Homemade Pasta

I recently had a week off in between finishing up my Master’s degree and starting my permanent job.  Since Craig was tied up with studying for the bar exam, I had to come up with fun things to do on my own.  Naturally enough, these things revolved largely around cooking (and eating).  One of the things I decided to do was try this homemade pasta recipe from The Pioneer Woman Cooks.  It looked so simple and non-intimidating – no rolling the pasta through a press as I had done in a cooking class a few years ago (the only other time I made homemade pasta other than this gnocchi).  I thought the idea of pairing this rustic pasta with a rustic bolognese, as they did, was a great one, but I used my trusty 4-hour bolognese recipe.  This time around, though, I made it a turkey bolognese with half ground turkey and half turkey Italian sausage.  This pasta was very tasty and surprisingly easy to whip up.  The only trouble I had was that after I cut the noodles with the pizza cutter, I couldn’t get them apart and into the water.  They were fully cut apart in the middle, but still slightly attached on the ends.  Craig had to help me go back through with a paring knife and separate them individually, which was a pain.  Next time, I would either just use the sharp paring knife to begin with or, if I used the pizza wheel, I would move each noodle to a plate as I cut them.  Try these noodles – nothing beats homemade!

This is me cutting the pasta, oblivious to the fact that I won’t be able to move it to the pot in a few minutes.  Don’t be like me.

Homemade Pasta

Recipe from: The Pioneer Woman Cooks

ingredients (for 2 servings)

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup flour, plus more for rolling out dough

directions

1. Place flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center.  Crack eggs into the well and slowly mix together with your hands.

2. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead for several minutes, until it becomes smooth and pliable, adding more flour as needed.  Cover lightly with a towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rest for about 10 minutes.

3. Roll the dough out on the floured surface, as thinly as possible.  Keep in mind that the noodles will plump up when cooked.  Cut the noodles into very thin strands using a sharp knife or a pizza wheel (see my notes about this above).

4. Boil the noodles in well-salted water for 2-3 minutes and dress as desired.