No. Normal people do not make pasta.
Who would spend valuable time making something that comes out of a 99 cent box?
That’s 99 cents for the box and the pasta, by the way.
Well, thanks to the Homesteaders Food Challenge I make all sorts of things that I used to buy. And I am a better person for it!
At least, I’m a bit healthier. 🙂
Making pasta is soooooo easy and it’s better tasting. Don’t even get me started on how much healthier homemade pasta is because we could be here until Sunday. Freshly milled flour. That’s all that needs to be said. If you want to know how rockin’ awesome fresh milled flour is for you go here. After you read that you could teach a class on flour & you will want a mill today. You may not be able to afford one, but you’ll want one.
Now, the first 2 times I made pasta, I did not think it was that easy. It was all new. I had no experience. I was cutting noodles with a pizza slicer. Now that I’ve made pasta 29 times and have a handy-dandy pasta machine – it’s really easy.
If you don’t have a fancy machine that turns balls of dough into perfect noodles you can still eat fresh pasta.
- Use a pizza cutter like I did at first.
- Make lasagna. (Lasagna noodles are humongous and don’t require machinery or repetitive slicing.)
- Make Manicotti
How to Make Pasta
Grab a bowl and scramble 3 eggs into it. Add 2 tbsp milk and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. Stir this up & add 2 cups fresh flour (I sift mine).
Stir until it becomes a ball (add a bit more milk if it’s too dry). Knead this about 20 times, shape it into a ball & cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for a couple of hours on the counter. There are nights that I do not have this kind of time because I remembered to make the pasta 30 minutes before I wanted to eat it. I have shortened the resting time with success.
After the rest, cut the dough ball in half.
At this stage, if you have a juicer that came with pasta making attachment you can start cramming the dough into the hopper and your dream noodles will come flowing out the other end.
If you don’t have a pasta maker or a juicer that knows how to make pasta, grab your breadboard and a rolling pin. You get to make the pasta yourself.
Begin by flouring your board and rolling pin. If you don’t have a giant breadboard any large cutting board or counter will do.
Working on a floured surface, use a (floured) rolling pin to roll this baby out into the thinnest pie crust sheet of pasta you’ve ever seen. It helps if you flip over and roll – flip it and roll – flip it and roll. Keep doing this until your dough is paper thin (or close to it).
Once you have it as thin as you can get it, it’s time to slice. You can make fettuccine.
You can make lasagna.
You can use a pasta maker to make noodles. It’s all gonna work out for you in the end!
After the pasta is sliced into it’s designated noodle form – set the pile of pasta aside to dry. I just set it in the corner of the kitchen on a counter.
If you are making lasagna (or manicotti)- there are a couple of shortcuts:
- You don’t have to “let the pasta dry”
- You don’t have to “cook” your pasta prior to layering it into the casserole
- Once the giant rectangle noodles are sliced go ahead & start assembling your lasagna & pop it in the oven.
Easy-peasy.
If you are having any other variety of noodle to serve under your favorite sauce (like this one) you’ll need to cook them first.
When you are ready to eat (dinner is done, bread is baking & all that’s left is to boil the pasta)- get some salty water boiling.
Drop your homemade pasta into the boiling water and don’t go anywhere! It will cook as fast as lightning. Watch, stir & taste. Don’t burn yourself! When they are perfectly al dente – strain immediately.
You are going to love this pasta!
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-Candi
| Servings |
servings
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- 2 tbsp milk
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 cups fresh milled flour sifted - hard white wheat berries
Ingredients
|
|
Grab a bowl and scramble 3 eggs into it. Add 2 tbsp milk and 1/2 a teaspoon of salt. Stir this up & add 2 cups fresh flour (I sift mine).
Stir until it becomes a ball (add a bit more milk if it's too dry). Knead this about 20 times or until it becomes smooth and elastic. Shape it into a ball & cover with plastic wrap. Let rest for a couple of hours on the counter or in refridgerator. If you don't have 2 hours, 30 minutes has worked for me.
After the rest, cut the dough ball in half.
If you have a pasta maker - it will do the rest for you! Just start feeding your dough through the hopper.
If you don't have a pasta maker grab your rolling pin - it's time to use some elbow grease!
Working on a floured surface, use a (floured) rolling pin to roll the dough super thin. Once you have it as thin as you can get it, it's time to slice. Use a pizza slicer or a pasta machine to make noodles. After the pasta is sliced into it's designated noodle form - set the pile of pasta aside to dry. I just set it in the corner of the kitchen on a counter.
If you are making lasagna - there are a couple of short cuts:
- You don't have to "let the pasta dry"
- You don't have to "cook" your pasta prior to layering it into the casserole
- Once the giant rectangle noodles are sliced go ahead & start assembling your lasagna & pop it in the oven.
When you are ready to cook your pasta, get some salted water boiling.
Drop your homemade pasta into the boiling water and don't go anywhere! It will cook as fast. Watch, stir & taste. Don't burn yourself! When they are perfectly al dente - strain immediately.
Serve under your favorite sauce.
