Swabian Spätzle Pasta with Cheese Recipe
Spätzle is a soft, homemade pasta from southern Germany, especially popular in Swabia. In the cheese version it’s a bit like a cross between dumplings and macaroni and cheese, very filling and ideal for colder days. In Germany it’s often served as a main course or as a side to roasts.
Swabian cheese Spätzle is the essence of southern German comfort food – soft, irregular little dumplings scraped by hand into boiling water, baked with gooey cheese. It’s something between homemade dumplings and mac and cheese, but with a distinct cheesy, buttery character. In the Swabia region it’s treated almost like a national dish, served both on ordinary days and alongside Sunday roasts.
Chef's tips
The Spätzle dough should be thick and elastic yet still slightly pourable – after mixing, beat it vigorously with a spoon until air bubbles start to appear. Drop the dough into well-salted simmering water in batches, using a special Spätzle grater or simply a board and knife; the dumplings are done when they float to the surface. Grate the cheese finely and layer it with the Spätzle so it melts evenly – if you add it all at once, it can clump into one solid block.
How to serve
Serve cheese Spätzle hot, straight from the oven or pan, topped with golden sautéed onions and chives. It’s an excellent side dish for roast beef, goulash or braised beef in red wine, but it also works perfectly as a standalone vegetarian main with a green salad and vinaigrette. At my place it most often appears in November, when everyone comes back from a chilly walk dreaming of something really hearty and hot.
Ingredients
- wheat flour - 300 g
- egg medium - 4 piece
- water lukewarm - 80 ml
- salt for the dough, plus for the cooking water - 1 teaspoon
- yellow cheese well-melting, grated, e.g. Gouda or Emmental - 200 g
- butter - 40 g
- onion medium - 2 piece
- black pepper to taste
- chives chopped, optional - 2 tablespoon
Preparation
- Put the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the eggs and water.
- Beat the dough with a wooden spoon or a mixer with a dough hook for 5–7 minutes, until smooth, thick and slightly stretchy. It should be thicker than pancake batter but still pourable.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Reduce the heat so the water is gently simmering.
- Place portions of the dough on a board or special Spätzle maker and scrape thin strips or droplets of dough into the water. You can also use a grater with large holes and press the dough through it.
- Cook the dumplings for 2–3 minutes, until they float to the surface. Lift them out with a slotted spoon onto a sieve or into a bowl. Repeat until all the dough is used.
- Peel the onions and slice them into thin half-rings. Heat the butter in a pan and fry the onions for 8–10 minutes over medium heat, stirring often, until soft and golden.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (top and bottom heat). Put a layer of Spätzle into an ovenproof dish, sprinkle with some of the cheese and add some of the sautéed onions. Repeat the layers until all the ingredients are used, finishing with cheese on top.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted and lightly browned at the edges. After removing from the oven, sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and chives.
Storage
Store cooled cheese Spätzle covered in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat in the oven, covered with foil, or in a pan with a splash of water until hot and the cheese is melted again.
