Runza Dough:

This dough mixes up a little differently from a standard dough. First, mix the ingredients into a kind of slurry, then add the remaining flour.

In a large mixing bowl, place the 1 3/4 cup of flour, the yeast, salt, and sugar. Whisk together and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat the milk, water, and shortening to 120 degrees. (Note: between 110 and 120 is the standard temperature to heat liquid when adding it to a flour mixture that already contains the yeast, but make certain the temperature is NOT over 120.) Pour over the flour/yeast/sugar/salt mixture and stir to combine. Add eggs. Mix by hand or by mixer. Beat for about three minutes or so if using a mixer, double if mixing by hand.

Stir in remaining flour, turn out and knead for a short time, three or four minutes, adding in a little extra flour if it’s too tacky. Your dough should be smooth and elastic when done, but still quite soft, and slightly tacky to the touch…this dough does not require the amount of kneading a regular loaf of white bread does. It’s actually more like a sweet dough (like one would use for cinnamon rolls.)

If your dough is not soft – has too much flour, or is overly kneaded, your Runza won’t rise properly and will be lumpy, so err on the side of too little flour over too much. If your dough is dry, knead in a little more water, but it is always easier to add more flour than water.

Place in an oiled pan, then turn the dough over (so all is coated with oil), cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap, and allow to rise for about an hour until doubled in size. Meanwhile, make your filling (below) and allow it to cool, and then proceed to Fill and Bake.

Runza Filling:

In a good-sized pan, cook ground beef and onion until beef is cooked through and onion is fairly translucent, breaking up the beef as it cooks. Add in chopped cabbage and cook until tender and wilted.

Excess moisture can cause soggy bottoms in a Runza, so make sure your filling isn’t too wet: Place the filling in a colander and allow to drain for about 15 minutes as it cools. Return to pan and add salt, the black and white peppers, clove, and allspice to taste. Adjust seasoning if needed.

Note: Some people don’t strain before adding the spices and just portion out their filling using a slotted spoon. The issue with this method is the spices drain out, too.

Proceed to Fill and Bake, below.

Fill and Bake:

Gently punch down and divide the dough into two portions, covering one part with a towel or plastic wrap. Lightly flour your counter and rolling pin and roll dough into a rectangle about 10″ by 15″.

If dough is properly made, very little flour should be necessary. If it sticks, work a bit more flour as you roll by dusting under the dough and on the rolling pin. If the dough doesn’t roll out smoothly, cover and let it sit there for about 15 minutes to see if a rest helps it “relax.” If that doesn’t work, it may be possible that it is too dry. Lightly sprinkle the faintest amount of water on it as you roll out and see if that helps.

Using a pizza cutter, trim the edges and divide into six 5″ by 5″ squares.

Using a slotted spoon or a 1/2 cup scoop, transfer about half of a cup of the filling to each square. (Unless you’re interested in figuring out the exact weight of cabbage and onion, there will always be some variance in the amount of filling. Divide the filling roughly in half, and it’s easier to eyeball exactly how much filling to put in, a little more or a little less in each Runza to use up all the filling or make it stretch.

Pull up two adjacent corners toward the middle and seal the seams, repeat with the next corner and so on, as shown below. Make certain seams are sealed well – if the dough has become too dry to stick easily, run a slightly wet finger next to the edges and proceed. Edges that are not properly sealed will leak.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the Runza on a lightly oiled baking sheet, seam side down. Cover with a clean tea towel. If working at a time of year with low humidity, lightly spray the tops of each Runza with oil so they won’t dry.

Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. Let rise about 20 minutes or so. and perhaps a bit longer in cooler weather; the tops should rise enough so the dough on top is smooth.

Note added: Pick up each runza very gently before baking and turn over, making certain all seams are still sealed, then replace on baking sheet. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and place on a wire rack.

While still warm, brush tops with butter. This is most easily done by opening the end of a stick of butter and running the end over the tops of the rolls. Addition: readers have suggested covering the rolls with a tea towel for five minutes after brushing with butter to ensure they are as soft as possible.