Hut owner Silvia Beyer cooks vegetarian food at her "Hündeleskopfhütte" near Pfronten. Instead of schnitzel and bacon platters, she serves cheese spaetzle and vegan courgette lasagne. Her recipe for Kässpatzen for you
Allgaeu Käsespätzle
The “Hündeleskopfhütte” looks like a traditional mountain inn, but appearances are deceptive! Hut manager Silvia Beyer is breaking new ground. The concept of the vegetarian mountain hut and traditional Bavarian cuisine are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary: many of the typical Allgäu dishes are meatless anyway – Silvia Beyer tells us her recipe for Allgäu cheese noodles – in Bavaria called “Käsespätzle”.
Ingredients for 4 persons
- 400 g light spelt flour
- 6 eggs
- 1 tbsp salt
- 300 ml water
- 400 g grated mountain cheese
- 2-3 large onions
- fresh chives
- ground pepper
- 4 tbsp sunflower oil
- 3-5 litres water for cooking the spaetzle
- 1 tbsp salt
- Spaetzle slicer
Preparation
1. Step
Add 400 g flour, 6 eggs, 1 tbsp salt and the 150 ml water to the bowl and mix with a wooden spoon. Wait and see how the dough develops: Depending on the size of the eggs, add a little more water if necessary until the dough is tough and hard to pull off the spoon. Beat the dough vigorously (about 5 minutes) until it bubbles and has a shiny surface. The dough is allowed to rest for a while, but can also be used directly.
2. Step
Bring 3 - 5 litres of water to the boil with a tablespoon of salt. When the water boils, plane one to two loads of spaetzle into the pot with the spaetzle slicer. As soon as they float to the surface, they are ready and can be skimmed off with a skimmer and parked in a sieve. Repeat the process until all the spaetzle are cooked.
3. Step
Cut 2-3 onions into medium-sized rings and heat in a slightly higher pan with 4 tbsp sunflower oil. Put the skimmed spaetzle on top of the onion together with a handful of grated cheese and freshly ground pepper. Follow with the next portion of the finished spaetzle and the same layering. Reduce the initially high temperature of the pan to half, put the lid on and let it melt. After a few minutes, mix the Kässpatzen in the pan with a turner or toss well and roast and melt for a few more minutes at a higher heat.
Arrange on a plate, sprinkle with fresh chives and enjoy!
It goes wonderfully with a green salad.
