If you have already made our recipe for spätzle, the famous Tyrolean gnocchi, and are now experts in using the typical and ingenious Spätzlehobel, then you just have to try another traditional variant of this typical first course: spinach spätzle with speck and cream. To prepare the dough for these delicious and colorful gnocchi, boiled spinach puree is used, which gives that bright green color and that unique taste with bitter notes that contrasts deliciously with the cream, which in turn makes the dish irresistibly creamy. A handful of crispy speck strips completes this tasty dish. Mediterranean flavor lovers can try a fragrant variant of spätzle with tomato and lemon, a tasty meeting of all Italian flavors!
Don’t miss our recipe for strangolapreti alla trentina, bread and spinach gnocchi, either!
Spinach Spätzle with Speck and Cream
INGREDIENTS
for the spätzle
– Spinach 250g
– Flour 00 250g
– Small Eggs 3
– Water 100g
– Grated Nutmeg q.b.
– Fine Salt q.b.
– Calories for Spätzle with spinach, speck, and cream
Difficulty: Easy
Preparation: 15 min
Cooking: 15 min
Yields: 4 servings
Cost: Low
PREPARATION
How to prepare Spinach Spätzle with Speck and Cream
First, wash the spinach leaves and cook them in a pan over moderate heat with the lid on (1-2) until they are well wilted (3).
Transfer the spinach to a bowl and blend it with an immersion mixer (4) until you get a creamy mixture. Then add the whole eggs (5) and a pinch of salt. Whisk to combine, then pour in the water (6) and season with nutmeg (7). Gradually pour in the flour (8) and stir with a spoon to incorporate it into the mixture, being careful not to form lumps. Set the spätzle dough aside (9).
Prepare the condiments: finely chop the chives (10) and cut the speck into strips (11). In a pan, heat butter and oil (12).
Add the speck (13) and let it fry for 2-3 minutes or until crispy. Then pour in the cream (14), the chives (15), adjust the salt and pepper, and let it thicken over moderate heat to make the condiment creamy.
Everything is ready to cook the spätzle: put a pot of salted water on the heat and bring it to the boil. Then place the Spätzlehobel over the pot and pour the mixture (16) into the special space, sliding the tool back and forth so that the dough falls through the holes (17). Once in contact with the boiling water, the spätzle will cook in a few moments. When the spätzle begin to surface (18), drain them one by one with a skimmer directly into the cream and speck condiment (19), sauté them for a few moments, stirring gently, season with pepper (20), and serve your spinach spätzle with speck and cream hot (21)!
Storage: Keep spinach spätzle with speck and cream in the refrigerator for a couple of days. We do not recommend freezing.
Tip: With the seasoned and leftover spätzle, you can make a tasty baked gratin by adding Parmesan and other melting cheeses of your choice to distribute over the surface. If you don’t have a Spätzlehobel, you can make the spätzle with a potato masher, in which case you will have to try to obtain a denser mixture by adding a little less water than that provided by the recipe.