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Klissen or Kielke or Noodles

When I was growing up my mom always called this Klissen. . with two little dots on top of the "ss's" in German it was pronounced Kly - sen. However. . .other people called it Kielke. . pronounced Cheel - chya. I still give my mom full credit for the capture of the cutest boy in school.. .(for me) with this recipe. I invited him over for Klissen once. . .and when she realized how much he loved them. . .the noodles were made quite regularly.

My mom was not a fancy cook, but Terry still smiles when he sees the big yellow Pyrex bowl come out of the kitchen cabinets for it only means one thing, I'm in the mood to mix up a batch of noodles.


We try really hard to have enough to fry the next day .. . as you can see in the center picture in the collage below, with leftover smoked farmer sausage, it makes the best leftovers.

It's far more fun cutting the noodles, if you have an audience. . . so wait until the company comes before cutting the noodles up.


Klissen or Kielke
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup milk
  1. Stir together the eggs and the milk and the salt. Slowly stir in the flour and then knead the dough until nice and smooth. Put into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap for several hours or overnight.
  2. Put a bit of flour on the counter and begin to roll the dough out quite thin .. adding more flour underneath as needed. You don't want the dough to stick, and adding too much flour won't be a problem.
  3. Once it is rolled out, it can sit for several hours. About 1 hour before dinner, spread a bit of flour over all the dough. Cut large strips about 2 inches wide across all the dough.
  4. Stack about 4 or 5 strips at a time on top of one another as you can see in the above collage.
  5. Slice across the stack with a very sharp knife to make noodles of your preferred width. 
  6. In a small saucepan, bring to boil, 1/2 cup butter and  33% MF heavy cream and add a bit of salt and pepper to taste. Turn down to a simmer.
  7. Saute, several large onions until golden brown.
  8. Bring to boil, a large pot of salted water. Boil the noodles for a few minutes. They don't take very long at all. Once they are floating, taste one to make sure it is done.
  9. Drain into a colander and put in a large yellow Pyrex bowl and pour the cream sauce over top, stir and serve with the onions on the side unless everyone loves onions.
The recipe can easily be doubled.

31 comments:

  1. Oh this makes me feel like leaving my warm home, hopping in the car and driving on over......got any extra tonight Lovella? I'll be your audience if you need to make more!!!

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  2. My mother-in-law used to make this and then add them to butta sup...hmmm good memories....maybe I will make butta sup tomorrow for dinner ~ I know my hubby would enjoy it and it is a cold wintry day here in Blaine, WA.

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  3. Yes, It's grand to have an audience.
    My kids reminded me today that I should make noodles like grandma used to...I said, O yea? And here you post those wonderful home-made noodles.
    I'l get that recipe to you tomorrow.

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  4. I remember sneaking noodles off of my grandma's kitchen table:) I really need to make some again soon (especially after seeing those pictures)!

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  5. Mmm..mmm this looks mighty good Lovella! I'll come with Trish..but then you won't have any leftovers to fry the next day!!
    I haven't made these in such a long time..

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  6. oh these look like they would make my family very happy....i would also want to join in with trish and betty only if you wanted left overs you better triple that recipe...;^D

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  7. I do feel a bit like a kid watching you make these . . . somewhere along the line my mom stopped making homemade noodles and I have never attemted them. Those fried noodles look really good! You've made it sound do'able!

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  8. There's nothing quite like homemade noodles...and I haven't had them in a very long while! My dear MIL churned out noodles galore...but I have never tried making them. And now I am tempted...especially fried with onions and farmer sausage the next day!!!

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  9. Thank you for this recipe! My husband's grandmother is a tried and true Mennonite and was always talking about these noodles! I tried making them once and failed miserably, but made them for her today with your recipe and they were just what she remembered!

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  10. I can't get enough of these silly noodles! I just used them to make turkey and noodles with my leftover Thanksgiving turkey and they reminded me so much of my grandmother's cooking. Yum!

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  11. Alice, would you be willing to share the recipe for butta sup. I can't find it. My gram use to make it all the time.

