Gnocchi di Susine con Burro Fuso e Pangrattato Tostato Friulani

Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Large potato gnocchi each encasing a whole prune (or plum), coated in breadcrumbs, boiled until the fruit is hot and soft inside, then tossed in browned butter with fried breadcrumbs and a dusting of sugar and cinnamon. A sweet-savoury border dish reflecting the Central European influence on Friuli — the same preparation exists in Austrian and Czech cooking as Zwetschkenknödel.

• Potato dough encasing a plum, boiled and rolled in butter and breadcrumbs — the direct Central European ancestor of the Friulian version; virtually identical preparation → Zwetschkenknödel Austrian
• Czech plum dumplings in a yeasted or potato dough — the Bohemian version of the same preparation with slight texture differences → Švestkové knedlíky Czech
• Potato dumplings stuffed with plums — the Transylvanian version, showing the pan-Carpathian spread of this sweet-potato-dumpling tradition → Găluşte cu prune Romanian

Sweet-tart plum giving way to soft potato gnocchi; browned butter adds nuttiness; cinnamon and sugar dust gives warmth; the breadcrumb surface adds crunch — a dish that sits between dessert and first course and belongs to neither