- Preparation time
- 30 mins
- Cooking time
- 45 mins
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Serves
- 6 people
- Meal course
- Dinner
- Posted by
- Posted on
- May 28, 2016
This is technically a soup, but it is also a completely satisfying Alpine inspired meal in a bowl.
Soup, Cheese, Dumplings, Cheese, Sauerkraut, Speck, Cheese, Cheese and more Cheese… It’s just all kinds of absolute deliciousness! The soup is also fantastic on its own with just the cruncy speck crumble, but these dumplings are the most moreish bites of cheesy heaven, they are worth the minimal effort and I dare you to resist them… YODELAYHEEHOO!
1 large Celeriac
50gms Butter
1tbs Olive Oil
1 Leek
1 large Carrot
2 sticks of Celery
1 large all-purpose Potato
1 clove of Garlic
1ltr good quality Chicken Stock
200gms Vintage Cheddar
100ml Thickened Cream
1 tbs Mild German Mustard
Salt and White Pepper
Dumplings
450gms Quark (Swiss Cottage Cheese) ***
100gms Vintage Cheddar – grated
50gms Parmesan – grated
1tbs Fresh Dill – finely chopped
1 large Free-range Egg
150gms ‘OO’ flour – Plus extra for dusting
Salt and White Pepper
50gms Butter
50gms Dark Rye – approx. 3 slices
50gms Speck
1 cup of good quality Sauerkraut
Fresh dill for garnish
- Trim the leek and wash well. Peel the carrot and trim the celery. Slice the leek, carrot and celery. Heat a large heavy based saucepan over a medium-high heat and add the butter and oil, then add the leek, carrot and celery and cook until the vegetables are starting to break down. Meanwhile, peel and chop the celeriac and potato, and then add them to the pot with the other vegetables. Stir together well, and then add the whole garlic clove and the stock, season well and bring to the boil. Once boiling, lower to a simmer, replace the lid on the pot and leave to simmer for 30 minutes or until all the vegetables have completely softened.
- While the soup is cooking, grate the Cheddar and then set aside. Make the speck crumble (recipe to follow) Once the soup is cooked, using a stick blender or processor, blend the soup until it is pureed. If you find the soup is too thick at this stage, add a cup or so of water to loosen it up. Once pureed, stir in the grated Cheddar with the cream and the mustard. Season well to taste with salt and white pepper. Set aside until ready to serve.
- Meanwhile to make the dumplings – Combine all the cheeses with the dill and the egg in a large bowl. Season well and then add the flour, and using your hands bring it all together until a soft dough has formed. Turn the dough out onto a floured bench and bring it together into a ball kneading gently – dust with a little more flour if needed, but be careful not to add too much as it will become stodgy. Divide the dough into 4 portions, then working with one portion at a time, gently roll the dough into a long sausage shape and cut equal 1cm thick sized dumplings. Place the cut dumplings onto a flour dusted board, and repeat with the remaining dough. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, then working in two batches, add the dumplings to the boiling water and cook for about 2 minutes until they float to the surface. Remove the cooked dumplings from the water and set aside, be very careful as they are super soft. Heat a large non-stick frypan over a high heat and add the Butter. Cook until bubbling and then add the cooked dumplings to the pan. Fry for a few minutes until golden and crispy, and then turn the dumplings and fry the other side.
- To make the Speck Crumble – Process the speck in a mini-processor until finely chopped. Place into a small bowl and then process the rye bread until roughly crumbed. Mix the bread and speck together then lay onto a flat oven tray, and bake in a 200°c preheated oven for approx. 10 minutes or until cooked and crispy. Set aside to cool.
- To Serve – Ladle the soup into your bowls, evenly divide the sauerkraut between the bowls and top with the dumplings. Scatter over the speck crumble and an extra sprig of dill. Enjoy!
- *** I like to use Paris Creek Quark in this recipe which is readily found in all good grocers, but you can substitute with any brand you prefer or even fresh Ricotta if you can’t find it at all. Quark is a smooth European Cottage cheese with a tangy flavour.
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