I make Spätzle at least once a week. I find that I can’t make Schnitzel without making them. There are certain dishes that Spätzle just belongs with with.

There are other reasons I like to make these noodles. I get to use my noodle press. The press has a lot of history. It is only one of two presses in our family that comes all the way from what was once East Germany. (My mother has the other one.) The press is large and if you aren’t used to it, a little unwieldy. It looks like it could be used as a torture device.

Spätzle is also one of the easiest German side dishes (or main course-Käse Spätzle for instance) I could possibly make.

Granted there does seem to be a period of trial and error regarding the dough and the cooking time. It’s taken me a year or two of constantly making them to get the consistency, firmness, and texture that I remember my mother’s Spätzle having.

This recipe is actually out of my mother’s first cookbook. It works wonderfully with a hand-held noodle press. (I am not sure how it would work with a press like the one found on a Kitchen Aide) And I know that it works reasonably well with a Schupfen Brett (a board and scrapper used to smooth, stretch and cut the noodles into the water) but I haven’t mastered that particular art yet.

Every time I make this dough it tends to turn out a little differently. It calls for either milk or water, I tend to use milk. I have been known to use heavy whipping cream which makes for a “fluffier” noodle. My Tante Bärbel (Tante=Aunt) makes hers with seltzer water.

The dough’s consistency varies every time I make it. Sometimes it is thin, and other times it is thick. This is perfectly alright. It entirely depends on what type of liquid you use. Water will make the dough thinner than milk.

The real key to making Spätzle is the cooking time. These noodles rise to the top when done, but I have found that if you wait 3 minutes or so after they’ve risen to the the top that the noodles will be completely done. (I tend to wait about 5 minutes.) And you have to shock them in cold water once you remove them.

You can make these in advance and either keep them warm in a covered heat safe dish in the oven (warm setting) until you need them or reheat them in the microwave when needed.

Spätzle

recipe adapted from Ich helf dir kochen

2 large eggs, beaten

1/4 cup milk OR water

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

dash of pepper

Beat egg, add milk, salt and pepper. Blend. Mix in flour.  Set aside.

You need a large pot of lightly salted water. Bring to a slow boil. Use press. Reduce heat. Once noodles have risen to the surface wait 3-5 minutes then remove with a slotted spoon an place into a cold bath to shock the noodles. Drain.