Mar 29, 2009

Homemade pasta from scratch recipe

Cookbooks may tell you how, but the best way to learn how to make fresh homemade pasta, is being taught by a friend. Someone you can observe, the person to question shamelessly as the eggs and flour become an art form from bare hands. One you silently accost to absorb the moves and the inherited skill, in order to make your own rustic "pasta fatta in casa."


Theoretically, the first step is reading the do's and dont's of how to make pasta from scratch in erudite manuals. This I fear may only confuse you. Some recipes call for no extra yolks, some add a nip of water, some omit the salt. In my humble opinion, the actual hands-on (no pun intended) technique needs human guidance. Your Pasta-Petrarch should demonstrate the steps to a personal approach, illustrate how to properly blend the elements, how to knead lovingly, and how to shape it all into a galaxy of dinner possibilities: fettuccine, ravioli, tagliatelle, lasagne, tortellini...



So here I am. I know, ideally I should be from Emilia Romagna and in my mid-seventies, but this is the best I can give you. I make my friends and family very happy with my dishes, and when these involve fresh homemade pasta, the bliss-factor is raised tenfold. I have learned this magical art by absorption. I grew up watching my grandmother nonna Titta make home-style pasta, so my credentials are good. I've spent numerous childhood hours watching her bent over the squared 4-ft wooden board, kneading a golden orb of dough the size of a soccer ball. Dusted with flour head to toe, she'd twirl and play her rolling pin like a teenage majorette. I was always in awe as the thin layer of pasta was rolled like a giant burrito and then cut into curly tagliatelle ribbons or thin, blond angel hair. I soon began to emulate her, and I have been practicing pasta for quite some time now.

It's a gesture of love to serve a meal entirely made by hand. It also makes the cook feel omnipotent, a bit of a show off. Tripping on a pasta-from-scratch-high you feel invincible, you push your limit, confident that now you can accomplish anything in the kitchen. Like I did today, for example. I ventured in a full-fledged 4-course meal for 6 hungry epicureans.

I crafted my tagliatelle while I prepared the sauce to dress them appropriately,



...breaded and fried 12 schnitzel-type veal cutlets for our second course,



...cooked 2 different vegetable side dishes (creamed pumpkin and stir-fried broccoli) and baked dessert. I refused to do the dishes and now I'm here moaning about how tired I am, but you should have seen the smiles on those faces.



But let's get back to business. Here is nonna's recipe for homemade pasta from scratch, transcribed and translated straight from her tattered and handwritten recipe journal, one of my most precious belongings.

300 g (1 1/2 cups) flour, possibly "00" + more for dusting
3 eggs
2 yolks
A very small pinch of salt


You'll need to work on a flat surface, possibly wood or marble, as long as slightly dusted with flour. Other essentials are, a rolling pin (again preferably wooden), and a little patience.

Wash your hands and beware, it’s going to get messy. And quite sexy.

Empty the flour on the work surface in a mound, and dig a hole in the middle, building a crater. This is the "a fontana" technique, literally "in a fountain manner." Now drop the eggs and the yolks in your crater and sprinkle the salt.



Start beating with a fork at first and as the mix begins to blend, dig in with your hands and knead that baby.


Image © robysushi


Image © winedharma

It will not be at all homogeneous at first. Knead regardless of messy, sticky onset. Fold the dough over and flatten with the bottom part of your palm several times.


Image © lafataartigiana.blogspot.com

Be persistent, the love you put into this part of the process ensures best results. Keep at it until the dough reaches a smooth and satiny texture. It should never flake or dry, if for some unknown reason this should happen, add another egg, NOT water. The result at the end of this sensual massage is a large, heavy ball of dough. Lay it to rest in a bowl dusted with flour, while you take a 30 minute break.


Image farinadigio.eu

Well done, you have dough. Now, mentally prepare for the hardest part, flattening the dough with your rolling pin into a thin layer.

On a large enough unpolished wood surface - like a butcher’s block for instance - or your marble counter top, spread a large quantity of flour. This will avoid stickage. Dust it over your rolling pin and hands as well, gymnast-style. Place the ball of dough in the middle of your board and flatten it gently with your hands, avoiding finger holes. Any deep depression in the dough can cause air bubbles. And we don’t want those.



Start using your rolling pin, exercising very little pressure at first and slowly picking up force as the dough gradually flattens. As the surface begins to expand, images of the ‘old blanket’ saying will come to mind. You’ll find that rolling vertically will produce a long narrow up and down strip; compensating with horizontal strokes, your shape will instantly stretch into an opposite elongated oval. Keep going, don’t give up, and mostly don’t flatten the dough too thin. You’ll need a maximum thickness of a couple millimeters (about 1/8-inch).

To make fettuccine you simply roll up your flattened dough like a burrito and cut 1cm slices, about 1/3 of an inch.



Unravel the coils, dust with a bit more flour or polenta (cornmeal) and award yourself with a tall drink.

Tagliatelle are a bit wider (and thicker), Pappardelle are the widest, about 2cm (2/3-inch). Cutting lasagne requires a firm hand and geometric eye when shaping equal-sized rectangles. My guideline is a 10 x 15cm postcard (3” x 5”).

