Instructions
Soften the onion in the butter until translucent; cool slightly.
6 minToss the bread with the speck, onion, chives, and parsley. Whisk the eggs into the lukewarm milk and pour over. Mix gently with your hands.
6 minRest 30 minutes so the bread drinks the custard, then sift over the flour and fold just until the mass holds when squeezed. Season prudently.
32 minWith wet hands, press (do not roll hard) the mixture into dumplings the size of a small apricot, about 12. Compress enough to close every crack.
10 minPoach a test dumpling in simmering salted water for 12 minutes. If it frays, work another spoonful of flour into the mixture.
13 minPoach the rest in barely simmering water, 12 to 14 minutes; they will rise and then sit composed at the surface. Meanwhile bring the broth to a clean simmer.
15 minLift the canederli into warm bowls, ladle over the hot broth, and finish with chives and a turn of pepper.
Chef's Tips
- Simmer, never boil: A rolling boil shakes dumplings apart from the outside in. The water should murmur; the test dumpling tells you the rest.
- The bread decides: Too fresh and the mixture turns gluey; rock-hard and it never binds. One day old, cut small, is the sweet spot.
- Cheese canederli (with Trentingrana instead of speck) and beet-pink versions are mountain-hut classics; the technique is identical.
