Traditional Spinatknödel - Traditional Austrian Spinach Dumplings

Make the dough

1. Method 1Take the spinach out of the freezer two hours before you making the dumplings. Method 2If you don't have time, you can fry frozen spinach on non-stick pan for 10 minutes on medium-high heat. The second method ensures that spinach loses some of the water - which is important, so the dumplings won't fall apart while cooking.
2. Fry the chopped onions on the medium heat until golden brown. Don't rush it! The slower you fry them the better they will taste!:)
3. Cut the bread rolls into small cubes and put them into large bowl. It might take up to 12 minutes.
4. Heat up the milk until warm, pour evenly it over them. Set aside for 10 minutes.
5. Remove the rest of the water from the spinach. The best way to do that is to squeeze it with your hands.
6. If spinach has large leaves, you must cut them into smaller pieces.
7. Season the mixture with salt and nutmeg. Add the dry spinach, fried onions and eggs and make a dough with your hands until the ingredients combine. At this point you can also add chopped garlic, if you like! I always do!
8. Set aside for 20 minutes, before you start forming the dumplings.

Form & cook the dumplings

1. Set a large pot (5,5l) filled with 4l of salty water. Bring it to a boil and lower the heat so the water just simmers.
2. Check if the dough is sticky enough for you to be able to form medium (as big as a table tennis ball) dumplings out of the dough. if the dough is very sticky, it is easier to form the bread dumplings with wet hands - just saying;)
3. I always make and cook one test dumpling to check if the dumpling doesn't fall apart. For this you need to form a regular size spinach dumpling and put it gently into the pot with simmering water, if the dumoling deosn't fall apart after first 5 minutes then you can form the rest of the dumplings.
4. If the dough is too hard: add a little more milk. If the though is too wet and falls apart: add some breadcrumbs or another egg and breadcrumbs.
5. Place the dumplings in the water and simmer them without a lid for 15-20 minutes.
6. While the dumplings are simmering: grate the parmesan, chop the chieves and brown the butter.
7. Serve warm with brown butter and grated parmesan on the top!