3 cups flour
4 eggs
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 quart cold water

Stir together the flour, eggs, and salt in a bowl with 1/2
cup of cold water, then beat this mixture until bubbles start to appear and you have a smooth batter that no longer adheres to the spoon. Add just as much water--a little at a time as is necessary to achieve this consistency. This was my moms rule #1 of Spatzle making.
Mastering the delicate task of grating off or slicing off the requisite amount of spaetzle dough (called schaben, or shaving," in Swabia) really does take a certain amount of practice.
That being said, the next step is to bring salted water to a boil in a LARGE pot. The next step depends on your choice of forming. Cut or shave fine strips of dough and push them into the pot of boiling water.
When the spaezle bob back to the surface, remove them with a skimming spoon, briefly (and gently) swish them around in a pan of cold water to remove the floury film from the surface, then leave them in another pot of hot water to keep warm. Continue, in batches, until all the dough is used.