Maultaschen (german Meat-filled Pasta Dumplings)

Total Time: 40 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 lb spinach (fresh or frozen)
• 2 tablespoons butter or 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 medium onion, minced
• 1 cup ground beef
• 3 -4 slices good quality bread, soaked in
• milk or water
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• salt & pepper, to taste
• 3 -4 eggs, beaten
• 1 (12 ounce) package wonton wrappers (i prefer the round ones but square will work)
• 1 egg, beaten with a little
• water

Recipe

• 1 if using fresh spinach, bring a pot of water to a boil.
• 2 drop in the spinach and blanch for 1-2 minutes. drain in a colander and squeeze as much liquid out as possible.
• 3 if using frozen spinach, simply thaw and squeeze out the liquid in a colander.
• 4 chop finely.
• 5 heat the butter or oil in a sauté pan and sauté the onions over medium heat till translucent.
• 6 add the ground beef and sauté till just cooked through.
• 7 drain excess oil and allow to cool.
• 8 mix the spinach and ground beef mixture together in a bowl.
• 9 drain the bread and squeeze dry.
• 10 crumble in the bread, mix well, and season to taste with nutmeg and salt and pepper.
• 11 add 3-4 eggs and mix or knead to form a paste.
• 12 add 1-2 tsps of the stuffing to each wonton wrapper, moisten the edges with a little of the egg-water mixture, and fold in half.
• 13 press down on edges to seal.
• 14 cook for 8-10 minutes in rapidly boiling, salted water.
• 15 drain and serve with a little beef or chicken broth, in soups, or topped with bread crumbs toasted in melted butter.
• 16 variations:.
• 17 use different types of bread for different flavors: rye, whole wheat, or stale rolls.
• 18 substitute ground chicken or lamb for the ground beef. a.
• 19 add a little minced ham or sausages for extra flavor.
• 20 kräutermaultaschen (herb maultaschen): substitute 1 bunch minced parsley and 1 bunch minced chives or scallions for half the spinach.