Each October 8th, pierogy fans everywhere take a moment to honor the rich history and flavorful traditions of one of the country's most treasured and tasty comfort foods. This year's National Pierogy Day celebration is doubly delicious, because Mrs. T's Pierogies, the largest producer of frozen pierogies in the U.S., is celebrating its 60th anniversary. Mrs. T's is also proud to announce the passing of Resolution 878, which recognizes October 8th as "Pierogy Day"in the state of Pennsylvania.
Pierogies – the perfect pairing of pasta and potatoes – have been a staple in America for more than 100 years. The pierogy first made its debut in the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th century, arriving from Eastern Europe. In the 1940's, pierogies became a mainstay at church fundraisers in neighborhoods in the Northeast and throughout the upper-Midwest.
By the early 1950's, pierogies were here to stay, quickly becoming a popular food among Americans of all ethnicities. Ted Twardzik, Sr., founder of Mrs. T's Pierogies, saw this popularity as an opportunity. For years, his mother Mary (the actual Mrs. T) and her friends would gather around the kitchen table and make pierogies for their church. He suspected that if these comfort food favorites did so well at church dinners, they would surely be a hit at his local grocery store. So on October 8, 1952, Twardzik produced the company's very first pierogy samples and delivered them to a local grocery store in Shenandoah, Pa., and with that, Mrs. T's Pierogies was born.
Sixty years later, Mrs. T's is still a family-owned company, having sold more than 600 million in just 2011. That amount of pierogies:
- Can give each of the 10,960 2012 Olympic athletes 4,562 boxes of pierogies. Now that's a boost of energy!
- Stacked on top of each other could reach about 1/25th of the way from the earth to the moon! Houston, we have pierogies!
- Is enough to give every citizen in the top 10 pierogy-consuming cities one full box of 12 pierogies*!
So this October 8th, cook up a plate of pierogies and help celebrate National Pierogy Day, Mrs. T's 60th anniversary and, most importantly, pay homage to the pierogy's place in American culinary history.
Source: Mrs T pierogies
