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Patty Yeager and Renee Reisenweaver, founders of Traditions (Photo courtesy Traditions)
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Photo courtesy Traditions
As her partner, Renee Reisenweaver, kneads dough on a lightly floured countertop, Patty Yeager explains to me the precise texture the women are going for.
“It should be,” she says, “soft as a baby’s bottom.”
The women are making pierogies, an Eastern European delicacy that depends on perfectly worked dough. Get the texture right, and the result is wondrous — supple, chewy and savory, with soft potato and oozing cheese.
Neither woman will claim to be a master of her craft, but their tender bundles of deliciousness — available for order at their website, traditionsrva.com, or at the 36th annual Craft Bazaar at Church of the Redeemer in Mechanicsville on Nov. 18 — suggest otherwise.
Making pierogies is more than just a business for the two; it is an expression of family, and a link among the generations.
Though they belong to entirely different cultures — Reisenweaver is of Slovakian descent; Yeager’s family traces its roots back to Poland — both recall their mothers and grandmothers making huge batches of these dumpling-like treats.
Neither had thought to do anything with this knowledge, until one day years ago a fellow parishioner at Church of the Redeemer asked if anyone knew how to make pierogies. It was then they realized the tradition was in danger of being lost.
Deciding that they were the link to the future, the non-cooks — Reisenweaver teaches physics, Yeager works in sales — took it upon themselves to make pierogies for church events.
Their recipe calls not for milk, but sour cream, which they prefer for the flavor and pliability it brings to the dough. Seasonings vary wildly, from country to country and even from family to family, but Reisenweaver knew exactly which flavors she wanted. Unfortunately, when her father died, he took his pierogi-making secrets with him. Working from the spices she recalled, Reisenweaver meticulously approximated the flavor mixes.
In February of 2015, the partners were ready for their first test run. Enlisting their kids and other family members, they churned out nearly 5,000 pierogies, which were then frozen and sold at Lent in kits with butter and seasonings. The kits sold out quickly, setting in motion a plan to open a business.
Lucky for us, that plan became a reality, and we can get Traditions' fresh pierogies year-round now.
