Strawberry Dumplings – Czech Jahodové knedlíky

If there is one thing Czech cuisine is renowned for, it is dumplings! Whether bread dumplings, potato dumplings, or sweet fruit dumplings, they are a staple. In today's article, I am excited to share a delightful summer recipe for dumplings filled with fresh strawberries. It is quick, easy, and sure to be a hit with the whole family!

➜ About the recipe

Czech Jahodové knedlíky are small dumplings, each filled with a fresh strawberry. The strawberries are wrapped in a thin dough made from Tvaroh cheese or any other plain fresh or cream cheese, flour and eggs.

The dumplings are then boiled in water and served warm, halved, as a main dish or dessert. They are usually sprinkled with icing sugar, drizzled with melted butter, and topped with a dollop of sour cream or shredded Farmers cheese.

MY TIP: Looking for more ideas to satisfy your sweet tooth? These yeast dough fruit dumplings are a fantastic treat and one of the Czech national dishes!

➜ Ingredients

To make homemade strawberry dumplings from scratch, you will need the following:

MY TIP: For best results, the cheese and eggs should be at room temperature. This will make them easier to combine with the flour when kneading the dough.

➜ How to make strawberry dumplings

Cleaning strawberries

STEP 1: Remove the stalks from the strawberries, then wash and dry them well.

Preparing dumpling dough

STEP 2: Put the flour and baking powder into a bowl and whisk to combine. Then, add the cheese and eggs.

STEP 3: Mix quickly with a fork, then turn the mixture out onto a floured surface and work it into a non-sticky dough. Keep a small pile of flour on the side and add some to the dough if it is too sticky.

Shaping dumplings

STEP 4: Form the dough into a roll and cut it into equally sized pieces. Flatten each piece into a thin patty. Place a strawberry in the center of each patty. Wrap the dough around the strawberry and seal it tightly.

Roll the dumpling between your hands to give it a nice round shape. Each dumpling should be about 2 ½ inches (6-7 cm) in diameter.

NOTE: Dry the strawberries thoroughly before filling the dumplings, and keep your hands dry when shaping them. Any water residue or wet hands can affect the consistency of the dough and cause it to tear.

Cooking the dumplings

STEP 5: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and reduce the heat to about half. Carefully drop the dumplings into the boiling water and cook for 5-6 minutes, depending on their size.

You don't need to flip the dumplings. If they get stuck to the bottom of the saucepan, gently loosen them with a fork so they can float to the top.

STEP 6: Using a slotted spoon, remove the cooked dumplings and transfer them to a bowl.

➜ How to serve

Cut the dumplings in half to reveal the strawberry inside. Arrange them on a plate and add about 2-3 tablespoons of sour cream per serving, along with an equal amount of powdered sugar.

Drizzle with a tablespoon of melted butter and serve as a sweet lunch or an afternoon dessert.

➜ More topping ideas for strawberry dumplings

• For the simplest option, just sprinkle the dumplings with powdered sugar and drizzle them with melted butter.
• Prefer to stick with cheese? Sprinkle the dumplings with farmer's cheese crumbles and powdered sugar, then top with melted butter.
• Another topping option is plain breadcrumbs fried in butter and mixed with granulated sugar. Our neighbors in Austria love strawberry dumplings generously coated with fried sweet breadcrumbs!
• For a fancier option, prepare a strawberry sauce to accompany the dumplings.

Last tip: You may have heard that one of the traditional Czech toppings for fruit dumplings is ground poppy seed with powdered sugar. This variant is most suitable for plum dumplings.

➜ Storage

First, let me assure you that you will almost certainly never have leftover strawberry dumplings! From personal experience, I can tell that these dumplings are so delicious, everyone will be lining up for more.

If you still accidentally have some leftovers or if you are making a large batch to stock up, let the dumplings cool completely. Then, place them in a deep bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and store them in the fridge. They will keep for up to four days.

You can also freeze the dumplings in an airtight container for up to three months.

➜ How to reheat the strawberry dumplings

The best method I've found for reheating strawberry dumplings is steaming them. The cooked cheese dough tends to become stiffer as it cools, so reheating the dumplings in a humid environment helps maintain their texture.

A quicker option is to heat the dumplings in the microwave. To do this, place them in a plastic bag with a little water inside.

➜ A note about Czech flour for dumplings

You may have heard that we Czechs usually cook with three types of flour.

One is "Hladká", which is the equivalent of all-purpose flour in the US or plain flour in other countries. Then we have semi-coarse "Polohrubá" and coarse "Hrubá" flour.

Read more in my article All-purpose flour in the Czech Republic and how to replace it.

For cooked floury dishes, such as dumplings, Czechs most often use Hrubá coarse flour. This gives the dumplings a lighter texture and makes them fluffier. However, outside the Czech Republic, coarse flour can be harder to find. I recommend checking stores that sell Polish or German goods, as they might carry coarse flour.

If you can't find coarse flour, don't worry. After many discussions with Czechs in the US, I can assure you that you can make delicious dumplings with all-purpose flour. While the dough will be a bit stiffer, the dumplings will still turn out very good.

➜ Czech Tvaroh substitution

While Tvaroh is a common ingredient in the Czech Republic, it is probably not so easy to find abroad.

Therefore, I offer some possible substitutes for making the dumplings without tvaroh: Farmers cheese (probably the best substitution), Ricotta cheese, cottage cheese or a common cream cheese with a neutral taste.

If you use ricotta, I recommend passing it through a sieve to get a fine cheese mass.

TIP: I also have a recipe here for making homemade Czech Tvaroh cheese!

If you have a grocery store nearby that sells European products, you might be able to find cottage cheese under different names: Quark (German), Topfen (Austrian), Twaróg (Polish), or Túró (Hungarian).

➜ Useful tips

• Important: The amount of flour listed for the dumpling dough in the recipe card assumes you are using Farmer's cheese. If you use a different type of cheese, add the flour gradually to ensure the dough holds together well and doesn't become too sticky.
• Cook the dumplings for no more than 6 minutes or the strawberry inside will overcook and lose its firm shape.
• In addition to strawberries, you can fill the cheesecake dumplings with other round fruits that are in season, such as pitted apricots or plums.

More sweet recipes:

• Strawberry Coffee Cake – Jahodový koláč
• Bublanina – Czech fruit cake with cherries
• Buchty – sweet-filled yeast buns
• Cold strawberry soup
• Cherry dumplings – třešňové knedlíky

For knedlíky dumpling lovers, there is a special category with different kinds of Czech dumplings.