Gruyere Stuffed Purple Potato Dumplings with a Walnut Parsley Pesto

Recently I was invited to submit an original recipe to the Idaho Potato Commission as part of their "February is Potato Lovers Month" campaign.  I happily accepted; after all, this challenge involved two things that are close to my heart: potatoes and money. Not only would I (full disclosure) be paid for my time and trouble in creating the recipe, my dish would be featured (along with those of other participants) on the Idaho Potato homepage for the whole month of February. As an added bonus, prize money was up for grabs, as the commission would choose several winners, including best dish, most original recipe, and best photo.

Well guess what kids? I am very proud to announce that the image at the top of this post won in the "Best Photo" category! Many thanks to the Idaho Potato Commission for this award.

And now, let's talk potato. In coming up with our recipes, we were free to use any kind of potato - as long as it was Idaho, of course - to create any type of dish dish we wanted. Appetizer, dessert, side dish - whatever. It was a bit overwhelming, so to narrow it down I settled on purple fingerling potatoes. Because they are pretty. And I am a girl.

See? Pretty. 

Other things I love include any kind of dumpling and cheese. And so, to make a long story short,  my dish was born.

Gruyere Stuffed Purple Potato Dumplings with a Walnut Parsley Pesto

For the potato dumplings:

makes 10 golf-ball sized dumplings 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds Idaho® purple fingerling potatoes (enough to yield 1 pound after cooking, peeling, and ricing)

1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon AP flour

1 heaping tablespoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

1/4 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste

1 small or 1/2 large egg, beaten

1/4 cup gruyere cheese, cut into small cubes, plus extra for grating

Method:

The day before you plan to make the dish, boil the potatoes, skin on, in well-salted water until soft (about 15 minutes). Peel the potatoes and run them through a ricer or fine-mesh sieve. Refrigerate, uncovered, overnight. The next day, combine the potatoes, flour, cornstarch, white pepper, and sea salt into a smooth mass. Taste for seasoning and adjust. Add the beaten egg and mix thoroughly. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. Divide dough into 10 equal parts. Form each into a golf ball-sized ball. Make an indentation in the middle of each dumpling and fill with 1/10 of the gruyere cubes. Close the dough around the cheese and reform into a smooth round dumpling. Place on a cookie sheet covered with floured parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator until ready to cook. 

When ready, bring 4 quarts of well-salted water to a boil, and then reduce to a gentle simmer. Cook the dumplings a few at a time, being careful not to crowd the pot, until they float, plus an additional minute to make sure the cheese on the inside melts. Serve with a dollop of walnut parsley pesto and grated gruyere cheese. 

For the pesto:

Ingredients:

2 1/2 packed cups flat leaf Italian parsley, stems removed

1 1/2 cup toasted walnuts

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste

pinch of white pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup walnut oil

Method:

Combine the parsley, walnuts, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a food processor. Puree while drizzling in the olive and walnut oils. Adjust salt and pepper to your taste. Store, refrigerated, in a covered glass jar.

Served alone, these make cute appetizers, or you can just load up your plate with dumplings and pesto for a super satisfying dinner. 

You can also view my recipe on the Idaho site here, and don't forget to check out the other dishes on the homepage starting in February. And now allow me to regale you with my other - non-prizewinning - dumpling photos. Because they're purple.

Anyway ... Happy Potato Lovers Month!