Cookbook:Cheese Dumplings

| Austrian Cuisine

Cheese dumplings (kaspressknödel) are a typical Austrian dish, originally eaten by farmers throughout Austria. Bread, potatoes, and flour were used for the dough. In addition eggs, butter, left-over meats, bacon, or fruits from the garden were used to fill them. Tyroleans, south Tyroleans, and Bavarians all claim that cheese dumplings come from their respective regions. Today cheese dumplings are served and eaten throughout Austria, and they are a favourite at ski huts.

As well as using left-overs, another advantage of cheese dumplings is that they are easy to prepare. Not many ingredients are needed and these can be varied. Cheese dumplings can be served in a soup, with sauerkraut, or with a salad.

When making these dumplings, the kind of cheese used is of particular importance. It should be a strong cheese with a lot of flavour. In Austria they are predominately made using either Pinzgauer beer cheese or grey cheese from Tirol. You can experiment with whichever cheese you like.

Ingredients

 * 250 g (8.8 oz / 1¾ cups) white crustless bread, finely diced
 * 250 ml (8.5 fl oz / 1 cup) milk
 * 2–3 eggs
 * 250 g (8.8 oz / 2½ cups) grated cheese (e.g. Pinzgauer beer cheese, Tyrolean grey cheese )
 * 50 g (1.8 oz) butter
 * 1 onion, thinly-sliced
 * 1 pinch each of salt, pepper, parsley, and caraway seeds
 * Flour

Procedure

 * 1) Mix the eggs with the milk.
 * 2) Soak the white bread in the egg mixture. Knead and then let it rest.
 * 3) Brown the onions with the butter in a pan.
 * 4) Add the cooked onions, salt, pepper, parsley, caraway seeds, and grated cheese to the white bread. Add the flour and let the mixture rest for a further 10 minutes.
 * 5) Form dumplings that are approximately the size of a golf ball, then press them flat (about 2–3 cm / 0.8–1.2 inch thick). Forming them is easiest when your hands are slightly wet.
 * 6) Heat some butter or oil in a pan, and put in the pressed cheese dumplings. Cook them on one side and then the other until golden brown.
 * 7) Place the dumplings on a paper towel to absorb the excess fat.
 * 8) Serve the dumplings in a beef broth, with sauerkraut or a green salad. Enjoy!