Roll roll roll your dough...

You guessed it! I have been making fresh pasta all week and, of course, love it. However, I will spare everyone the pain of having to listen to yet another person wax lyrical about the taste of fresh pasta and that if you have never tried it you don't know what you're missing. It's really no surprise. Pasta like almost everything else is better when made by hand and from fresh indgredients!

In trying to get my pasta right, I have read many recipes this week and everyone mentions how superior it is to dried or even store bought "fresh pasta". However, what they almost all fail to mention is the necessary process of kneading the dough for anything between 6 - 12 minutes. For that crucial step I needed to search the Internet for dozens of user comments and suggestions.

My first attempt at the pasta, saw me barely caress the dough with my palm for fear of over glutinating the mixture. A definite no-no in the pastry kitchen. I was much more agressive with my second and third attempts and found the results better. It was astonishing how quickly the dough transformed under my fingers at about the 7th minute. Suddenly the hard, unyielding mass, became smooth, shiny and had exactly the right amount of give (elasticity) to produce perfectly "al dente" when boiled for a few minutes.

I still have a few questions on this process, namely, do different types of pasta (e.g. ravioli) need different kneading times?

2 cups of plain flour
1 teaspoon of salt
3 eggs
1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup of water (on hand if needed)

1. On a clean work surface or in a large bowl, mix flour and salt together.

2. Form a well in the center of flour. Add eggs and oil into well. With a fork gradually combine wet ingredients with dry. Don't whisk eggs with fork as you don't want to incorporate air into the dough. If the dough appears dry, add some water until it's soft and pliable, but not wet and sticky.

3. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and, using the heal of your hand, knead for at least 7 minutes. When finished, wrap in palstic wrap and allow the dough to relax in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

4. Divide dough evenly into 6 pieces. Pass one peice at a time through the pasta machine's rollers at their widest setting. Then on each pass thereafter, on progresisvely narrower settings until you have a long, wide, blemish free strip of pasta.

5. My machine has 6 width settings. The thinest (#6) is to be used for raviolis with lighter fillings such as ricotta. Settting number 5 for raviolis with a heavier meat filling, linguine and fettucine. Setting number 4 should be reserved for spaghetti.

6. Place these wide strips on a floured surface and allow to air dry for about 10 minutes. This will prevent the pasta strands from clumping together once they are passed through the shape cutters.

7. Drop the pasta in boiling salted water and cook for approximately 5 minutes or until al dente. You can add a couple of olive oil drops to the water to prevent the pasta from sticking.

Posted by dvenuto at January 25, 2003 12:06 AM