spätzle: almost another disaster

another "it was supposed to be easy!".

i had spatzle on our honeymoon in germany with some bratwurst. i remember then thinking how incredibly simple it was with a little salt, pepper, and butter, but also how i could have eaten an entire plate of that and skipped the brat. so when i saw it show up in food network magazine, i figured i'd see how close i could replicate it.

after dirtying three colanders and four spoons, dinner was finally ready. and needless to say, it wasn't easy.

the problem was the colander. i made the dough with no problems - flour, eggs, water. easy. then came the whole "push it through the holes of a colander over boiling water with a rubber spatula" part. yea, that didn't work so much. i ended up with huge blobs of batter falling into the water instead of smooth, individual strands.

so i tried another colander (i think the holes in the first colander were too small, thus the blobs) with larger holes. same problem as the first. then i tried a slotted spoon. it worked better, but it took forever to push the dough through the spoon. so i tried a second spoon with bigger holes. it still wasn't perfect - or easy - but it worked. and it didn't look too bad either.

and let me tell you, sauteed with a little butter and dusted with garlic powder, it was excellent. not even close to germany perfect, but good none the less.

spatzle
adapted from food network magazine

3 cups all purpose flour
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups water
pinch kosher salt
2 tablespoons melted butter

1. heat a large pot of water over high heat. the spatzle is cooked in boiling water like any other pasta.
2. make the dough by mixing together the flour, eggs, and salt. gradually mix in the water until a sticky dough forms. mix in the melted butter.
3. when the water is boiling, use a colander with large holes or a spoon with large holes, push the batter through the holes and into the water with a spatula. let cook for about 2 minutes and drain.
4. saute with additional butter, pepper, and garlic (or garlic powder or garlic salt) and serve.