Trentino · Italy by Taste

Strangolapreti Trentini

Soft bread-and-spinach dumplings with butter and sage. This home version keeps the portions small and includes a test dumpling before cooking the batch.

Recipe at a glance

Serves4

Prep35 minutes, plus 30 minutes resting

Cook15–20 minutes

SkillShape & simmer

Ingredients

250 g stale white bread, crusts trimmed if very hard
220 ml whole milk, warmed gently
300 g fresh spinach
2 medium eggs
50 g grated Trentingrana or another grating cheese
30 g plain flour, plus 1–2 tbsp extra if needed
30 g fine breadcrumbs, only if needed
60 g butter
8 sage leaves
Salt, pepper and a little grated nutmeg

Method

Cut the bread small, add the milk and rest for 30 minutes. Steam the spinach until wilted, cool and squeeze very dry. Chop finely.
Mix bread, spinach, eggs, half the cheese, flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. If wet, add breadcrumbs sparingly; rest for 10 minutes.
Shape small dumplings with damp hands. Gently simmer one for 5–7 minutes after it rises; cut it open to check the centre is set and hot. Add a little flour if it falls apart.
Cook the remainder in small batches at a gentle simmer, using the test dumpling as your guide. Avoid a hard boil. Melt butter with sage, drain the dumplings carefully and finish with the remaining cheese.

Ingredient notes

Contains gluten, eggs and milk. Bread and spinach moisture vary, so test the mixture before the full batch. The optional extra flour is a texture adjustment, not a fixed addition.

Italy by Taste home adaptation, guided by regional references. Not kitchen-tested for this edition.