Nettle Broth with Cheese Dumplings (Kaspressknödel)

Ingredients

• 500 g dough bread
• 250 ml warm milk
• 2 Eggs
• 1 onion
• 200 g alpine cheese
• 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
• Salt
• ground caraway
• Pepper (freshly ground)
• breadcrumbs (as needed)
• butter for frying
• 500 g nettles (fresh picked)
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 l vegetable broth
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 tbsp chives rings

Instructions

1. 1.

   Place the dough bread in a bowl. Pour warm milk over it and add the eggs.

2. 2.

   Peel the onion, finely dice it, and sauté in hot butter. Add grated cheese and parsley to the dumpling mixture, season with salt, caraway, and pepper, then knead into a workable dough. If the dough is too soft, add more breadcrumbs.

3. 3.

   Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes, then shape dumplings and press them slightly flat.

4. 4.

   For the soup, pull nettle leaves from their stems and wash them. Heat butter in a large pot, add wet nettles, sauté until they wilt. Pour in vegetable broth and simmer gently for about 10 minutes. Strain through a sieve and season with salt and pepper.

5. 5.

   Pan‑fry the dumplings in hot clarified butter for 3–4 minutes on each side until golden brown; drain on kitchen paper.

6. 6.

   Serve the soup in bowls, place dumplings on top, and sprinkle with chives.