Fresh Pasta

By Scott

The difference between fresh pasta and store bought dried pasta is something like the difference between fresh salmon from the local fishmonger and canned salmon from aisle three at the grocery store.  Now there’s nothing wrong with dried pasta.  It absolutely has its place and I definitely have it stock-piled in our pantry at home for a home-cooked meal on the fly.  But if you have the time and plan ahead, making fresh pasta can be incredibly fulfilling.  Pasta rollers and cutter are expensive to be sure, but think of them as an investment.  Once you’ve made fresh pasta you may never go back to the store-bought stuff.  The end product is so much silkier and delicate than the store bought stuff.  Plus, it’s a lot of fun to make.  There’s nothing quite so satisfying as staring at a plate of noodles you made by hand, paired with a homemade sauce, and a glass of red wine.

I’ve made fresh pasta several times but I’m far from an expert.  Thankfully, there’s no shortage of great recipes out there. I decided to use Thomas Keller’s recipe from his The French Laundry cookbook, figuring I couldn’t go wrong with a master like Keller guiding the way.  What’s great about Keller’s recipe is that it is simple, great tasting, and almost entirely impossible to screw up.  I began with a classic pasta technique:  the flour well.   

Measure out your flour and pile it on your work surface.  Then, carve out a hole in the middle of the flour, leaving enough space to fit your other ingredients.  If your well is too small your ingredients will spill out all over your work surface.  Take it from my experience; it’s a problem you don’t want to deal with.  Now, fill your well – in my case with eggs, a little olive oil, and a touch of whole milk.  Now comes the fun part.  It’s mixing time.   

Using you fingers – or a fork for those that want to avoid a gooey mess – break up your eggs and mix them together with the olive oil and milk.  Next, in a circular motion continue mixing while slowly incorporating the flour along the inner edges of the flour well.  You want to mix in the flour slowly to create a smooth final product.   Once your wet ingredients have been incorporated and the dough is beginning to come together, you have no choice but to use your hands. Start by forming the dough into a ball and letting it rest for a few minutes (I let mine rest for about 10 minutes), covered with plastic wrap.  While you allow the dough to rest, it’s a good time to clean up your workspace.

Now it’s time to do the heavy lifting.  Make sure your working surface is well floured.  And for that matter, you’ll want to keep some spare flour close by for dusting throughout the process.  Using the heal of your hand, knead the pasta dough using an outward, rocking motion.  You’re not folding the dough over onto itself though. Kneading dough by hand is a physical process.  Trust me though, the final product will be worth the workout.  Keller advises to knead the dough for 10-15 minutes, but he suggests erring on the side of kneading longer than you think you need to.  As you work the dough you will see it change in texture, becoming smoother and shinier.  Keller tells us in his book that the dough is done when it develops a springy quality – when you poke it, the displaced dough wants to spring back into place.

Once you’ve kneaded the dough sufficiently, let it rest again while you clean your workspace one more time and prepare for rolling.  To make my pasta I used a KitchenAid mixer pasta-maker attachment.  Start by rolling the pasta out by hand with a rolling pin and then into sheets using a pasta roller.   

Begin with a thick setting and work your way slowly until the sheet is to your desired thickness.  Use plenty of flour throughout the process to prevent the dough from sticking to itself or the work surface.   

You’ll be amazed at how far just a bit of dough stretches.  Of course, if the dough is getting too long for your taste, cut it down to a more useable size.  When you’re ready, cut the pasta into strips using a pasta cutter. 

   

In a pinch, you can use a knife.  Fresh pasta takes only a few minutes to cook so be mindful of that when you’re finally ready to make the finished product.   

Here, I paired mine with a pesto sauce and charred cherry tomatoes.  Whichever way you choose to enjoy it, I guarantee you’ll think twice before grabbing a box of the dried stuff the next time you’re at the store.

-Scott

KELLER’S INGREDIENTS

1 ¾ cups all purpose flour

6 large egg yolks

1 large egg

1 tbl milk

1 ½ tsp olive oil