Zwetschkenknödel - Plum (Apricot) Dumplings

Ingredients

Italian Plums (Italian or harvest prune plums)

Cube sugar

For the dough:

100 grams flour

130 milliliters water

5 grams butter (unsalted!)

2 eggs

To finish:

bread crumbs

butter (unsalted!)

powder sugar

small pot to make dough

basin to finish dough

large pot with salted hot water to boil dumplings

pan for bread crumbs

Preparation

You need Italian Plums (or Apricots) - make the test break or cut open - if the pi t separates and comes out easily you're in business. You need one plum / apricot and one sugar cube per dumpling. The dough will be enough for about 10 dumplings - depending how good you are in shaping them.

Make the dough: Bring the water with the butter to boil; pour in the flour, take off heat. Stir until the dough no longer sticks to sides of pot. Transfer to a bowl, add eggs, one at a time; completely mix in before adding another egg. Let dough cool

Wash, dry, open plums; replace pit with a sugar cube. Create a 2in "saussage" from the dough, cut finger thick pieces, working with wet hands from dough around plum. Ideally completely cover with no holes with as little dough as possible. Keep on flourered board (so they don't stick);

Bring water (lots!) to boil in a big pot - ideally with a wide surface. Add salt. When boiling carefully add dumplings with slotted spoon. Dumplings rise to top and rotate when they are ready.

In meantime heat butter in a pan, add breadcrumbs to saturate them and slightly roast them - do not burn them! (Nobody said this is healthy food). When the dumplings float and rotate, take them our with slotted spoon, let drip water off and carefully rotate dumplings in the breadcrumbs-butter mixture. Transfer to plate, dust with powder sugar, serve.

Average desert size for an adult is 2 dumplings. Teenagers have been known to eat 7 - 8