Soup Fever

So, there is a little nip in the air tonight and I just had to make soup and deviate from my regularly scheduled supper. I'm making soup tomorrow night too. I can't get enough of the stuff once it starts to get cool around here. I got the chance to try out a new kitchen toy too! I always get really excited about new kitchen gadgets...that is, until I have no where to put them in my tiny kitchen! :) In New Glarus we picked up a proper spaetzle maker! For those of you no educated in German dumplings, it is egg dough pressed through holes to make little dumplings and dropped right into hot liquid to cook. They are sort of like German pasta and only take about 3 minutes to cook. They are excellent on there own, with gravy or in soup. I added them to my veggie soup tonight and they were delicious! The recipe I used came on the back of the spaetzle maker package and made quite a bit, but it was perfect for the soup, or should I say stoup (thank you Rachel Ray). It's pretty thick with all the starchy little spaetzles, but there is still some yummy broth. As if we didn't have enough carbs with the spaetzle, I defrosted some ciabatta bread and sliced up some baby Swiss cheese that we had gotten in Monroe, WI. With a full tummy I'll leave you with the spaetzle recipe:

German Spaetzle

3 eggs
1 cup milk
3 cups flour (I'm going to try 1/2 white, 1/2 whole wheat flour next time to make it a tad healthier)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Beat eggs until foamy and then combine with milk. Mix together flour, salt and nutmeg. Add to eggs and milk a little at a time. The dough will bevery stiff and elastic. Consistency of the dough is important so it will go through the holes of the spaetzle maker or you could use a strainer with bigger holes (not mesh...what a mess that would be!). If dough seems too thick, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time to get correct consistency. Press dough through holes into boiling water or stock. When done, they will float and you can either scoop them out if you're using them as a side or leave them in for a great starch for a soup.

Enjoy!
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