Pasta holds a special place in our memories of childhood. Even if you didn’t grow up Italian, chances are you remember eating long strands of spaghetti and slurping up the sauce as you went. Pasta is made of simple ingredients: flour, eggs, olive oil and water. Don’t let the simplicity of the ingredients fool you into thinking that commercially made pasta is no different from homemade. Homemade pasta is true comfort food and easy to make. In our house, the making of pasta becomes a collaboration. There is something for everyone to do, no matter how young or how old. And the fruits of our labors end up in a wonderful family dinner that we all enjoy together.
The key to making great pasta is to get the dough to the right consistency and then rolling it to an even thickness before cutting it into various shapes. Some cooks prefer to roll the dough out by hand using a rolling pin and a smooth surface, like a wooden cutting board or a marble slab. I recommend the use of a pasta machine to achieve expert results consistently. With so many different types of machines on the market to choose from, the only decision you’ll have to make is manual versus an electric model. Good manual hand cranked machines should be heavy and have a base that clamps to the table or surface you are working on. Atlas, Imperia and CucinaPro are quality names for manual machines. Weston, Lello and Imperia all make electric pasta machines, and Kitchenaid does double duty by offering an attachment to its standard mixer. Although I have the Kitchenaid pasta attachment, I prefer to use my hand crank Atlas pasta machine, because it always seems like more fun to have one person turn the crank while someone else catches the dough.
There is really no difference between mixing the dough in a food processor, with an electric mixer or by hand, except that in the hand method you will begin to knead the dough in the bowl. With electric appliances, the dough comes together rather quickly, and it takes a bit more time by hand, but that’s part of the fun. Put the flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Mix the eggs together slightly and then add the oil and water and mix well. Pour this liquid mixture into the center of the flour and start mixing with a fork until the dough starts to clump together and the flour is incorporated with the liquids. At this point, you need to get your hands into the dough to finish mixing.
Dust your hands with flour and begin to gather the clumps and begin kneading the dough right in the bowl. Grab the mass over onto itself, pushing and turning and folding the dough until it no longer sticks to the side of the bowl. Once you have one cohesive clump of dough, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, a large wooden cutting board works great, and continue to knead for 2 to 3 minutes.
The purpose of kneading the dough is to make sure that all the ingredients are fully incorporated together and to get the gluten in the flour to begin its work. If your dough is not coming together, sprinkle it with a little water and continue kneading. If the dough is sticking to your hands or the board, add a little flour by dusting the surface of the dough and the board. The dough is ready to rest when it becomes smooth, soft and pliable. Let it sit on the board at room temperature covered with a clean kitchen towel for about 30 minutes before rolling the dough.
Divide your dough into quarters and work with one piece of dough at a time. The general idea is to start rolling the dough through the thickest setting on your pasta machine, gradually decreasing the setting to roll a thin sheet of pasta. If you are making raviolis you will place the filling on one sheet of pasta, cover it with a second sheet and then use a pastry wheel to cut between the ravioli squares. All pasta maker machines come with some attachments for cutting the pasta into other shapes like tagliatelle and tagliolini. Some of the electric ones will also provide an extruding attachment for making rounded shapes like spaghetti and capellini. You can even cut the sheets by hand into strips that are 1 1/2 inches wide, like papardelle.
Once you have cut your pasta into the desired shapes, gently take the pasta and dust it lightly with flour. Let the pasta sit undisturbed on a baking sheet or bread board for the surface to dry a little before cooking. You can cook your pasta straight away, and enjoy it with a favorite sauce. If you are making more than enough pasta for one meal you can dry little “nests” of pasta and use them within a few days, or you can freeze them. Some people prefer to use pasta drying racks, which will dry the pasta in long strands rather than little nests.
Once your family has had a hand in making fresh pasta at home and eating the results, you won’t want to go back to commercially processed pasta again. Homemade pasta has a delicate, rich flavor and a smoother texture than store bought pastas. Making pasta at home is a fun family project that everyone can do together and it will become one of the warm and comforting memories you share in the future. So start a family tradition of fun and laughter and good food. Make pasta-making a regular event in your kitchen.
Making fresh pasta at home has been a Lauder family specialty for years. Kids, grandkids, friends and neighbors all play a role in making the dough and gathering at the table to savor the results. Watch a video on rolling dough through a pasta machine on Geri’s website, find great cookbooks and pick out a pasta machine for your next family pasta party.