Pierogi Lasagna

This is the best recipe I have tried in a LONG time. When John and I first moved in together three summers ago I had very limited cooking abilities. I could make pasta, rice-a-roni, and chicken. Oh and I could defrost frozen things. One of those frozen creations that I made frequently was pierogies. I would buy the box, toss them in a pan with butter, and call it dinner. Luckily for John and I my cooking has improved a little since those days (although there is something to be said for low maintenance meals!) When I saw this recipe for pierogi lasagna I knew I needed to make it immediately. All I can say is this was incredible. John and I both loved it and I will definitely be making it again.

The recipe below is for the quantities of the original recipe, which makes 12 servings. I made 1/3 of the recipe and it still made a lot of food! My friend Maria was here during the cooking process and I had so much extra potato mixture that I fed her a heaping bowl of the mashed potatoes. All in all, a huge success. So my advice is to make this now! And I should also add, my pictures don't do this justice... check out the original recipe to get a better idea of the look of this amazing lasagna!

Ingredients:

1 lb lasagna noodles
4 lbs red or white potatoes
1/4 c sour cream (optional) (I didn't use it)
1/2 c milk
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 c butter (1.5 sticks)
1 onion, sliced in rings (omitted)

Directions:
Cook the noodles. Chop potatoes into 1" cubes, place in pot of cold water (enough to cover), and allow to come to a boil. Continue boil until potatoes are soft enough to yield to a fork stab. Drain, mash, blend with a mixer. Toss in the optional sour cream and milk, mix some more. Add salt to taste. Stir in cheddar.

Melt all the butter over medium-high heat, then sautee onion until the rings no longer hold their shape.

Preheat oven to 375. Grease the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with some of the onion-butter. Lay noodles on the bottom of the dish, then spread the potatoes, a dollop at a time, along the length of each noodle. Once done, smooth the potatoes, then spread about a quarter of the onion on top, and drizzle a small amount of butter as well. Repeat this twice (or more if your dish can accommodate), then top with noodles and the remainder of the onions and butter.

Pop in the oven for 20 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes before cutting and serving.