I heard that the Buzihütte is a must for Innsbruck visitors and tourists. Curiosity took us there to consume the popular Spinach dumplings in the beautiful Alpine surroundings. We also had the stuffed Schnitzel “Eiterbeule” and the Blueberry pancake as dessert. All in all, the menu had something to offer for everyone
The Buzihütte s not an Alpine hut in the true sense, but a particularly rustic inn. Nevertheless, there is a hut feeling. The weather was nice and we were drawn outside onto the terrace for a cool drink and to soak up the sun.
We ate these delicious Spinach dumplings after a short climb up a mountain to the rustic Buzihütte restaurant. Afterward we sat with the locals and sang
After an amazing hike in the eastern part of Innsbruck, we reached the rustic Guesthouse Buzihütte on the edge of the forest. We sat down for dinner outside and had an amazing evening with music, singing and laughter. Everyone was radiating good vibes and made us feel welcome
The Buzihütte is known for its generous portions and the Austrian-Tyrolean home cooking. The blueberry pancake is legendary, for example. And other specialties like spare ribs also found their way also on the menu like a Cordon Bleu, called “Eiterbeule” that is based on a secret recipe.
On days when I don’t know what to cook (unfortunately there are more of them than I would like), I make my Spinach dumplings. They taste great and can also be frozen very well
You can see how to prepare the Spinach dumplings in the my pictures, and the exact recipe below. Good luck!
This Recipe is asking for “Topfen” which is Quark. Quark is hard to find in the US, the best substitutes for Quark are: cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, Greek yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, and crème fraîche. Read more about Quark substitutes here
I prepared the dough a day ahead and left it overnight, covered in the fridge.The cold dough stiffened a bit and it was easy to form the dumplings. You can moisten your hands if the dough sticks to your hands, and add more breadcrumbs if necessary.
Instead of cooking the dumplings in water without a lid, I prefer steaming them in a basket in the Instant Pot, adding 3 cups of water and leave the seal valve open.
Spinach dumplings with cheese
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound cubed baguette bread
- 1/2 cup hot milk
- 1 lb fresh or frozen spinach
- 1 medium onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 tbsp butter
- 3.5 tbsp Greek Yoghurt (or Ricotta Cheese)
- 3/4 cup shredded Gouda (or Swiss, Parmesan)
- 3 medium eggs
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 dash nutmeg
- 1 dash pepper
- 1 dash salt
- Breadcrumbs if necessary
- Optional Topping:
- 1 tsp butter
- 3 tbsp shredded parmesan
Instructions
- First peel the onion and garlic and mince.
- Slowly heat the butter in a pan and briefly fry the minced onion and garlic.
- Add the fresh spinach to the pan with 1/2 cup water (if frozen spinach drain water in sieve first).
- Steam in pan, keep stirring and as soon as liquid forms.
- When the spinach is cooked down, take it off the stove and let it cool down a little.
- If liquid has accumulated, drain well in the sieve.
- The spinach should be not very wet until it is processed further.
- Now pour the spinach, greek yoghurt, gouda (or parmesan) cheese, milk, flour and the beaten eggs over the bread.
- Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- Stir all well with your hands and let it rest at least 15 minutes, or overnight in the fridge.
- If the dough is not firm enough, add some breadcrumbs, if the dough is too dry, add some milk or eggs.
- Form small dumplings from the mass, with a size to be slightly larger than a tennis ball. Press together well,
- Drop one after one into lightly salted, simmering Water. I prefer steaming in the Instant Pot for 15 min. with about 3 cups water, leave seal valve open.
- Cook or steam the dumplings on medium in an open pot for about 15 minutes.
- Optional: top dumplings with a butter and parmesan
Notes
At the end melt some butter and let it brown slightly, grate the parmesan. Cover and serve the finished dumplings with melted butter and parmesan. Guten Appetit!