Spatzle with tomato and lemon

To prepare the tomato and lemon spatzle, start with the sauce: take the cherry tomatoes, wash them, and cut them in half 1. In a non-stick pan, pour in the oil and add an unpeeled garlic clove 2, then add the cherry tomatoes 3.

Add the basil leaves and salt 4, cover with a lid and let it cook for 10 minutes 5. Put a pot of plenty of water on the heat and salt it when boiling (you'll need it to cook the spatzle); meanwhile, move on to preparing the spatzle: first, sift the flour into a bowl 6.

Add a pinch of salt 7 and grate some nutmeg for flavor 8. Stirring with a whisk, add the eggs 9

and, while still stirring, gradually add the room temperature water 10, and mix until you get a soft, smooth, and lump-free dough 11. Once the dough is ready, remove the garlic clove from the cherry tomato sauce 12;

when the water for the spatzle comes to a boil, take the Spätzlehobel, the typical tool for making spatzle, and position it over the pot: pour a ladle of dough into the designated space 13, and slide the tool back and forth, which will drop the freshly formed spatzle directly into the boiling water 14. If you don't have a Spätzlehobel, you can use a potato ricer (in this case, the dough will need to be slightly thicker). Continue until you've used all the dough. The spatzle will cook in moments: they will float to the surface once cooked, just like gnocchi 15.

As the spatzle float to the surface, strain them well with a slotted spoon 16 and transfer them directly into the pan with the cherry tomatoes 17. Once you've transferred all the spatzle, grate the lemon zest 18

and mix well 19. Sauté the spatzle for a few moments and finish with a sprinkle of pepper 20. Plate and garnish with a fresh basil leaf 21. Your tomato and lemon spatzle are ready to be enjoyed!