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Zwetschgenknödel - Sweet Stuffed Potato Dumplings

Serves: 3 - 4

Ingredients for the Dough​

1 lb potatoes: mealy, high starch (e.g., russets, Yukon Gold)
2 eggs
10 ounces flour, plus extra flour to work with
salt

Ingredients for the Filling​

8 plums (or 4 bigger ones)
2 ounces unsalted butter
4 ounces breadcrumbs
cinnamon
sugar
icing sugar

Directions for the Dough​

Boil the potatoes until done. While they're still hot, peel and mash them, and allow to cool. (You could peel them before cooking, if preferred.)

Once cooled, add the eggs, a bit of salt, and the flour. Mix quickly, taking care not to overmix. The ingredients should be well-combined with as little kneading as possible.

Once mixed, coat the dough with a bit of flour and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Directions for the Filling​

Finely chop or mince celery, leeks and meat, and lightly fry them in a pan. Season with salt, pepper, a little garlic and fresh parsley. Cover mix and put in the fridge for 30 minutes. Form into little balls, and put into freezer, so it is easier to coat them with dough later.

Directions for the Dumplings​

Make sure you do not overmix the potato dough. It should look crumbly. Take a handful of dough and squeeze and press it so it forms a flattened bowl shape in your hand. Place one of the plums inside and surround it with the dough, making sure to close any open gaps.

Squeeze and press the dumpling to get rid of any air pockets. This is important, as any air pockets left inside will expand during cooking and break open the dumpling! Place each finished dumpling onto a floured surface until all the dumplings are formed.

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Add dumplings and cover the pot so that it boils again as quickly as possible. Make sure the dumplings don’t stick to the bottom of the pan — be careful not to damage them! Boil for 3-4 minutes, remove from heat and leave dumplings in water for a further 15 minutes to finish cooking.

To serve the Zwetschgenknoedel, roll them in sweetcrumbs (breadcrumbs that have been lightly browned in a pan with sugar and cinnamon), topped with a bit more sweetcrumbs and icing sugar.

If you like these, consider trying Marillenknoedel next time. (Stuffed with apricots!)