Dampfnudeln with Vanilla Sauce

Warm 250 ml milk until lukewarm, stir in 60 g sugar and the dry yeast, then set aside for 10 minutes until bubbles form on the surface.

Add the flour, eggs, 70 g melted and cooled butter, and salt. Knead into a soft, elastic dough and continue kneading for 6–8 minutes until smooth. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 60 minutes, until doubled in size.

Punch down the dough, divide into 12 equal portions, and roll into balls. Cover with a towel and let rest for another 20 minutes.

For the sauce, heat 600 ml milk with 60 g sugar and a vanilla pod. Separately, whisk the egg yolks with cornstarch and a few spoonfuls of warm milk, then pour the mixture back into the pan and cook over low heat until slightly thickened, without letting it boil. Remove the vanilla pod and keep the sauce warm.

In a wide, deep skillet with a tight-fitting lid, melt 100 g butter, pour in 200 ml milk, and add 100 g sugar. Stir and bring the liquid to a hot temperature, but do not boil.

Place the dough balls in the skillet with space between them, cover with the lid, and cook over low heat for 25 minutes. Do not lift the lid, or the dumplings will collapse; by the end, the milk mixture should be absorbed and the bottoms nicely browned and caramelized.

Serve the dampfnudeln hot, drizzled with warm vanilla sauce.