What To Do With Leftover Christmas Stollen: Stollenknödel

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These last few weeks, whenever I entered our kitchen/dining room (to make our small house more efficient for us, we eat at our island and don't have a dining room), there was this plastic-wrapped log of German Christmas Stollen that kept asking me when it was time to eat it. My step mom brought it for us alongside many other German goodies like Dominosteine, Marzipan and lots and lots of German chocolate, but the Stollen got left behind. Stollen is just not my favorite. So it kept sitting there and making me feel bad until one day, when I felt inspired to 'recycle' it so to say, and turn it into something even better... in my opinion. The Stollenknödel was born!

What are Stollenknödel?

If you're not into the sweet-savory things in life, this recipe is probably not for you. Although Stollenknödel are technically the little sister of the famous Semmelknödel (a typical German bread dumpling similar to American stuffing, but in dumpling shape), Stollenknödel are not predominantly sweet, since the Stollen is mixed with equal weight of bread. Do they have a hint of sweetness? Yes. Because obviously Stollen is coated in powdered sugar and contains lots of dried fruit (mainly raisins). Does that stop me from eating them with my Sunday pot roast? Nope, I think it makes it even better. By the way, I used a simple, German roast recipe and cooked it in my Instant Pot for 90 minutes - that's it! I used jarred red cabbage, but please feel free to make your own! If you don't have a leftover Stollen laying around or a German step mom who brings you Stollen, you can of course buy some.

If you would like to keep the theme of these dumpling sweet and serve them for dessert, simply mix up a batch of homemade vanilla sauce to go along with them and omit the parsley in the below dumpling recipe. The vanilla sauce recipe from my Dampfnudeln recipe (a German Christmas specialty) works perfectly with these.

German Red Wine Is The Best Kept Secret

When you think of German wine, you probably don't ever think of red wine. Rieslings are what German wineries are best known for after all. But I encourage you to dig deeper and search out the reds of the German wine world. Luckily the Affentaler winery located at Germany's largest river, the Rhine, and at the foot of the Black Forest, can accommodate you with a German Pinot Noir, as well as their newer addition called 'Monkey Mountain.' Monkey Mountain is a German cuvée of Merlot, Pinot Noir and Regent and it's honestly so, so delicious. Pinot Noir adds elegance and a fine, fruity aroma. Merlot brings body and spice and Regent, harmony and a deep, ruby red color. Click here to locate a bottle (or a case) near you.

Next Up: German Raspberry Cheesecake In A Glass

We're approaching Valentine's Day and with that, a memory from last year when I cooked a 4-course meal at KC Bier Co. As chaotic and stressful as it was, it was also a fun experience and some really great recipes came out of it that have been tried and tried over and over again. One of those recipes I will share with you next time, and it's hands down the best cheesecake ever. Make sure you're not missing out by subscribing now to receive weekly emails of when my newest recipes get added to my blog!

Stollenknödel Recipe

4 rolls (about 200 g or 7 oz) from the day before
7 oz (200 g) Butter Stollen (use one that's laying around or you buy one here)
5 oz (150 ml) milk
2 eggs
2 tablespoon breadcrumbs
salt and pepper
one handful fresh, flat-leaf parsley (omit if you making the dessert version)

Cut the bread into thin slices, tear the Stollen into small pieces and combine in a bowl. Whisk milk and eggs together, then pour over the bread-Stollen mixture. Allow to soak for 15 minutes. Then add in chopped parsley, and some pepper and salt (omit if making this for dessert).
Using your hands, knead the mixture until combined and sticky. If the mixture becomes to sticky, add in one to two tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Now shape your dumplings. Depending on how large you like them, you will end up with between 4 to 6 of them (use wet hands when shaping them, so the dough doesn't stick as much).
Bring a large bowl of salted water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, add in the dumplings and allow to 'steep' for 15 to 20 minutes (depending on size). Remove from water and serve with your favorite roast and red cabbage.
If you prefer serving your Stollenknödel for dessert, serve with this homemade vanilla sauce. You can also roll the dumplings in cinnamon-sugar after boiling them.

Over Winter? Here Some German Spring Recipes For You To Try:

White Asparagus & Ham Crêpes - white asparagus is a seasonal specialty you need to snatch up while you can!
Erdbeerboden - A German fruit tart with homemade pudding and lots of strawberries
Poppy Seed, Sweet Yeast Bread - a German Spring specialty

I received compensation from Niche Import Co. in exchange for writing this post. Although this post is sponsored, all opinions, thoughts and recipes are my own. This post contains affiliate links, which means that I may be compensated if you click certain links.