You will need: Fireclay bricks/Spacer grid/Grill grate
Top heat: approx. 220-250°C
Preheating: approx. 15 minutes
Working hours: 45 minutes
Baking time for bread dumplings: approx. 20 minutes

Ingredients:

(for 4 persons)

For the bread dumplings wrapped in bacon: (for 12 pieces)

• 400 g dumpling bread (made from stale white bread/semolina or bought from the bakery)
• 1 onion, finely diced
• ½ bunch parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp butter
• 300 ml milk
• 24 slices of bacon
• 4 eggs (size M)
• 1 tbsp flour
• Salt, pepper, nutmeg

For the creamed mushrooms:

• 1 tbsp frying oil
• 500 g mushrooms, finely chopped (e.g. brown mushrooms, chanterelles, porcini mushrooms)
• 2 shallots, finely diced
• 1 tbsp butter
• 150 ml dry white wine
• 500 ml cream
• Salt, ground pepper, sugar
• 2-3 tbsp soy sauce

In addition:

• some flour
• freshly chopped parsley
  

Heat the Merklinger to approx. 220-250°C.

For the bread dumplings wrapped in bacon:
Place the dumpling bread in a large bowl and season with salt.
Heat a cast-iron pan on the pull-out grill rack directly over the fire.
Sauté the onions and parsley in butter. Pour in the milk and pour the lukewarm mixture over the dumpling bread and mix loosely. Cover and leave to stand for approx. 20 minutes.

Line 12 heat-resistant glass or ceramic tins (alternatively the cavities of a muffin tin) with 2 slices of bacon crosswise in each.

Add the eggs and flour to the dumpling dough. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and work into a dumpling mixture with your hands. (Do not "knead" too firmly, this will keep the dumplings nice and fluffy).

With moistened hands, form dumplings (80 g each) and place in the prepared ramekins. Wrap the bacon strips on top.

Place the ramekins on the spacer rack on the fireclay bricks and bake the dumplings wrapped in bacon for approx. 20 minutes. To crisp up the bacon a little, increase the top heat to approx. 280°C towards the end of the baking time. To do this, place 2-3 logs at the back.


For the creamed mushrooms:
Heat a cast-iron pan on the pull-out grill rack directly over the fire.

Heat the oil and fry the mushrooms well.

Add the butter. Sauté the shallots. Deglaze with white wine, add the cream and bring to the boil. Season to taste with salt, pepper, sugar and soy sauce and thicken with flour if desired.

Serve the baked bread dumplings wrapped in bacon with the creamed mushrooms on plates and sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley.



Tip:

If you don't know what to do with stale bread rolls (in Bavarian: Semmeln), then bread dumplings are a wonderful way to use up leftovers.