Strangolapreti Trentini — Spinach Bread Dumplings

Trentino — the spinach-bread dumpling tradition is shared across the Tyrolese-Italian Alpine arc. Strangolapreti as a preparation is specifically documented in Trentino (as distinct from the Venetian or Umbrian uses of the same name for a pasta shape).

Strangolapreti (priest-stranglers — the same name used for a pasta shape in other regions) in Trentino are a specific type of bread dumpling: smaller and more delicate than canederli, made with stale bread, spinach (or beet greens), egg, and a small amount of flour, shaped into rough oval quenelles and boiled in salted water. They are served dressed with melted butter and sage (burro e salvia — the Alpine preparation for all pasta in brodo or dumplings) and a snowfall of aged Grana Padano or Trentino Grana. The spinach gives them a green colour and a slightly mineral flavour that distinguishes them from the meat-enriched canederlo.

Strangolapreti trentini are soft, slightly green, and smell of spinach, nutmeg, and stale bread — modest aromatics that are elevated by the brown butter and sage to something aromatic and satisfying. The Grana Trentino adds the necessary salt and sharp dairy note. It is one of the quietest preparations in Italian cooking, and one of the most satisfying in cold weather.