Cherry Dumplings (Potato Dough)
There's a lot of overlap between Romanian and Hungarian dishes, which we learned when my brother married a Hungarian girl. Like these potato dough dumplings that may be filled with sour/sweet plums or cherries. I had a pound of sweet cherries in the freezer so that's what I went with. I used the ingredients and technique I found in a recipe online but reduced the amount of butter used and rewrote the instructions.
Cherry Dumplings
Cherry Dumplings - makes 30-32
Hungarian - cseresznyes gomboc
Romanian - galuste cu cirese
Potato Dumpling Dough
1 kg all purpose potatoes
2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
400 gm (2 1/3 cups) all purpose flour, divided
1 large egg (55-60 gm), beaten slightly
1 tsp (5 ml) salt
Filling
680 g pitted sweet cherries (90-96 cherries)
Sauce
70 g (1 cup) dried breadcrumbs
200 g (~1 cup) unsalted butter (use half or less)
3 tsp (15 ml) ground cinnamon (optional)
1 1/2 tbsp (30 ml) white sugar
Icing sugar, to serve (optional)
Scrub potatoes and bring to the boil in a large pot of salted water. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 1 hour or until tender. A steak knife inserted into the potatoes should go in easily. Drain the potatoes and cool slightly, then, peel.
For the best texture, pass the cooked potatoes through a potato ricer into a large mixing bowl. Otherwise, just use a potato masher. Add 2 cups of the flour, the softened butter, salt and the beaten egg to the bowl and, with a fork or your hand, combine into a smooth mixture. Turn out onto a floured working surface and gently knead just until you get a soft dough, adding flour as needed. Don't overwork/handle the dough or it will become tough.
Divide the dough in half and then each half into 15 or 16 portions to get 30-32 balls.
Working with one ball at a time, flatten a bit and place 3 cherries inside. Fold the dough up over the cherries to enclose them and re-roll into a ball. Place dumplings on a floured tray. (At this point, you can place the tray in the freezer and when firm, place into a freezer bag and freeze for 2-4 weeks. Boil from frozen.)
Working in batches of 5 or 6, drop the dumplings into a pot of boiling salted water and cook for 6 minutes or until they rise to the surface. Remove and place onto a large tray while making the sauce.
Melt the butter in a large frying or saute pan over high heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook for a couple of minutes or until light golden. Add the dumplings, shaking the pan, for 2 minutes or until well coated.
Combine the cinnamon and sugar, spoon over the dumplings in the pan and shake again to distribute over the dumplings.
Serve 2 to 3 dumplings per person and dust with icing sugar.
NOTE: For the plum version, use one small pitted plum per dumpling. If the plums are large, cut them in half.
Cherry Dumplings
Cherry Dumplings - makes 30-32
Hungarian - cseresznyes gomboc
Romanian - galuste cu cirese
Potato Dumpling Dough
1 kg all purpose potatoes
2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
400 gm (2 1/3 cups) all purpose flour, divided
1 large egg (55-60 gm), beaten slightly
1 tsp (5 ml) salt
Filling
680 g pitted sweet cherries (90-96 cherries)
Sauce
70 g (1 cup) dried breadcrumbs
200 g (~1 cup) unsalted butter (use half or less)
3 tsp (15 ml) ground cinnamon (optional)
1 1/2 tbsp (30 ml) white sugar
Icing sugar, to serve (optional)
Scrub potatoes and bring to the boil in a large pot of salted water. Reduce heat to low and cook covered for 1 hour or until tender. A steak knife inserted into the potatoes should go in easily. Drain the potatoes and cool slightly, then, peel.
For the best texture, pass the cooked potatoes through a potato ricer into a large mixing bowl. Otherwise, just use a potato masher. Add 2 cups of the flour, the softened butter, salt and the beaten egg to the bowl and, with a fork or your hand, combine into a smooth mixture. Turn out onto a floured working surface and gently knead just until you get a soft dough, adding flour as needed. Don't overwork/handle the dough or it will become tough.
Divide the dough in half and then each half into 15 or 16 portions to get 30-32 balls.
Working with one ball at a time, flatten a bit and place 3 cherries inside. Fold the dough up over the cherries to enclose them and re-roll into a ball. Place dumplings on a floured tray. (At this point, you can place the tray in the freezer and when firm, place into a freezer bag and freeze for 2-4 weeks. Boil from frozen.)
Working in batches of 5 or 6, drop the dumplings into a pot of boiling salted water and cook for 6 minutes or until they rise to the surface. Remove and place onto a large tray while making the sauce.
Melt the butter in a large frying or saute pan over high heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook for a couple of minutes or until light golden. Add the dumplings, shaking the pan, for 2 minutes or until well coated.
Combine the cinnamon and sugar, spoon over the dumplings in the pan and shake again to distribute over the dumplings.
Serve 2 to 3 dumplings per person and dust with icing sugar.
NOTE: For the plum version, use one small pitted plum per dumpling. If the plums are large, cut them in half.