Maltagliati (which are great for hearty soups) means "badly cut", so you can go crazy and cut away any shape you like as long as in similar size range.

Tip: Cook fresh homemade pasta in plenty of lightly salted water at a jacuzzi-type rolling boil. Stir with a wooden spoon or a long fork quite often. This will ensure the pasta to remain springy and not clump together in clusters during cooking.

Drain your masterpiece and slather on the sauce, whatever that may be (after all that hard work you can start with a simple Burro & Parmigiano: 1/2 stick of butter and a fistful of grated Parmigiano, an awesome flavor duo), and graduate to ragù later.

Congratulations! Feel the awesome sense of achievement?

Thank you Laura. There's a chair here at my dinner table with your name engraved on it.

17 comments:

  1. UMMMmmm, now that's the stuff! My homemade pasta dough doesn't look as pretty as yours but oh lawd, it is heavenly! Worth the work every time. OH, and sided with fresh cooked spinach...I might just have to make it tomorrow. (I have one of those pasta cutting devices...bought it from my mom at a family yard sale and it works great!)

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  2. OH, i think i need to come over and watch you afterall, I cannot do that on my own:( I CAN imagine that that meal was fabulous! It sounds wonderful. And looks it too!

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  3. WOW that looks good, the dough looks soft!
    I like your style of writing,this is so true, It is a gesture of love!!
    Your foods look so inviting!
    Grazie!

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  4. I have a pasta maker and no excuses. But I have never had a better recipe or a step-by-step process as the one you presented.
    Grazie mille.

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  5. What a poetic description for kneading pasta!
    I agree that it needs to be hands on to learn. I get help with the kneading from my husband or sons as sometimes you (k)need muscle strength. Then my mechanical pasta maker helps with the cutting. We are six in the family so it's always an enterprise as a meal!

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  6. Hi Lola

    This is great. Thanks so much for all the detailed instructions. I love that you can make this without a pasta machine, which I've never invested in. I don't have room in my microscopic kitchen for anything that doesn't do at least 2 or 3 different things.

    I think I could do this!

    Your dinner from tonight sounds delicious and it's entirely fitting that you refused to do the dishes.

    Thanks again.

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  7. Erin - Go, girl! You can even throw some ground spinach in the dough to make it green!

    Lori - Anytime! La mia cucina è la tua cucina...

    Chuck - Thank you, you're very kind!

    Rosaria - I should have mentioned the pasta machine too, it is a lifesaver!

    Scintilla - Wow, you have one big daily menu challenge. And a great team of assistants!

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  8. Hello Bella, That looks so easy when you do it! I bet my kids would love to try it.xx♥

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  9. It's a fun group activity, and kids looove getting their hands dirty. Glad to hear your children's health issue fogs are lifting a bit.

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  10. Wow. Your pasta looks amazing. I made my own ravioli a while ago and have yet to break out the pasta machine again. You've reminded me I need to do that! And thanks for all the step-by-step instructions. Also, thanks for commenting on my blog! I'm sad you don't have red potatoes there.

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  11. Grazie Megan for becoming a regular here! I'm very fond of your blog, and I'm happy my worldwide cooking community is growing. Ciao

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  12. Ciao Lola! Oh, you are so sweet! I wish I could have been sitting in that chair and enjoying your handmade pasta. Looks divine! I have never tried to make pasta, and I also don't have space in my kitchen for a pasta machine. But with your great instructions I finally feel like I could do it. I will let you know how it turns out. Grazie mille!!

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  13. Mmmmm...meat sauce.

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  14. Laura - pasta machines are a great tool, but a bit like cheating. Go ahead and give it a try. Our posts fit nicely together, eh? Thanks again, tesoro.

    Michael - Decadent...

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  15. Hi Lola, I'm back on this post. I made your pasta tonight (sitting here w/full tummy). Your instructions were great! It was fun following them--I felt like you were right there telling me what to do.

    So, the pasta was yummy, but pretty chewy, and I'm wondering if there's a different kind of al denta for fresh pasta...? Maybe I didn't cook the noodles long enough. I do remember learning some other time that fresh pasta cooks so much faster, but maybe I took it out TOO soon? Or maybe they were too thick. I don't know, I guess I'm asking how you know they're done with fresh pasta.

    Grazie! It was lovely, and I did try again with the artichokes. I didn't make your whole baked dish but used your method to trim them, then steamed the hearts. Yes you warned us about fuzz and I didn't listen (hanging head in shame)!

    xo...

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  16. Your style of writing is exquisite. I too make pasta with only egg, salt and flour. I prefer semolina, mostly. I stopped using all purpose flour, or white flour a while ago and love the result. Yours will be a blog that I pay particular attention to now that I have found you. I am Italian, from Puglia, second generation American. I love cooking and eating especially. Connecting with someone who is there living life amid the country and reporting on it is wonderful and will be a useful stop. Thanks for the fine writing and the wonderful food. God Bless.

    Paul

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  17. I am a regular member of this site, I always notice that your blog posts are so unique and well explained with deep information. Tnx for the splandid post. I must share your post on my social medias and "my pasta makers website" for giving you maximum coverage of visitor of the post.

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