DIY Pasta

Difficulty: Hard

Time: 1.5 Hours

Serves: 3-4

I finally did it. I have wanted to make pasta from scratch for years. I made a batch of regular pasta, spinach pasta, and sun dried tomato pasta. I have three main takeaways form the process. 1: Making pasta is FUN! There is nothing more satisfying than seeing your handmade dough turn into perfect noodles. 2: Making pasta is HARD! Each batch was usable on the first attempt. However, it took patience to get the dough just right. Additionally, the process is messy (between the flour explosion and cleaning the machine)! 3: Making pasta MAY be better than buying it. Fresh pasta has the potential to be healthier than store-bought pasta because it has no stabilizers/preservatives. However, there is not a significant flavor difference. My conclusion is that if you have the time, go for it. If not, just use the boxed stuff.

Click HERE to see the machine that I used.

Ingredients:

Plain Pasta:

2/3 cup flour

1 egg

1 tbsp salt

(yeah, thats it.)

Spanish Pasta:

3/4 cup flour

1 egg

1/2 cup finely chopped Spanish

1 tbsp salt

Sun Dried Tomato Pasta:

3/4 cup flour

1 egg

2 tbsp sun dried tomato paste

(or 1/4 cup finely chopped sun dried tomatoes)

1 tbsp salt

Directions:

Step 1: Put the flour in a mountain-like pile. Create a deep hole in the middle (like a volcano). Place the egg (and other ingredients) in the hole.

Step 2: Using your hand, stir the egg, drawing in little bits of flour at a time. Do this until the mixture is combined.

Step 3: Knead the dough for about 3 minutes, or until the mixture comes together. You want the dough to become smooth and firm. The dough should be quite dry, with only enough moisture to hold together. (Add flour if the dough is too moist, and add water if it is too dry).

Step 4: Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest on the counter for 45 minutes.

Step 5: Follow the instructions according to your pasta maker. It should go something like this. Starting on the widest setting, begin to roll out the dough. Fold the dough and roll it again. Repeat until dough is coming through without any rips/tears. (If the dough feels sticky, sprinkle with flour each time). Gradually roll dough through thinner settings. When the dough is at the desired thickness, run through the pasta-cutting piece of choice (spaghetti, fettuccini, angel hair, etc.).

Step 6: Place the pasta in salted, boiling water for 2-6 minutes (I did 2 for angel hair and 6 for fehttuchini). Enjoy!

#pasta #diy #homemade #scratch #spinach #sundriedtomato