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  12. Lovella, these noodles sound great. I make noodles, too, and I use a food processor these days to mix and knead.

    In this paragraph "Stack about 4 or 5 strips at a time on top of one another as you can see in the above collage." I think you need to add "Slice across the stack with a very sharp knife to make noodles of your preferred width."

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  13. By 'whipping cream', do you mean like Cool Whip in the tub or that stuff in a spray-can? Also, could you please suggest a couple of other sauces that will go nicely in this dish? Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. The cream you want to buy is called Whipping Cream in Canada but probably something else in the states. 33% MF is what you are looking for.
      You could also melt a bit of butter and warm some sour cream with it. Or...make a mushroom sauce.
      If you come up with a good idea...let us know what you topped the Kielke with.

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    2. Love them with canned milk gravy!! I still make them this way like when I was a kid a would sneak some while they were drying. :)

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    3. Also remember that Cool Whip and the whipped cream that comes in an spray can both have sugar added. You DO NOT want sweet cream for this recipe.

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  14. You say the recipe can easily be doubled for company or leftovers, but there is no indication how many/much noodles are made with the posted recipe. What sort of amount does this recipe give?

    To Anonymous; Whipped cream is a cream that has been beaten by a mixer or whisk until it is light and fluffy. The %s on the cartons you'd find in your dairy isle (like 33% MF) I believe has to do with the butterfat content. It may just be called cream with a % in your Dairy section. It should be there, as many people prefer to add it to their coffee instead of milk. Please don't use Cool Whip. I'm not sure how well that would taste given the chemicals and things that go into it to give it a long shelf life, and the way it is processed (more so if you're using it out of a pressurized aerosol can).

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  15. I just made these....Such a huge difference from store bought....I put some fresh peas in the cream sauce w/garlic.onion powder to taste-just a tinch...My noodles for sure were not perfect, but I got a hhmm from hubby..
    I will be making these again.....Debbie

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  16. My grandmother taught me how to make kielke when I was 16. I still make them once in a while and my wife and kids love them.

    Onikisu, this recipe will make enough to feed about 5 people (at least in my family). I usually double this recipe and freeze the rest. Defrost and fry them in butter, onions and farmer sausage and you've got a great meal.

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  17. can you make the noodles right away or is it important to leave the dough sit for a few hours

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  18. I am so happy I found you that I am crying. My great Grandma was Mennonite and raised me when she should have been retired. She passed away when I was 18 and I didn't get a chance to learn all that I wanted from her. You carry the most precious memories from my childhood that I can now pass on to my children. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

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  19. Could anyone give me any advice for the cream gravy? What ratio to butter/cream should I be using? How much of each?

    Thanks!

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    1. I can give you my recipe for cream gravy. I use 1/4 cup butter melted, add 1/4 cup flour and cook for a breath moment. Add 2 cups cream, salt and pepper to taste.

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    2. another version is 1/4 cup butter to 1 cup whipping or sour cream.

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    3. My mom is 88 years old, lived through the depression on a farm and they saved everything to use with something else. My mom makes cream gravy with smoke fat (drippings from frying bacon - usually with a few bacon crumbs) heats the fat, adds the whipping cream and lets it boil. It will thicken on it's own. Add salt and pepper to taste. This is served with any of the dishes that ask for cream gravy. Very tasty.

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  20. This is my first time making these, and I wonder if it really is ok to leave the sheets of dough, they are huge, on my counter for 5 hours drying. Its curling a bit at the edges, and very papery, should I cut them and fridge them till dinner time? Thanks if you see this. Katherine Enns

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    1. I always leave them to dry on the counter and my mom did too. I think they would stick together if you tried to refrigerate them once cut. Let me know how it worked out for you.

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  21. have any of you heard of glipse kielka? my uncle asked about it, apparently it has coooked raisina and pruns cooked then add kielka making them slippery, ?sticky and thus the name?

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  22. My favorite Kielka are added to "Hynna Sup" sp aka:chicken soup. OMG an old rooster in the pot with these noodles will cure cancer etc.

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