This evening we had a very German inspired dinner. My husband, who almost never has any idea of what he wants for dinner, asked for beefy seitan cutlets, with spaetzle and red cabbage. Since I have posted a spaetzle recipe before, I decided to try to simplify the recipe and make it a little different. To accomplish this I added fresh herbs to the batter and it added quite a bit of flavor.
If you are unfamiliar with spaetzle they are little German dumplings. Traditionally they are made with an egg rich batter. They are added to soup or baked in casseroles with cheese. I substituted tofu for egg and used whole-wheat flour instead of white flour. I added fresh parsley to the dough for flavor, color and vitamin K.
Fresh spaetzle is a very quick side dish to prepare. Including boiling water I made this tonight in less than 30 minutes. I served it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil that I added just prior to serving. Here is what I made tonight.
Herbed Whole-Wheat Spaetzle
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
6 tablespoons firm silken tofu, organic
6 tablespoons water
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup fresh parsley, finely minced
1 cup whole-wheat flour
Directions:
Heat a pot of water to a low boil for cooking the spaetzle. Set up another bowl with cold water to place the cooked spaetzle in to keep them from sticking together.
Place the tofu, water, salt, pepper and parsley in your food processor and process.
Combine the flour and herb mixture in a mixing bowl and stir to combine. The mixture should be the consistency of thick waffle batter. You may need to add more water if your mixture is too firm.
Place a spaetzle maker or a colander with large wholes over the pot of simmering water. Use a spatula to place a quarter of the spaetzle batter in the spaetzle maker/colander. Use a silicon spatula to force the dough through the holes. Cook the spaetzle in the simmering water until they float. Then use a slotted spoon to remove the cooked spaetzle to the bowl of cold water. Continue making spaetzle until the dough is gone.
Nutritional Information:
Amount Per Serving
Calories - 122.86
Calories From Fat (5%) - 5.68
Total Fat - 0.65g
Saturated Fat - 0.1g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 298.31mg
Potassium - 79.98mg
Total Carbohydrates - 24.53g
Fiber - 1.05g
Sugar - 0.26g
Protein - 4.16g
Comments:
The parsley added a nice flavor to the spaetzle. In fact I liked it so much I don’t know that I will make the plain version very often in the future. Adding parsley to spaetzle worked so well, I will be trying other variations in the future.
Each serving of spaetzle contains approximately 300IU of vitamin A, 60mcg of folate, 60mcg of vitamin K, and 10mcg of selenium.
Unrelated note:
Next I am going to be posting my healthier version of sweet and sour cabbage.
I *love* spaetzle (my mom's family is Hungarian), although I don't make them very often because they are heavy on the white flour, etc. I love that you've made them healthier -- they look delicious.
ReplyDeleteBeatrice,
ReplyDeleteThanks! :) I had not made them without egg until earlier this year. Substituting tofu for egg works fine. Also, using whole-wheat flour worked without any problem.
I am happy to hear you like the idea of a healthier version of spaetzle. Sometimes I want to make some of my old favorite recipes and wonder if anyone else will find it useful.
Alicia
That looks amazingly delicious! I've never tried spaetzle before but it surely sounds really good to me especially when I see tofu is on the list of the ingredients, YUM!
ReplyDeleteOraphan,
ReplyDeleteThis spaetzle has a very mild flavor, mostly herb. It is a little German drop dumpling. The texture is softer than a noodle. They are very quick to make which is a big plus when you don't have much time.
Alicia