Homemade Beef Spaetzle Soup Recipes

SPAETZLE AND CHICKEN SOUP

Steps:

• Place chicken in a stock pot, and add enough water to cover. Pour in the chicken broth, and add celery and onions. Season with salt, pepper and garlic salt. Bring to a boil, and cook for about 1 hour to get a good broth.
• When the chicken is cooked through and tender, remove it to a platter and let sit until it is cool enough to handle. Strain broth, and discard celery and onions. Return the broth to the stock pot. Remove chicken meat from the bones, chop or tear into pieces, then return it to the pot also. Bring the broth to a boil, and add carrots.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the eggs, water and salt. Gradually add flour until the dough is firm enough to form a ball. You may need more or less flour. Pat the dough out on a flat plate. Using a butter knife, cut slices of dough off the edge of the plate so they are about 2 to 3 inches long. Allow them to fall directly into the boiling broth.
• Once the carrots are tender, the soup is ready. Sprinkle with parsley flakes and serve.

GERMAN DUMPLINGS (SPAETZLE OR KNIFFLES) FOR SOUP OR SAUTE

Steps:

• Mix these together until sticky.
• Drop into bubbling soup or stew, broth or water. (see below for ideas).
• Dumplings will rise to the surface as they cook; remove from liquid with a slotted spoon (if sautéing in another pan); set aside in a bowl (keep warm).
• MAKE THE DUMPLINGS #1: This method results in very small, stringy-ish dumplings and is great for soups or stews. Spoon several tablespoons of batter into a colander, then with the back of the spoon--press the batter through the holes into the bubbling liquid.
• METHOD #2: This method forms larger dumpling pieces (dime & quarter size) and is great for soups or stews, too -- but especially good if you want to saute the dumplings afterwards (more on that in a minute). Using a teaspoon and butter knife, scoop up a spoonful of batter, then use the knife to cut off little dibs and dabs, using the knife to also push the dibs into the hot liquid. If the knife or spoon gets messy, just dip into the hot liquid.
• SERVING IDEAS: We love these in chicken-dumpling soup (use your regular chicken soup recipe -- skip the egg noodles and make these dumplings instead). OR scoop out the larger dumplings (Method #2), and saute in butter or olive oil along with kielbasa or other sausage and LOTS of onion ring slices. OR saute some fresh veggies, then add the dumplings -- heaven!
• VARIATIONS: Add several pinches of your favorite herbs along with the flour to enhance the soup, stew or saute dish.
• Chef's Note: Altho' this is kind of putzy, it is well worth the effort and SO different from regular pasta-noodles.

VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP (FALL APART BEEF!)

Steps:

• Heat 1 tbsp oil until very hot in a large, heavy based pot over high heat.
• Pat beef dry with paper towels, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Brown beef aggressively in 2 or 3 batches, adding more oil if needed. Remove browned beef into a bowl.
• If pot looks dry, add a touch more oil.
• Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
• Add carrot and celery, cook for 2 minutes or until onion is translucent.
• Stir in flour, then slowly pour in beef broth while constantly stirring.
• Add beer, water, tomato paste, bay leaves and thyme, stir well. Then add the beef back in.
• Cover, adjust heat to medium low so it's bubbling gently. Simmer 1 hr 15 min or until beef is pretty tender.
• Add potatoes and peas, simmer for a further 20 minutes without the lid. Add cooked mushrooms in the last 5 minutes.
• The soup is ready when the potatoes are cooked and beef is very tender (see video).
• Adjust salt and pepper to taste (I like lots of pepper in this!).
• Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with crusty bread if desired. Try quick Cheesy Garlic Bread or super easy Irish Soda Bread!

MOM'S POTATO SOUP WITH SPAETZLES

Steps:

• 1. SOUP: Cook potatoes and onions at medium heat in chicken broth (uncovered) until they are tender. In a heavy skillet melt the butter over low heat. Stir in flour and cook until bubbly. Slowly add about half of the milk, stirring constantly. Add this mixture to the hot, cooked potatoes and onion mixture. Use a potato masher to break up potatoes a bit. Add the rest of the milk and the salt and pepper. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat until hot and just bubbly.
• 2. SPAETZLES: Stir together flour and salt. Mix in egg. Mixture should be the consistency of thin mashed potatoes. If necessary add a bit more flour or a little milk to adjust consistency.
• 3. ADDING SPAETZLES TO SOUP: Use a knife to "cutand push" a thin slice of spaetzle dough away from the bowl they are in and into the soup.Repeat until dough is used up. Speatzles should be approximately 1 inch long and 1/8-1/4 inch wide. A little larger is OK. Simmer soup until spaetzles are cooked.
• 4. FINISHING: If soup is not thick enough, place 1 tablespoon of flour with 1/2 cup cold milk in a shaker and shake until mixed well. Add to the soup, stir frequently, until desired thickness is reached. Adjust seasoning. Garnish with a sprinkle of chopped parsley, if desired.

OLD FASHIONED VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP

Steps:

• Heat butter in a dutch oven or large pot over high heat. Add stew meat and sear so that outside edges are brown, turning over as needed to brown all sides of the meat. Add diced onion to saute while searing the beef. Continually stir onions to prevent sticking. Cook for about 3 minutes total.*If finishing in a slow cooker, transfer both onions and beef to your crockpot set on low once fully seared.
• Add mixed vegetables, cubed potatoes (I leave the skin on like my grandma did for extra vitamins and flavor but you can peel them if you prefer), diced tomatoes, beef broth, beef bullion, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves.
• Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a low boil. Cook for 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft all the way through. Add salt and pepper to taste before serving.*If using a crockpot, cook for 1 hour on high (or 2 hours on low). Check potatoes to be sure they are fully cooked through, then serve.

AUTHENTIC GERMAN SPAETZLE WITH MUSHROOM SAUCE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. In a separate large measuring jug, whisk together the water, milk and eggs until smooth.
• Add the egg mixture to the bowl with the flour, stir, then vigorously beat the batter with a wooden spoon until there are no more lumps, you see air bubbles forming and the batter rips off the spoon when trying to scoop it up. This will take around 5 minutes of continous beating. Cover and rest the batter for 30 minutes.
• When ready to make the Spaetzle, bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Reduce the heat to a good simmer. Place a large wooden board on top of the pot, then place 1/2 cup of batter on the board. Using a blunt knife, scrape slivers of the batter into the pot.
• Once the spaetzle float to the surface, remove them with a slotted spoon and place in a lightly buttered casserole dish to keep warm. Proceed the same way with the remaining batter.
• While the spaetzle batter is resting, place a large, deep skillet over medium high heat and melt the butter in it. Add the onion, garlic and mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms have fully softened - about 5-10 minutes.
• Reduce heat to medium. Evenly sprinkle the seasoning and the flour over the mushrooms, then stir well. Pour the white wine into the skillet, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
• Pour the beef broth into the skillet, stirring well. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes, until the gravy has thickened. Finish with the cream, if you like.
• Serve the finished gravy over the finished spaetzle.

HOMEMADE BEEF SPAETZLE SOUP

Steps:

• Place the first seven soup ingredients in a 10qt.
• Pot.
• Fill the pot with water leaving about four inches from the top.
• Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 3 hours.
• When through, mix the spaetzle ingredients until you get a gluey consistency (add more milk if necessary).
• Boil a pot of water and with a hand spaghetti-press, press the spaetzle into the water.
• When the spaetzle hits the water it will form soft noodles.
• Then transfer and stir the spaetzle (noodles) into the pot of soup.