Pasta

It's time I delve in to making pasta.  I make a lot of pasta dishes, so I buy boxes of pasta.  Of course the convenience factor is nice, but what does the pasta actually taste like?  I can't taste the olive oil or if the flour used was of a good quality.  If I think about the flavor of boxed pasta I don't think of taste at all.  I have had homemade pasta in the past and there is flavor, an actual taste to the pasta itself, and from what I remember it was good. So, why am I robbing myself and my family from this great dining experience?  

When I sit down to write a recipe or make something for the first time I go through the same ritual, Wikipedia, Food Network and Allrecipes.com.  I like to research the dishes history and how it was originally made and what its evolution has been.  I look at about 10 different recipes see what they have in common and what they do differently and why.   Based on my research, I will then adapt the historical points with dish commonalities and mix in my own taste.  This usually takes about an hour or two but in the end I am a lot happier with the way the dish turned out.  I used to just throw stuff together thinking I was creating magic when in reality I was over seasoning, over complicating and underwhelming the food.  Take some time and research a dish some time before you make it. You will notice quite a difference in your finished product.

I decided to use a standard pasta recipe with no frills:

1 lb. All purpose flour (This turns out to be about 4 c)

1/4 c Olive oil 

4 eggs and 1 egg yolk

1 Pinch Kosher sea salt

3-4 tbs. cold water

On a clean, dry surface, pile all of the flour and with your hands. Make a hole about 10 inches wide but keep the walls of the flower high so the well will hold all of the liquid.  

In the well, pour all the remaining ingredients and whisk with a fork, avoiding the flower until all the wet ingredients are mixed well.  Start to add flower as you whisk being careful not to break any walls of the well.  Once enough flour has been incorporated into the mixture to make it very thick, you can use your hands to mix everything into one ball.  If the dough seems really dry and crumbly, add a little bit more water until you have a consistent, and almost smooth dough.  Knead the dough with all your weight over top of it for about 10-15 minutes, this is very important.  If you don't knead the dough well enough it will not have the shine and smoothness that we all love about pasta.  Wrap the finished pasta ball in plastic wrap and let it sit for an hour before you use it.

The only thing I had trouble with was rolling my pasta out.  I don't own a pasta machine so I had to use my rolling pin with my 1/16th inch spacers which are still kind of thick, although it would have been great for fettuccine.  I used my pasta for ravioli which turned out great but the pasta was way too thick.  I really liked making my own pasta and will be making it again.  I want to try to make spaghetti noodles to go with my red gravy.  I will be investing in a pasta machine-I don't think my arms could take rolling out another batch of pasta.  If you’re brave enough, have the time, and love pasta go ahead and give this recipe a try It was very rewarding to know that I made the pasta I was eating.  I hope your experience is as rewarding as mine was. 

http://allrecipes.com/Default.aspx

http://www.foodnetwork.com/

http://www.wikipedia.org/