Steffen's Dinners - Recipes and Photos

Käsespätzle (Kaesespaetzle in the spelling without the umlaut) are a casserole made of Spätzle (fresh German egg noodles), cheese and browned onions.

They are true comfort food, flavorful and simple to prepare (except for making the Spätzle which can be done well in advance).

Ingredients

• 1 Recipe of Spätzle
• 2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1½ lb / 700g grated cheese (see notes)
• 2-3 tbsp butter

Preparation

1. Grease ovenproof form or pan with butter
2. Preheat oven to 375°F / 190°C.
3. Set heavy pan over high heat. Add butter and olive oil. Add onions. Cook over high heat until the onions start to brown. Stir frequently.
4. Reduce heat. Add salt. Cook onions until soft and golden brown, ca. 20 minutes. Stir frequently and scrape the juices off the bottom of the pan.
5. Place a layer of Spätzle in the form, put browned onions on top, then add a layer of grated cheese. Repeat until Spätzle, onions and cheese have been used up, make sure to finish with a cheese layer.
6. Bake in the oven until the cheese has melted and starts to brown on the top, ca. 20-25 minutes.
7. Serve hot.

Notes

• Use flavorful cheese like Gruyere or Comte.
• You can prepare everything in advance, keep the dish refrigerated and just place it in the oven before serving.
• You can finish the Spätzle in the microwave instead of the oven. Use a ceramic form, heat up the Spätzle with the cheese in the microwave until hot (ca. 12-15 minutes in my microwave oven)
• The Umlaut-less spelling is "Kaesespaetzle"

Yields 4-6 servings

Preparation time ca. 2 hours