Allgäuer Kaspressknödel

Kaspressknödel belong to the Alpine south, where old bread and strong cheese do proper work. In the Allgäu I make them with day-old Semmeln, crusty white rolls, and Allgäuer Bergkäse, the mountain cheese that melts without turning meek. This is larder cooking. Yesterday's bread, a heel of cheese, a little onion, and nothing wasted.

The argument starts at the border. Tyrol leans on Graukäse or Bierkäse and drops the fried Knödel, dumplings, into clear beef broth. The Allgäu and Bavarian-Swabian kitchens like Bergkäse or Emmentaler and set them on sauerkraut, with salad, or in broth when the weather asks for it. Im Norden anders, im Süden anders. This one is southern, and it doesn't pretend otherwise.

The one technique is the bread soak. Pour warm milk over stale bread and let it stand until the cubes soften but still keep their edges. If you drown them, you make paste and the Knödel fry heavy. If you rush them, the dry centers steal moisture in the pan and the patties crack. Rest the mixture, then press it flat so the middle cooks before the crust gets too dark.

Fry them in butter and a little oil over medium heat, not a hard flame. Runter mit der Temperatur. The cheese needs time to melt and bind the bread while the outside turns gold and crisp at the edge. Schön ist, was schmeckt.