the first buns I ever baked were only edible warm from the oven..we could have played hardball with them later...hehe. Oh yeah and wareneki, those also took a few tries to get them right.

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  3. Oh silly me...why did I not think of this. My family favorite...even the main item at the reunion. Nice...did you post on MGCC? I have waiting for someone to do so. Hey..have any leftovers? I'll be over for them. We all know they taste even better the second day around...pan fried (mom would do so in bacon drippings). Yum...okay. I'll be there in a flash.!

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  4. Well I might have guessed if you said V and i. Who am I kidding I so thought it was something to do with a car or truck renovation. We spell it with a v and pronounce it vareniki. You have got my mouth watering. I'm so happy I'll be around for the making of the vareniki this year with my family for Christmas.

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  5. I can say it...I can spell it...I can eat it...but I'm not sure I can cook it! I've never tried making wareneki...always left that to my MIL who made the best. She kept my freezer stocked...and Heidi and I would cook up a few plum perogies to have for a snack on occasion (with Roger's golden syrup...yum). I might have to check out the recipe...wouldn't my daughter be surprised if I showed up with plum perogies again one day?

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  6. My mother never cooked Mennonite food, although my grandmother did sometimes - so it was always a treat to eat at her place when she did. Yours look so delicious - can't even compare to the watery or pasty commercial ones out there.
    Lori T

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  7. I love your words, "there I was . . . with a smirk".

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  8. Oh.. the old saying .."The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" is as true today as it ever was !! I still tease Vic when he is all happy at meal time!

    Just one clarification ... The German W is named (vigh - as in might) hence the German W sounds like our English V.

    I'm going to try your Wareneki recipe !!

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  9. This advise is more precious than diamonds! I never figured it out until a few years into our marriage. I always thought I was in competition with my mother-in-law and to alieviate that, I avoided all the recipes that she used. That way she was always special. It sort of worked, Ray still put on weight, but I think she may have taken it more of a compliment if I had asked for her assistance, and used her recipes. Oh well, we each eventually find our own way of smoothing out all the waters, and keeping out men happy! :)

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  10. i SO agree with your advice. the tastes down here in southern california are nothing like the ones i grew up with, so i've had to ask for a lot of josh's favourite recipes from my mil and other friends. i also discovered a few new ones on my own and my hubby now claims i'm a great cook! (i don't think he'd claim i'm the BEST cook, he's got to leave that to his own mother!) oh, your picture of wareneki made my mouth water. my mom used to make some with sour cherries, those were my favourite!

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  11. Looks like some of us have spent the time doing similar things.
    I wouldn't have traded it for anything.
    But there were times when I envied the women out there making the big Buck, but what is the big Buck when you have happiness.

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  12. Stay home and cook...ah, those were great years, with home baked bread daily, veggies from the garden, and I never made anything twice...too many recipes to try or invent.

    Tonight we went out for dinner again. It was fun, but I am wistful for the opportunity to settle in and make a great pot of soup and home made bread again. Espeically with the fall colors beginning around here. It will happen...soon. And I'm thinking I might give Wareneki a while.

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  13. Our absolute family favorite food! The food of aunties, freezers, weddings, celebrations, and family reunions. The food my English mother learned to make as a young bride. Something so very, very yummy! Loved the post ---

    LaTeaDah

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  14. You make me laugh! I am avoiding this recipe like the plague. But someday when I need to do some serious buttering up, I'll know where to land.

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  15. isn't it fun when they walk in the door....and say, "honey, I'm ho.........Oh, BOY am I home!!! then grin from ear to ear and say... "lasagna"?....or .... "lemon chicken"? ..... or whatever their experienced nose tells them..... I love it.... wish I had been able to stay home all of my life. I never wanted to go out to work...

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