Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Meanwhile, wash the spinach well in cold water to remove any dirt and grit. Shake dry, then fill the sink with cold water. Blanch the spinach in batches by cooking briefly in the boiling water, then refreshing in the cold water in the sink. This is to keep the spinach a beautiful bright green. Drain through a sieve, then squeeze dry with a kitchen towel.

Chop the spinach roughly, then puree in the food processor with the blade attachment fitted. It is best to do this a little at a time, dropping the spinach through the feed tube so that the blade can work properly.

Bring the milk to the boil and place the bread in a large mixing bowl. Pour over the milk, stir to combine, then cover and allow to soften for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a small pan and gently cook the onion until softened, but not browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, then remove from the heat.

When the bread has softened, uncover and add the spinach, eggs, Parmesan and ricotta to the bowl. Season very well with the salt (you may need more to taste), pepper and nutmeg. Stir to combine and make a thick dough. If the dough seems very wet, add up to 150g of breadcrumbs. The dough needs to be firm enough to easily roll into balls (see pictures and note).

With slightly wet hands roll the mixture into dumplings slightly larger than golf balls and place on a plate. When the dumplings have all been rolled, bring a large, wide pot of salted water to a gentle simmer and lower the dumplings in, one by one. Poach very gently for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a small saucepan, cooking until a light, nut brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.

When the dumplings are cooked, lift out of the water with a slotted spoon to serving bowls. Pour our the brown butter sauce, garnish with fresh basil leaves and freshly grated Parmesan. Serve immediately.