The first time I tried spätzli was at Christmas in my beloved Alsace. Spätzli, or “little arrows” from German, are the famous egg noodles. In Alsace, this dish was mixed with French cuisine, the French added a lot of cream and, of course, wine to it (where can we go without it in French cuisine?). And the result is a very tasty, comfort winter food. But there is absolutely no necessity in eating it only at street fairs: I think you will like this recipe and tiny “arrows” will appear on your table as often as on the tables in Alsace 🙂
The first time I tried spätzli was at Christmas in my beloved Alsace. Spätzli, or “little arrows” from German, are the famous egg noodles. In Alsace, this dish was mixed with French cuisine, the French added a lot of cream and, of course, wine to it (where can we go without it in French cuisine?). And the result is a very tasty, comfort winter food. But there is absolutely no necessity in eating it only at street fairs: I think you will like this recipe and tiny “arrows” will appear on your table as often as on the tables in Alsace 🙂- Prep time: 25 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Serves: 4-6
- Difficulty: medium
- Course: main course
- Cookware: baking dish, spätzli press, silicone spatula
- Cuisine: French / German
Ingredients
- 250 g ham or bacon, diced
- 300 g hard or semi-hard cheese, grated
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 200 ml cream
- 200 ml dry white wine
- oil for frying
- freshly ground black pepper
For the spätzli:
- 300 g flour
- 3 eggs
- 150 ml warm water
- 25 g butter
- 1 bunch of parsley, finely chopped
- dry garlic
- dry basil
- freshly ground black pepper
- salt
Cooking method
Step 1
In a bowl, mix eggs, water, and flour until smooth. Add parsley, garlic, basil, pepper, salt, mix and leave to sit for 10 minutes.
Step 2
In a frying pan, cook the onions in oil until golden brown. Remove from heat.
Step 3
Boil water in a large saucepan, add salt. Reduce heat to medium and leave on stove to simmer. Using a spätzli press, squeeze the batter into a saucepan. When the spätzli float on top, they are cooked. Strain the spätzli, transfer to a bowl and season with butter.
Step 4
Heat the oven to 200°C. Mix the ham with onions, wine, and cream. Season with pepper. Spread spätzli into a deep baking dish, top with ham, onions, and cream, and sprinkle over the cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
My tips and tricks:
If you don’t have a spätzli press, put the dough into a colander or potato masher and, using any handy scraper or silicone spatula, squeeze the dough into boiling water.
- 250 g ham or bacon, diced
- 300 g hard or semi-hard cheese, grated
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 200 ml cream
- 200 ml dry white wine
- oil for frying
- freshly ground black pepper
- For the spätzli:
- 300 g flour
- 3 eggs
- 150 ml warm water
- 25 g butter
- 1 bunch of parsley, finely chopped
- dry garlic
- dry basil
- freshly ground black pepper
- salt
- In a bowl, mix eggs, water, and flour until smooth. Add parsley, garlic, basil, pepper, salt, mix and leave to sit for 10 minutes.
- In a frying pan, cook the onions in oil until golden brown. Remove from heat.
- Boil water in a large saucepan, add salt. Reduce heat to medium and leave on stove to simmer. Using a spätzli press, squeeze the batter into a saucepan. When the spätzli float on top, they are cooked. Strain the spätzli, transfer to a bowl and season with butter.
- Heat the oven to 200°C. Mix the ham with onions, wine, and cream. Season with pepper. Spread spätzli into a deep baking dish, top with ham, onions, and cream, and sprinkle over the cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes.