Oh yes! (well, ditch the soup and eat the spaetzle would be my idea...)

But for those who are unschooled in the spaezle making like me, can you add that recipe Linda (then come over to my house and SHOW me??) Maureen

Maureen, spaetzle making is the height of simplicity. It's only a dumpling dough forced through holes into hot liquid.

If you do it often, there are special spaetzle makers on the market. But for the occasional go, any colander will work.

Although there are numerous more fancy recipes (I make a mushroom spaetzle that's to die for, for instance) here's a simple way to get started:

2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper

Combine the eggs and milk. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper. Add the liquid to the flour mixture, mixing to combine well. Let rest 15 minutes.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. In batches press the mixture through a large-holed colander directly into the water, using a spatula or spoon. Let the spaetzle cook until it floats. Strain it out of the water with a slotted spoon and continue until all the dough is used up.

Two things to consider. 1. Consistency should be more like a thin dough than a batter. 2. The colander will heat up as you work the dough through the holes. So its a good idea to scrub it, with cold water, between batches. This will remove the stuck on dough, and cool the colander for the next batch.

There is no reason not to extrude the spaetzle right into the turkey soup as it cooks. But for folks like you who don't care for the soup, try in with browned sage butter.

Yep, that's pretty much the recipe I used. Very quick and easy! I tried pushing the batter thru a colander and it was a mess. So I just dropped small bits off a spoon into boiling water and it worked well. still a mess, but not as bad as the colander method.

I really love spaetzle, so I may just look for one of those gadgets, gardenlad!

Linda

The problem with using a colander (in addition to the over-heating situation) is that the holes are undersized compared to a spaetzle maker. So you have to work harder to push the dough through.

You could pick up a cheapy colander at the thrift store and enlarge the holes, easily enough. Use a 1/4" drill bit.

If you really want a spaetzle maker, check out this site for available styles.

Here is a link that might be useful: Spaetzle Makers

Sorry, don't know what I was thinking. If you make your own from an old colander, enlarge the holes to 5/16th inch.