Melt the butter in a bowl standing in a pan of hot water and beat until frothy. Add the two egg yolks and mix well. Mix the flour and bread crumbs together and add to the butter and egg mixture to make a smooth paste.
Pass the smoked Quark through a sieve or chop into very small pieces and add to the mixture. Cover and stand in the fridge for 30 minutes so that the mixture becomes a little firmer in consistency. Take the paste in your hands and shape into small dumplings. Leave to stand in the fridge until needed.
Cut the various vegetables separately into small dice-shapes. Heat a pan, add the olive oil and onion and then the other vegetables and cook until tender. Season with salt, pepper and a little garlic, add the basil and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Cook the leaf salad in hot oil at 170 degrees until crisp.
Fill a large saucepan with water, add salt to taste and bring to the boil. Add the dumplings and cook until the water reaches boiling point again. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for 12-15 minutes.
Cooking time for the Knödel dumplings: 12-15 minutes
To serve
Arrange the vegetables and the Knödel dumplings attractively on the serving plates.
Pour a little melted butter over the Knödel and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and the crisply-fried leaf salad.
Our tips
You can usually find Smoked Quark in delicatessens and specialist grocers. It has an especially delicate, smoked flavour and a noticeably drier texture than normal Quark.
You might like to try dry Ricotta cheese in this recipe for a change.
Why not serve the Knödel dumplings with nettle or spinach leaves instead of the vegetable selection we recommend here.
To save time, you could make larger dumplings and serve one more generously-sized Knödel per person rather than three smaller ones.
