I recently taught an autumn pie class, and at the end of the course one of my students gave me a vintage Pennsylvania Dutch cookbook she had picked up at an estate sale. I had told the class that I have a fascination with heirloom cookbooks. The book was her thank you for teaching her to face her culinary fears of pie dough.

As I’ve looked through the book (it’s really more of a spiral-bound pamphlet), fascinated by the advice on how to make a meal out of so little, one recipe stuck out– noodles for soup.

When I was young, I remember my grandma, though not Pennsylvania Dutch, making the richest, most satisfying soup with her own homemade egg noodles. Any time she roasted a chicken, she always made stock from the carcass. She would drop off a large tupperware of the soup to my parents at work. The noodles were thick and chewy; and by the time my mom arrived home to heat the stuff up for dinner, the noodles had swelled to to such great proportions they practically had sucked up all the broth. I guess grandma’s noodles were more like dumplings, but they were delicious.

This Pennsylvania Dutch recipe is more precise, with strict instructions for both resting the dough, and drying the noodles before use. (My grandma never did either, hence the bloat!)

The recipe is hardly a recipe– just three ingredients that most everyone has in the kitchen. The directions are focused and are meant for a person who is somewhat skilled in the kitchen. And might I just say– the rolling pin must be your friend. This recipe is simple yet trustworthy, and make piles of thin, imperfect, and homey noodles, ideal for soup. It’s true these noodles were not my grandma’s, but they were reminiscent of them. I’m sure I’ll make them all winter long.

Noodles for Soup
from Old Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes

1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten

Sift flour and salt together into a bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and add the eggs. Blend thoroughly. Knead the dough on a floured surface, cover, and let stand for 30 minutes.

Roll the dough to about 1/8 an inch. Turn the dough over, and continue rolling until paper thin. Allow dough to dry partially, about an hour.

Cut the dough into lengthwise strips, about 1/4 inch wide, and then cut into strips about 2 1/2 inches long. Separate noodles, and allow to dry for several hours at room temperature, until just about dry. Noodles can then be used immediately, or can be covered and held in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Recipe makes 2 cups of noodles, enough for a generous pot (6 cups) of soup. Simply add the noodles to stock, and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.