This is like a giant rolled dumpling with a spinach filling. A potato dough reminiscent of gnocchi is rolled up around the filling, then the whole thing is wrapped in cheesecloth, boiled in salted water, and served hot, in spiral-patterned slices.
Serves 6 generously.
Filling
• 2 lbs. fresh spinach
• 3 Tbs. butter
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1½ Tbs. white wine vinegar
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. oregano, crushed pinch of nutmeg
Dough
• 2 lbs. potatoes
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 1½ teaspoons . salt
• ⅛ tsp. nuts
• 2 to 2½ cups flour
Garnish
• ½ cup butter, melted
• ¾ cup fresh-grated Parmesan cheese
1. To make the filling, wash the spinach carefully and cook it, covered, in the water that clings to the leaves, until it is all completely wilted. Squeeze out the excess moisture and chop the spinach fine.
2. Melt the 3 tablespoons butter in a medium-sized skillet and sauté the chopped onions and minced garlic in it until they are golden. Stir in the chopped spinach, the vinegar, ½ teaspoon salt, the oregano, and the nutmeg. Stir and continue cooking for a few minutes, until the mixture is thick but still moist. Taste, and correct the seasoning if necessary.
3. To make the dough, boil the potatoes until they are tender, peel them, and press them through a coarse sieve into a large bowl. Beat the 2 whole eggs with the egg yolk and stir the beaten eggs into the potatoes along with the 1½ teaspoons salt and the nutmeg. Stir in about 2 cups flour and begin working the dough with your hand until it is smooth (one hand will do—you don’t want to have them both in there at once, or you’ll have trouble getting out). Work in as much flour as is necessary to form a dough that is stiff enough to hold its shape in a ball.
4. Sprinkle a large sheet of waxed paper with a generous amount of flour and roll the dough out on it in an even rectangle, 11 inches by 13 inches. Keep the dough dusted with flour to prevent it from sticking.
5. Spread the spinach filling over the rectangle of dough, leaving a 1-inch border on both ends and one of the 13-inch sides, and a 2-inch border on the other 13-inch side. Starting with the long side that has the 1-inch border, roll the dough up over the filling, peeling back the waxed paper as you go. Securely pinch together the seam and ends so that none of the filling can squeeze out. Now wrap the entire roulade in cheesecloth, 2 or 3 layers thick and long enough to extend past both ends of the roulade by several inches. Tie the cheesecloth with string at the ends, and tie another strip of cheesecloth, about 3 inches wide, around the middle of the roulade.
6. Place it in a large, fairly deep pan, such as a roasting pan, and cover it with boiling salted water. Simmer the roulade for 50 minutes, turning it over once, halfway through.
7. Lift out the roulade and let it rest for a couple of minutes, then carefully remove the cheesecloth; use a sharp knife to help peel away the cheesecloth if it should stick.
8. Cut ¾-inch slices and serve them immediately on warm plates, drenched with melted butter and sprinkled liberally with Parmesan cheese.
