Fruit Dumplings
52 weeks of baking – Czech Republic
These little fruit dumplings are from the Czech Republic and make for a lovely low sugar dessert. Traditionally stone fruit like plums and apricots are wrapped in a yeast dough and cooked in simmering water until they are plump. I stuffed mine with strawberries and blueberries, served with melted butter and a sprinkle of ground poppy seeds with powdered sugar. The dough has a little sugar and you can optionally put some sugar inside of the dumplings with the fruit but I found my fruit sweet enough. The additional dusting of sugar to serve with the dumplings makes for just the right amount of sweetness.
Fruit Dumplings
- Yield: 16 dumplings
- Category: Dessert
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 c all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. yeast
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. sugar
- 3/4 c milk
- 1 tbsp. butter, melted
- 1 egg yolk
Filling
- 1/2 lb fruit - plums, apricots, strawberries, blueberries
- sugar (optional)
To serve
- 3 tbsp. poppy seeds
- 2 tbsp. powdered sugar
- 1/4 c butter, melted
Directions
Dough
- In a stand mixer with a hook attachment mix all of the ingredients for the dough together until you get a smooth and springy dough, about 4 minutes. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.
To fill dumplings
- On a floured surface roll the dough out into a 12-inch square and cut into 16 squares. Working with once piece at a time put a square of dough into the palm of your hand, add your fruit and sugar if desired. Pinch the dough together to fully enclose the fruit.
- Place the dumplings seam side down on a flowered surface and cover with a cloth to prevent them drying out while you shape the rest of the dumplings.
To cook
- Put a large pot of lightly salted water on to boil.
- Turn down to a gentle simmer and put in 6 dumplings at a time, cook for 8 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove with a slotted spoon. If you are doing bigger firm fruit, poke it with a knife to check for how soft the fruit is.
To serve
- Grind the poppy seeds in a food processor or spice mill until they start to clump together, mix in the powdered sugar.
- Drizzle the warm dumplings with melted butter and sprinkle on the poopy seed mixture.
