Semmelknodel

300g white bread swapped for 250g rye bread and 100g cooked puy lentils

White bread is the backbone, but it's just air and starch. Rye bread has more protein and fibre, and puy lentils fill in the gaps. The lentils also help the dumplings hold their shape instead of relying on extra egg.

What it costs you. The texture changes. Rye is denser and the crusts turn the dumplings a duller colour. Lentils in a bread dumpling are the other most controversial thing I've ever done - right after putting pineapple on pizza.

300g whole milk down to 200g semi-skimmed milk

Whole milk is pure luxury, but a bread dumpling does not need as much fat as you think. Semi-skimmed soaks the bread just as well. You need a bit less of it, because rye bread doesn't take up as much liquid.

What it costs you. You lose a bit of creaminess, but these are dumplings, not panna cotta. Nobody's writing home about the milk in a Semmelknodel.

40g butter swapped for 10g olive oil

Butter for frying the onions is a getaway vehicle for flavour and fat. I use olive oil because I need one or the other, and I'd rather save my butter for toast.

What it costs you. You will miss the flavour. There's no olive oil in Bavarian mountain huts, and the onions fry up a bit paler. But the dumplings still work.

150g whole egg down to 100g egg and 60g egg white

Whole eggs bind the mix and add structure, but you can cut back on yolks if you add a bit of white. You still get the stickiness without the fat.

What it costs you. The dumplings are a touch less rich, and the yellow is a bit faded. Close your eyes, or serve them under a thick sauce and you'll never notice.

Add 120g firm tofu, crumbled

Here's the trick: tofu hides beautifully in the dough, boosting the protein without turning the thing into a health bar. Crumble it fine, and nobody will know it's in there.

What it costs you. You do slightly notice the texture if you eat one plain. But who eats a bread dumpling without sauce? It isn't cheating, it's dinner.