Bread Dumplings (Semmelknödel)


Ingredients:

  • 10 stale bread rolls (best 2 days old) 
  • 2 cups milk 
  • 1 onion 
  • 3 eggs 
  • 3 tablespoons parsley (fresh, chopped) 
  • 1 oz. butter 
  • pepper 
  • salt 


Directions:

  1. Cut the bread rolls into slices. Try and slice as thinly as you can. Place them in a mixing bowl and bring two cups of milk to the boil. Now pour the hot milk over the bread slices, mix a little and let soak for at least 1 hour. 
  2. Peel and chop the onion and sauté in the butter until glassy, add the parsley, stir one more time and then add to the soaking bread in the mixing bowl. 
  3. Add the eggs, season with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly until you have a soft dough like texture. Let stand for another 30 minutes and mix again. 
  4. Fill a large saucepan with plenty of salted water and bring to the boil. 
  5. When the water is boiling, wet your hands with tap water, take some of the bread dough and form a dumpling of appr. 2 inches in diameter and carefully place into the boiling water. 
  6. Leave this dumpling for a couple of minutes. If it comes up and swims on top without falling apart, the consistence and texture of the dough is just right and you can continue forming dumplings and place them in the water. 
  7. If your 'test dumpling' falls apart in the water you will have to add some flour to the bread dough and mix again. Continue doing this until the texture is right. 
  8. Let me give you some reassurance here. Hardly anyone gets this right first time but the more you practice the better it will work out and once you made bread dumplings several times you will just know. Alot depends on how old the bread rolls are and what texture they have in the first place. 
  9. I have never met anyone that doesn't love bread dumplings, so its well worth the effort. 
  10. Let the dumplings simmer in the salted water for appr. 20 - 30 minutes. 
  11. Remove the dumplings with a spoon and let them drain for a while. 
  12. Delicious as a side dish with roast pork, roast chicken or just on their own with mushroom-cream sauce.