Spaetzle

It is not often that someone seeks me out to want to try to recreate one of their favorite dishes gluten-free. My friend, who grew up in Germany and also blogs about food, really wanted to see if we could make spaetzle, from scratch. When comfort food is involved, the answer is always "yes!"

She grew up eating them with lentils and hot dogs, and I had a craving for green beans. Spaetzle + lentils + green beans + hot dogs = really really good dinner.

Spaetzle (the recipe is a modified version of this)
1 cup potato starch
1 cup tapioca starch
1 cup sweet rice flour
2 tbsp corn starch
3 eggs
water

1. Combine dry ingredients with 3 eggs and mix well.
2. Add enough water for the mixture to come together and be able to form ribbons.
3. Bring a few quarts of well-salted water to a boil.
4. Stir mixture and place between 1/3 and 1/2 cup on a cutting or spaetzle board.
5. Smooth out dough, and draw a small portion of it down towards the edge of the board.
6. Using a butter knife or spaetzle cutter, cut and fling the spaetzle into the boiling water, dipping the blade of the knife in the water after each cut (to help prevent dough from sticking).
7. All to boil for 2-3 more minutes after last spaetzle is in the pot. (they will float when they are done)
8. Remove from water with slotted spoon.
9. Repeat #4-8 till no dough remains. (If the dough starts to dry out, add a little more water to help loosen the batter, but just a little)
10. Serve warm with lentils.

Dough is forming ribbons, this is looking good.


Place some on the cutting board:

Cutting into water:



It is totally working! (much to our surprise)


First batch is out!


Lentils
1+ cups of lentils
1 carrot, cleaned and quartered
1 rib of celery, cleaned and quartered
1 small onion, quartered
1 bay leaf
vegetable or chicken stock
Red wine vinegar

1. Wash and sort lentils (remove any stones)
2. Add oil and lentils to pan, toast over medium heat for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add in carrots, celery, onion, bay leave and enough stock to cover.
4. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Cook until lentils are tender 25-40 minutes.
5. Add a few tsp of red wine vinegar (or more to taste).
6. Serve warm over spaetzle.


Green Beans
1 package of frozen green beans (you can use fresh if they are in season)
1 tbsp water
zest of one lemon
juice of half a lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
salt

1. In a microwave save bowl add green beans and water. Defrost until beans are almost warm but not hot. (If a few are still cold that is perfect)
2. Stir in lemon zest, juice, oil and a pinch of salt.
3. Serve at room temp or chill.

Hot Dogs
Steam or grill to hot. (We added them to the spaetzle water to steam while prepping the rest of the food.)

"German Style Wieners"


The full spread:


Verdict: The spaetzle were far better than I expected. (I honestly thought they would be a giant blob at the bottom of the pot, not formed, recognizable dumplings.) They did stick together after they started to cool, so if I made them again I would put some oil or butter on them in between batches to make sure they stayed separate.
The lentils cooked a bit unevenly, but I think that is because our eyes were focused on the spaetzle. Next time I would add a little bit more water and cook them longer and slower.
The wieners were a nice surprise. They were very mild and reminded me of summer sausage.

I will absolutely make spaetzle again!