Canon and Lily have been so sick and miserable the last few days! Well today I've had my fill of the rocking chair and children's programming on TV. The only thing that perked Canon up was when I asked him if he wanted to help make some noodles. He seemed to have found a new lease on life - at least for a little while. So he and Brady helped me make some pasta, which we ultimately ran through the fettuccini cutter into beautiful ribbons. I think they came out just gorgeous.... but I'm sure it was because of the wonderful help I had in the kitchen!
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| Homemade Fettuccini Noodles with Marinara and Meatballs |
* The funny thing was after we finished, Brady said "THAT's all there is to making noodles?" I think he was a little disappointed at how utterly simple the whole thing is. Notice, there's not much to the recipe.
1 2/3 cups flour
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
A pinch sea salt
Directions:
1. Sift the flour onto a clean work surface and make a well in the center with your fist.
4. Knead the pasta until smooth, 2 to 5 minutes. Lightly massage it with a hint of olive oil, pop the dough into a plastic food bag, and allow it to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. The pasta will be much more elastic after resting.
Pass the dough through the pasta machine:
1. Start to feed the blob of pasta dough through the widest setting of a pasta machine. As the sheet of dough comes out of the machine, fold it into thirds and then feed it through the rollers again, still on the widest setting. Pass the dough through this setting a total of 4 or 5 times. This effectively kneads the dough, ensuring the resulting pasta is silky smooth.
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| I just LOVE this photo! |
Since the fresh pasta has no preservatives, it cooks in only about 3 minutes in boiling water.
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| Working on the marinara - from scratch |
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| Making the pieces small for the picky people in the house |
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| The marinara with Italian meatballs |
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| Yummo! The finished dish.... topped off with chopped fresh herbs and Parmesano. |
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| The taste tester. |
Directions:
1. Sift the flour onto a clean work surface and make a well in the center with your fist.
2. Break the eggs into the well and add the oil and a pinch of salt to the well.
3. Gradually mix the egg mixture into the flour using the fingers of one hand, bringing the ingredients together into a firm dough. If the dough feels too dry, add a few drops of water; if it’s too wet, add a little more flour.
4. Knead the pasta until smooth, 2 to 5 minutes. Lightly massage it with a hint of olive oil, pop the dough into a plastic food bag, and allow it to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. The pasta will be much more elastic after resting.
Pass the dough through the pasta machine:
1. Start to feed the blob of pasta dough through the widest setting of a pasta machine. As the sheet of dough comes out of the machine, fold it into thirds and then feed it through the rollers again, still on the widest setting. Pass the dough through this setting a total of 4 or 5 times. This effectively kneads the dough, ensuring the resulting pasta is silky smooth.
2. Pass the pasta through the machine again, starting at the widest setting and gradually reducing the settings, one pass at a time, until the pasta achieves the required thickness. The pasta sheet will become very long—if you are having trouble keeping the dough from folding onto itself or are making ravioli, cut the sheet of dough in half and feed each half through separately. Generally the second-from-last setting is best for ravioli and any other shapes that are to be filled.
3. After the pasta has reached the requisite thickness, hang it over a broom handle or the back of a chair to dry a little—this will make cutting it easier in humid weather, as it will not be so sticky. Or, if you’re in a hurry, you can dust the pasta with a little flour and place it on clean kitchen towels and let it rest for just a short spell.
4. Shape the pasta by hand or pass the pasta through the chosen cutters and then drape the cut pasta over the broom handle or chair back again to dry just a little, until ready to cook. You can, of course, again toss the cut pasta lightly in flour and lay out in loose bundles on a tray lined with a clean kitchen towel. Use as soon as possible before it sticks together.
Since the fresh pasta has no preservatives, it cooks in only about 3 minutes in boiling water.
Please visit my Recipe Index for more soups and lots of different ideas to cook with/for your family! Here are a few different things:
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