Homemade Pasta (From Scratch) without the machine

Hi Guys!!

So, if you've read my last post on the molten larva cake, you'll see that I was going to teach Maria how to make some homemade pasta for her new guy. To kinda give them that 'Lady and the Tramp' moment. (#singing- Oh, this is the night, its a beautiful night, and we call it bella notte).

To me, there are very few things in the culinary world more sexy than fresh homemade pasta. If you've ever made your own pasta from scratch....TRUST ME!!...you won't want to eat those store bought ones again. The difference is just sooo clear.

Surprisingly, its very easy to make with just a handful of ingredients....I'm talking just 1, 2, 3 actually! There are usually two methods used, one is certainly more time consuming than the other (Italian grand mother style), and can certainly deter you from pasta making all together. The other one is so easy, you can actually sip some wine as you make it (thats my favourite). So, I'm going to show you how I make mine.

Here goes:

Ingredients

• 1 cup of flour and extra for dusting
• 1 Large egg or 2 small ones
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• A pinch of salt (optional)

Other things you'll require include

• A food processor
• A roll of cling film
• A clean tea towel (dampened)
• A pasta machine (or rolling pin)
• A knife
• A clean work surface
• Your choice of tomato stew and garnish

Instructions

1. Mix the flour and salt together, and place in the food processor.
   
2. Then add the egg and olive oil into the food processor, and begin to pulse. It can also be done in a bowl or table-top (grandma style). If the dough becomes too sticky, add a little more flour. It should eventually form a very soft dough.
   
   
   
   
3. Remove the dough from the processor, and place on a lightly floured surface, and begin to knead. Kneed for about 10 minutes  and continue to add more flour little by little until it stops sticking to your hands and work surface, and it becomes smooth and elastic.
   
4. Wrap the dough in cling film to prevent it from drying out, and allow it to rest for about 30 minutes.
   
5. Once the dough has rested, remove from the cling film and place on a floured surface. 
6. Using the rolling pin, roll out the pasta very thinly, it should be as thin as a paper. Pick it up and turn it around, to prevent it from sticking to the surface. If you have a pasta machine, this should be easy. If not, its going to require a lot of elbow grease.
   
7. Once the dough is flat enough, flour it generously and fold it overlapping each other. 
   
8. Use the knife and cut about 1/2 inch pieces.
   
9. Then open up the pieces and flour generously.
   
   
   
   
10. Put a pot of salted water on the stove, and bring to a boil.
    
11. Put the pasta into the water, and allow to cook for about 3.5minutes, not more than 4 mins, or until its al dente. You can start on the tomato sauce now....we decided to use some tomato stew I made earlier.
    
12. Remove from the water and set aside.
    
13. Put the sauce in pot or pan and heat it up. Then add the pasta into the sauce, and mix.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
14. Then transfer into a bowl or plate, garnish with some parsley or coriander and of course in true Italian style, shred some parmigiano-reggiano cheese onto the pasta....Enjoy!.