Käsespätzle – a traditional dish of Spätzle covered in melted cheese

As kids the homemade Käsespätzle of my mum where one of our favorite foods. Even though my mum had to roll her eyes at us multiple times when she prepared a portion without cheese and onions, ohne with cheese but without onions and one normal one with cheese and onions – so that all of us would be happy at the table.

I used to be the one, who wanted no onions on her portion. I was convinced that I did not like their taste. This only changed after I tried a “Blooming Onion as a teenager. And then I realized I actually really like the taste of onions! And that is why my version of this very traditional dish comes along with lots and lots of caramelized onions. But besides caramelizing these onions, Käsespätzle is actually one of the easiest dishes around. You basically just stack Spätzle, cheese and onions on top of each other and bake it in the oven. And you end up with a cheesy goodness of Spätzle, the perfect ending for my blog series on Spätzle.

One last note regarding the recipe: the simplest way is to layer the entire dish in one big form. But if you would like individual portions, as seen in my pictures, choose 4 small round forms. Butter them very well and press the Spätzle together while layerin. To loosen them after baking, take a knife around the inside and try to get a bit under the bottom. This way I was able to turn them out as a whole.

Recipe – Käsespätzle

Amount: 4 portions
Prep time: 30 minutes preperation, 15 minutes baking time

6 onions
30 g butter, separated
4 portions Spätzle – recipe here
100 g strong cheese (such as Emmentaler)

Peel 6 onions, half them and cut them in thin stripes. Caramelize them with 20 g butter and salt in a pan.

Have 4 portions Spätzle at hand or prepare them while the onions are caramelizing – Recipe.

Preheat the oven to 430° F (220°C, upper- and lower heat).

Then grease an oven proof pan with the remaining 10 g butter.

Separate the Spätzle into 4 portions. Lay the first portion in the pan, top with 1/4 of the onions and 25 g grated cheese. Repeat until everything is used up.

Place the Käsespätzle in the hot oven and bake at 430° F (220° C, upper- and lower heat) for 15 minutes.

We like to eat them with a big side salad. They can be reheated well the next day covered with aluminium foil in the oven.