Dampfnudeln mit Vanillesoße (Steamed Yeast Dumplings with Vanilla Custard)
Balls of leavened dough cooked covered in a little milk and butter: the steam puffs them up while a golden crust forms on the bottom. They are topped with a vanilla custard for a soft and caramelized bite.
Balls of leavened dough cooked covered in a little milk and butter: the steam puffs them up while a golden crust forms on the bottom. They are topped with a vanilla custard for a soft and caramelized bite.
Here is a treat from our homeland that ruins no one — a little flour, milk, and patience suffice. The secret lies in one thing: once the lid is on, do not lift it! The steam makes the balls rise while a golden, crunchy bottom forms in the pot. Serve them drizzled with a mild custard, and you will see that a physicist knows how to appreciate a well-rounded Sunday. It was the sweet reward of a modest household.
- •Wheat flour — a good measure (dough)
- •Sourdough or brewer's yeast — a little (leavening)
- •Milk — as needed for dough (dough and cooking)
- •Butter — a knob (crust)
- •Egg — one (richness)
- •Sugar, salt — a little (flavor)
Dampfnudeln mit Vanillesoße (Steamed Yeast Dumplings with Vanilla Custard)
Balls of leavened dough cooked covered in a little milk and butter: the steam puffs them up while a golden crust forms on the bottom. They are topped with a vanilla custard for a soft and caramelized bite.
Why this dish? Dampfnudeln are an emblematic sweet treat of Bavaria and the Palatinate: a pillow of leavened dough steamed in a pot, with a caramelized crust on the bottom. In a frugal household like Ohm's, such a Mehlspeise served as a Sunday meal, comforting and inexpensive.
Here is a treat from our homeland that ruins no one — a little flour, milk, and patience suffice. The secret lies in one thing: once the lid is on, do not lift it! The steam makes the balls rise while a golden, crunchy bottom forms in the pot. Serve them drizzled with a mild custard, and you will see that a physicist knows how to appreciate a well-rounded Sunday. It was the sweet reward of a modest household.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour — a good measure (dough)
- Sourdough or brewer's yeast — a little (leavening)
- Milk — as needed for dough (dough and cooking)
- Butter — a knob (crust)
- Egg — one (richness)
- Sugar, salt — a little (flavor)
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour (T45) — 300 g (dough)
- Baker's yeast — 1 packet (7 g dry) (leavening)
- Milk — 150 ml (dough) + 200 ml (cooking) (dough and steam)
- Butter — 40 g + 20 g for cooking (crust)
- Egg — 1 (richness)
- Sugar — 40 g (flavor)
- Salt — 1 pinch (balance)
- For the custard: milk — 250 ml (sauce base)
- Egg yolks — 2 (thickener)
- Sugar + vanilla bean — 30 g + 1 (vanilla custard)
Method
- Prepare a leavened dough: mix flour, yeast dissolved in warm milk, egg, sugar, salt, and soft butter; knead and let double in size, about 1 hour.
- Shape into balls, let rise again for 20 min.
- In a heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter with the milk, a pinch of salt, and a little sugar; place the balls in without crowding.
- Cover tightly and cook over low heat for 25-30 min WITHOUT ever lifting the lid: the milk evaporates and a crust caramelizes at the bottom.
- Prepare the custard: heat the milk with the vanilla, pour over beaten yolks with sugar, thicken gently without boiling.
- Serve the Dampfnudeln crust side up, drizzled with warm vanilla custard.
How it was made : Dampfnudeln were cooked in a heavy cast-iron pot on the stove; the sign of successful cooking was the final sizzle as the evaporated milk left the bottom to caramelize. Vanilla remained a luxury: modest households often made do with sweetened milk, fruit compote, or plum sauce.
The contemporary twist : A quenelle of very cold vanilla custard on the hot Dampfnudel, a hot-cold contrast, with a shard of caramelized crust stuck on top.
Sources : Henriette Davidis, Praktisches Kochbuch für die gewöhnliche und feinere Küche (1845)
Georg Ohm · Charactorium