As a student, I used to live with a girl from Merano, Alto Adige: two Italians abroad, both from the mountains — one from those of Piemonte, the other from the Dolomites — we had a lot of things in common, including a genetic love for the snow and trekking at high altitude, and a penchant for heavy, homemade liquors. Her brother used to make a fantastic berry grappa.
But I’m digressing.
The point is that she was the one who introduced me to what became a favorite dish of mine, canederli. Also known as knödel or dumplings, they are traditional from the region of Alto Adige, as well as other areas of Central and Eastern Europe, including Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic (where they are known as knedliky), and Slovakia. They are also a common dish in the mountains of Veneto and Friuli, where they may also be referred to as chineghi or balotes, meaning “big balls.”
Canederli are considered part of the culinary tradition of cucina povera because they were born — a long time ago, we will see! — out of necessity, as a way to use leftovers. Indeed, one of their defining characteristics is their simplicity, as they are made from basic ingredients, including stale bread, eggs, milk, flour, and a variety of flavorings such as speck (smoked ham), cheese, or herbs. The stale bread is soaked in milk or water and then mixed with the other ingredients to form a dough. The dough is then shaped into small balls or cylindrical shapes and cooked by either boiling them in salted water or frying them until golden brown. Usually, they are served with melted butter and parmesan on top, or in a meat broth.
The origins of canederli can be traced back to the cuisine of the Tyrolean Alps in the Middle Ages, where they were initially created as a way to utilize stale bread and avoid waste; they were a hearty and satisfying meal for the mountainous region’s inhabitants, providing sustenance during long, cold winters. Indeed, we have proof of their popularity in medieval times thanks to a cycle of frescoes in the chapel of Hocheppan Castle, a historic fortress perched atop a mount in Missiano, offering breathtaking views of the entire Oltradige region to the capital, Bolzano. The painting, which dates back to the late 12th century, is called Canederli Eaters and depicts a scene with a laboring girl attended by a nursemaid in the kitchen, overseeing the cooking of five canederli in a pot. With a gesture of anticipation, the nursemaid takes one of the dumplings with her fork to taste it: this image, kept within the walls of an ancient Alpine castle, is the earliest known portrayal of our canederli.
As it often happens, truth and fiction mix when it comes to understanding how a popular food came to be. In the case of canederli, legend has it that they were born from the ingenuity of an innkeeper faced with hungry mercenaries late at night. With only scraps of speck and other cured meats left in her kitchen, she ingeniously combined them with stale bread, flour, and milk to form balls cooked in boiling water. The story may be invented, but the way canederli came to be is probably not far from that.
We said that canederli are simple, but that doesn’t mean they are boring: while their basic recipe remains consistent, there are numerous variations across Alto Adige and beyond. Some recipes call for the addition of spinach or other vegetables (this was the way my friend used to make them!), while others incorporate different types of meat or cheese. The type of bread could also change, as both white and brown varieties are used, another nod to how canederli‘s versatility comes from their origin as a piatto di riciclo, a dish made not to throw away leftovers.
In Trentino, canederli may feature ingredients such as Alpine herbs and mushrooms, which add unique flavor profiles to the dumplings. In South Tyrol, where German and Italian influences converge, they often incorporate speck, the traditional smoked ham typical of the region, along with a wider range of ingredients reflecting both culinary practices, which include cheeses like Parmigiano, Asiago, graukase, or any other local formaggi d’alpeggio, spinach and lashings of butter. Often, they are made with ground meat, in which case they tend to be consumed in broth, rather than with butter.
Seasonality is also important, as making canederli goes hand in hand with what’s available, so during the summer months vegetables and fresh herbs are a more common ingredient, while hearty meats and cheeses are favored during the winter.
In addition to savory variations, canederli also lend themselves to sweet interpretations. In this case, however, we don’t use stale bread, but flour and sugar along with, of course, the omnipresent eggs, butter, and milk. Among the most famous in Alto Adige, we have apricot canederli, which are made with flour, eggs, sugar, salt, milk, and butter, mixed with ricotta or a soft cheese like quark. The dough is rolled out thin, cut into squares, and wrapped around apricots filled with marzipan. Then, they’re boiled for about eight minutes and served dry with a sauce made with melted butter, breadcrumbs, and a dash of cinnamon. You can also make sweet canederli with seasonal fruits like strawberries or plums, or even stuff them with chocolate.
… As for my friend who used to make canederli for me when we were students, well… she still does! She came visiting last year from Merano, brought me a big chunk of homemade speck from her farm, and took over the kitchen one evening to prepare them, just as she used to do. It was a delicious meal, perfect to honor a great dish and a great friendship!
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