Maultaschen

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 kg dough (pasta dough by the meter)
• 500 g minced meat, fine
• 500 g sausage meat (meatloaf meat)
• 1 onion(s), very finely chopped
• 50 g smoked meat, lean, very finely diced
• 250 g leaf spinach, frozen
• 1 bunch parsley, flat, finely chopped
• 1 egg(s)
• 1 stalk(s) leek, very finely chopped
• 3 rolls, from the day before (spelt rolls)
• salt and pepper
• nutmeg
• Egg whites, lightly beaten

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

with tasty filling

Place the minced meat and sausage meat in a large bowl and mix lightly. Then, in a pan, sauté the very finely diced smoked meat in 1 tbsp of water, gradually adding the finely chopped onion and briefly (1 minute) sauteing the very finely chopped leek. Thaw frozen leaf spinach in a sieve to allow the thawing water to drain away. Soak the spelt rolls in a bowl of warm water. Now add the contents of the pan with the sautéed smoked meat, onion, and leek mixture to the minced meat and sausage meat mixture. Then, squeeze the thawed spinach with your hand and add it. Add 1 egg (only use 1 egg – eggs make the filling firm!), season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and add the parsley. Finally, squeeze the liquid out of the spelt rolls and add them in torn pieces. First, roughly mix the mixture with a fork or wooden spoon. Then, using both hands, gently knead the meat dough into a smooth mass and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. Lay out the pasta dough and cut out long rectangles. Brush the edges of the rectangles with the beaten egg white and place about 1 tablespoon of filling on one side of each rectangle. Fold the other half of the dough over it and press the edges down firmly. Now you can use a pastry wheel to roll the edges of the Maultaschen into a nice shape. Another way of filling would be to wrap the Maultaschen. Put another tablespoon of filling on one side of the rectangle, spread a little of the filling towards the middle and roll the rectangle up twice. Again, press the sides together firmly and use the pastry wheel to roll the edges nicely. Always make sure that the edges of the dough are brushed with egg white so that the Maultaschen keep their shape and the filling doesn’t slip out! I then let the finished Maultaschen simmer gently, or rather just simmer, in vegetable broth in a large, wide pot for 10-15 minutes. The cooking time also depends on the size of the Maultaschen. Traditionally, the finished Maultaschen are served in hot meat broth. To do this, the Maultaschen are placed in a soup bowl and poured with just enough meat broth to keep the belly of the Maultaschen dry. Finely chopped onions browned in butter are then added to the broth. Another serving option is to fry the Maultaschen in a pan in butter until crispy and serve them with lukewarm Swabian potato salad. Swabians eat the Maultaschen first in the broth and then fried in butter with potato salad!