Ham, Cheese and Leek Spatzle Bake

My dad bought me a packet of spaetzle back from Germany ages ago as I really wanted to try it, but it's mostly been sat in my cupboard ever since. I tried it with some meat and gravy but I wasn't too keen on that, and then as a pasta substitute with some tomato sauce, which worked really well. This, I guess, is another pasta substitute recipe because it's a lot like how I make macaroni cheese but it worked really well. It was lovely with a green salad and vinaigrette.



Ham, Cheese and Leek Spaetzle Bake
(Serves 4)

8 slices of ham chopped
2 leeks, sliced
1 cup grated cheese
1 cup uncooked spaetzle

for the bechamel sauce
25g butter
25g plain flour
300ml milk

Preheat the oven to 190C.

Cook the spaetzle according to the packet instructions, adding the leeks for the last five minutes of cooking time.

Meanwhile make the bechamel sauce by melting the butter in a non-stick pan, stir in the flour, and cook over a low heat for a couple of minutes.

When smooth, start adding the milk. Stir until smooth, and then add more milk and stir until the sauce is thickened.

Add the ham, cooked spaetzle, leeks and 3/4 of the cheese to the bechamel sauce and poor into an oven proof dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 30 mins or until the cheese is golden on top.