My dog bought me a pasta machine for my Birthday this year.
For the pasta, (this serves 2/3 but can be easily multiplied):
150gm OO Flour (pasta/pizza flour)
2 Eggs
1/2 tsp Salt
Semolina Flour for dusting
And that is it!
For the Pesto:
1 medium sized bunch of Basil
1 clove of Garlic
25gm Pine Nuts
30gm Parmesan
75-100ml Olive Oil (EV)
Ok, so start with making your pasta dough. Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl, lightly beat the eggs and add about 3/4 of them to the flour. Bring the mixture together, I find it easiest to initially use a fork, then your hands once the egg has been absorbed. Persevere, it will bind- try to refrain from adding more of the egg, this dough easily becomes too wet. The drier the better!
This is the hard work, knead the dough for about 10 minutes using a lot of weight on the base of your palms. The dough will be smooth and silky when it is ready. Now rest it on a plate with an upturned bowl on it for 30 mins.
In this interlude you can make the pesto and a salad. There are two options here- easy (if you have a processor) and slightly time consuming (if you have a decent pestle and mortar). So take your pick. The pestle and mortar give better results everytime, it's something in the way the flavours are blended without becoming an indeterminable mush.
Basically all of the ingredients must be blended, so in the quick method just chuck everything in the processor, but do grate the cheese and mix this in at the end. In the pestle and mortar do the garlic first, then add in the basil and pine nuts, the friction from the pine nuts will help break down the basil. Remember, it wont look like bought pesto, and that is a good thing. Use the olive oil to swill the deliciousness out of the mortar. And hey pesto! (Sorry)
Make yourself a leafy salad. Go crazy.
Now, time to get on with the pasta, either set up your pasta machine, or get your rolling pin and make sure you have a nice clean area to roll on. Dust a clean tea towel with semolina flour and keep the flour to hand.
Get rolling!
Once it is thin enough to see through it easily, you're there! Lie out the sheets on the tea towel and dust with more semolina flour. Allow the sheets to dry out for about 40 minutes.
During the drying time, get your biggest pan out and fill with water, add a good tablespoon of salt. That may seem excessive but it makes all the difference. When the time is up, loosely roll the pasta and cut with a very sharp knife about 1/2 an inch wide.
When the water is at a rolling boil, cook your pasta for about 2 minutes, be careful not to overcook- these really don't need long. Drain retaining a little of the cooking water and in a shallow pan toss in the pasta, the water, as much pesto as you fancy and a glug of olive oil, toss quickly over a high heat. Serve in hot bowls with your salad, with parmesan and black pepper and that's it. Making pasta is not so hard.
So I made ravioli a few weeks ago with some success, but tweaks will be made. My latest attempt doesn't need alterations though, it really was easy too. Granted it's more effort than opening a packet of pasta and a jar of pesto. But unlike the product of that combination, I would happily serve this dish to the foodiest of people. Without a pasta machine, a rolling pin and firm hands will do the job. There is something incredibly indulgent about the silky fresh pasta that is born.
For the pasta, (this serves 2/3 but can be easily multiplied):
150gm OO Flour (pasta/pizza flour)
2 Eggs
1/2 tsp Salt
Semolina Flour for dusting
And that is it!
For the Pesto:
1 medium sized bunch of Basil
1 clove of Garlic
25gm Pine Nuts
30gm Parmesan
75-100ml Olive Oil (EV)
Ok, so start with making your pasta dough. Sieve the flour and salt into a bowl, lightly beat the eggs and add about 3/4 of them to the flour. Bring the mixture together, I find it easiest to initially use a fork, then your hands once the egg has been absorbed. Persevere, it will bind- try to refrain from adding more of the egg, this dough easily becomes too wet. The drier the better!
This is the hard work, knead the dough for about 10 minutes using a lot of weight on the base of your palms. The dough will be smooth and silky when it is ready. Now rest it on a plate with an upturned bowl on it for 30 mins.
In this interlude you can make the pesto and a salad. There are two options here- easy (if you have a processor) and slightly time consuming (if you have a decent pestle and mortar). So take your pick. The pestle and mortar give better results everytime, it's something in the way the flavours are blended without becoming an indeterminable mush.
Basically all of the ingredients must be blended, so in the quick method just chuck everything in the processor, but do grate the cheese and mix this in at the end. In the pestle and mortar do the garlic first, then add in the basil and pine nuts, the friction from the pine nuts will help break down the basil. Remember, it wont look like bought pesto, and that is a good thing. Use the olive oil to swill the deliciousness out of the mortar. And hey pesto! (Sorry)
Make yourself a leafy salad. Go crazy.
Now, time to get on with the pasta, either set up your pasta machine, or get your rolling pin and make sure you have a nice clean area to roll on. Dust a clean tea towel with semolina flour and keep the flour to hand.
Get rolling!
Once it is thin enough to see through it easily, you're there! Lie out the sheets on the tea towel and dust with more semolina flour. Allow the sheets to dry out for about 40 minutes.
During the drying time, get your biggest pan out and fill with water, add a good tablespoon of salt. That may seem excessive but it makes all the difference. When the time is up, loosely roll the pasta and cut with a very sharp knife about 1/2 an inch wide.
When the water is at a rolling boil, cook your pasta for about 2 minutes, be careful not to overcook- these really don't need long. Drain retaining a little of the cooking water and in a shallow pan toss in the pasta, the water, as much pesto as you fancy and a glug of olive oil, toss quickly over a high heat. Serve in hot bowls with your salad, with parmesan and black pepper and that's it. Making pasta is not so hard.
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