Semmelknoedelsuppe

What a cooked version of a Semmelknoedel looks like.

Ingredients

Dumpling
Salted cooking water
16oz 1″ cubed dried crusty bread
1C warm to hot milk
2T European butter
3/4C diced yellow onion
2 large whisked eggs
3T diced parsley leaves
Kosher salt and ground pepper to taste
1/8t grated nutmeg
Toppings (per serving)
1-1/2C Chicken broth
Pinch of paprika
1T whole parsley leaf
1T chopped chives

Nutrition

Servings vary depending on size of dumpling, serving size 2 dumplings
Per serving 253, 78.8k, 20.5p, 3.9f, 1220s
Nutrition from AllRecipies

Directions

First start heating a pot of salted water on the stove top to a simmer with just a few bubbles, not boiling. (If the water is boiling the Knoedel will lose its shape and break apart.)  Also add a pot with chicken broth on low. Warm milk either on the stove top or in the microwave.

2) Chop bread into ~1″ cubes and place in a bowl. Pour warm to hot milk over the bread and mix it up with a fork so all the bread has an opportunity to swim in the milk. Then let it sit for ~30 minutes.

  • To save time some have used prepared bread stuffing mixes that are already seasoned and herbed. I do not.

3) Heat butter in a skillet and saute onions until translucent. Then add to the bread bowl. Also add the herbs, taste and season. Finally, add the whisked eggs and, using wet hands, mix everything together making sure to crush any remaining hard bread. Essentially, you are making a dough.

  • If dough is too wet add breadcrumbs or panko
  • If dough is too dry add a bit of warm milk

4) Wet your hands (to prevent sticking) and take a handful of dough, press the Knoedel into a round, compact, billiard-sized ball. Then carefully drop them one-by-one into the simmering water and let them cook for ~20 min. They will float to the top and you should remove them with your spider (or slotted spoon). The first one you remove you should give a little squeeze and it should feel firm.

  • The dumplings start small but will plump while cooking so they will be larger once done.

5) To serve place 1-2 in a bowl and drizzle the chicken broth over the top and add a pinch of paprika, and some parsley leaf.

Diet

[x] Flexitarian + Omnivore
[x] Vegan: use alt milk, alt eggs, and veggie broth
[x] Vegetarian: use veggie broth
[x] Pescatarian: use veggie broth
[x] Gluten free: use GF bread
[x] Weight Maint: eat 1 serving only
[O] Keto Diet
[x] Mediterranean 
[O] Lectin Avoidance: wheat
[x] Oxalate Avoidance
[O] Purine Avoidance: yeast (?)

Comments

A very traditional German, Bavarian dish; and a great way to use up left over and crusty bread.

The dumplings can also be used as a starchy side with a pour of gravy (especially a mushroom brown gravy) over the top. It can be a side for Sauerbraten. It can also be added to a goulash soup.

I have heard one person refer to the Semmelknödel as a thanksgiving dressing ball.

To freeze, first cook and let them dry. Then you can place in baggies and freeze. To reheat I use the microwave.

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