Our recipe for this Week comes from Austria, and it’s introduced to us here by Jessica May.
I can still clearly remember how my grandma often made apricot dumplings during the holidays. I always found this quite special, and it seemed like grandma’s very own indulgence routine.
Nowadays, apricot dumplings are usually eaten as a dessert. They used to be thought of as a main course, as indeed were the majority of Austria’s other pastry dishes.
Did you know that this one-time luxury dish, which then became part of the menu of ordinary households everywhere, is now protected as part of the nation’s culinary heritage? Unbelievable, but true!
It is one of the traditional dishes to have its recipe kept in a safe in the Austrian National Library in Vienna, so as to preserve it for posterity.

So, here is grandma’s very own indulgence routine:
- Preparation time: approx. 30 minutes
- Resting time: approx. 1 hour
- Cooking/baking time: approx. 30 minutes
- Total time: approx. 2 hours
Ingredients for making 5 portions:
- 500g quark (curds)
- 100 g butter
- 2 eggs
- 250 g flour
- 1 pinch of salt
- some wheat semolina, to bind the dough
- 10 apricots
- bread crumbs
- sugar
- butter
- optional: cinnamon
This is enough dough to make 10 dumplings.

Knead the curd, eggs, butter and salt into a smooth dough, add approximately 1 – 2 tbsp. semolina, and knead again thoroughly. Chill for about 1 hour to allow the semolina to swell.
Pit the apricots You could use plums instead of apricots, if you prefer.
Shape the dough into a roll, and divide it into 10 equally-sized pieces. The dough can be a little sticky, so always dust your hands with some flour when encasing the fruit in the dough. The dough casing should be about 1 – 2 cm thick depending on the size of the fruit
Steep in slightly salted, gently simmering water for about 20 – 30 minutes (depending on whether you are using fresh or frozen fruit). The dough should rise nicely, and the fruit be soft on the inside.
At the same time, melt some butter in a pan, add the bread crumbs and sugar, and brown slowly over a gentle heat. You can decide how much butter, bread crumbs and sugar to add. It’s all down to your individual taste.
Once cooked, drain the dumplings, add to the browned bread crumbs in the pan, coat all over and serve hot.
If you like, you can sprinkle them with some icing sugar and cinnamon.
Enjoy!