• 120 g(4¼ oz) day-old white bread, crusts cut off
• 150 ml(5 fl oz) milk
• 20 g(¾ oz) butter
• 1 french shallot, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• 100 g(3½ oz) unsmoked pancetta, finely chopped
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
• freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 litres(70 fl oz/8 cups) chicken broth

Tear up the bread and put it in a bowl with the milk. Leave it to soak for about 20 minutes. Melt the butter in a frying pan and sauté the shallot over medium–low heat for a few minutes until it is golden. Add the garlic and pancetta and sauté until lightly browned. Cool a little and then add to the bread mixture. Add the egg, parsley and parmesan, a couple of grinds of nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Squelch it all together with your hands. Dampen your hands with warm water and roll little balls of mixture the size of small walnuts (you should get 20–25 dumplings). Put the dumplings on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes or so.

Bring the broth to the boil in a large saucepan. Add the dumplings, give them a stir and then simmer for 8–10 minutes. Ladle the broth into serving bowls, giving everyone four or five dumplings each.