Herbed Spaetzle

                                                                     Photography by Rachel Horesovsky

Of all the German food I prepare, I perhaps love spaetzle the most.  A cross between a dumpling and a noodle, these chewy little beauties are insanely delicious and are the perfect starch with any variety of roast meats and particularly with Wiener Schnitzel.

They are a little messy to prepare, but are not difficult.  Traditionally the thin, sticky spaetzle is pushed through a collander with large holes, but if you love spaetzle as much as I do, you may want to invest in a spaetzle maker.

Click image to buy spaetzle maker online

Spaetzle can be made well ahead of time and simply browned with herbs right before serving.  I usually toss the hot spaetzle in a large plastic ziploc bag with a little olive oil to keep them from sticking together, and refrigerated for several days until ready to eat.

Herbed Spaetzle
serves 6-8

2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk

6 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme
2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
salt and pepper

In a large bowl combine flour and salt.  In a separate bowl whisk together milk and eggs until well blended.  Pour egg mixture into flour and mix with a wooden spoon until a smooth sticky batter is formed.

Spaetzle batter

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.  Place colander or spaetzle maker over the top of the vigorously boiling water and push the batter through the holes into the water.  Boil for about 5 minutes, drain.

The camera had a hard time focusing due to all the steam coming from the pot of boiling water, 

but you get the idea of how the spaetzle maker fits over the pot...

At this point the spaetzle can be tossed with olive oil and refrigerated in a plastic bag until ready to serve.

Immediately before serving, melt butter in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat.  Add spaetzle and toss to coat with butter.  Cook until spaetzle is lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.

Add chopped fresh herbs, and toss to coat.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot.