Sandra Bonchuk comes out to Deleau General Store a couple days a week to make her famous perogies. “I help out here and then I am able to use the kitchen to make my products,” she says.
A resident of the Minnedosa area, has been blending, Bonchuk has been mixing and pressing together perogies for many years. “I would say I started in 2009 and it’s just something that just keeps going and going. At one time it was a sideline because it helped me stay home with my three kids. I have always had a kitchen to make up my products, and they were kitchens that I could go in at eleven o’clock at night and stay until three in the morning.”
She provides much more than just perogies on her menu. Bonchuk also makes cabbage rolls and baked products as well. With health restrictions the way they are it is a full process of weighing everything, getting all the nutritional facts done up, and creating labels, for each product.
Later in June, the Perogy Lady also sells her specialty goods in a mobile unit near Riverdale Rd. She says Highway 10 near Minnedosa is very busy as tourists head to Wasagaming to enjoy Clear Lake.
Bonchuk also delivers her products to different areas around Westman on a weekly circulation. A couple of weeks ago, she set out to make deliveries to Hartney, Deloraine, Boissevain, Killarney, Wawanesa and Shilo.
“If I can get enough orders and there is enough interest, I will do a delivery to the Reston area. I kind of do a big circle and cover a few places.”
She does all the prep work, packaging, loading and deliveries by herself and plans to continue making her fabulous edibles as long as there is ongoing interest and demand to make it worthwhile.
At Christmas time, Bonchuk says she makes Ukrainian crepes with cottage cheese filling and for most Ukrainian people who don’t eat meat, this has become a popular alternative. “We have thirteen different kinds of perogies and cabbage rolls, plus we also have Pampushky which is a prune filled or poppy seed filled donut shaped bread roll.”
“The Perogy Lady & More” website can be found at www.perogylady.com with all her areas of delivery, her Ukrainian Cuisine menu, and much more.
