Pasta Dough

Growing up in a Cuban-Italian household, I was exposed to Italian cuisine as much as I was to Cuban cuisine. I think when people think of Italian food, pasta is one of the first things to come to mind. Pasta is a simple and affordable meal option for many people. Moreover, pasta can be accompanied by  a variety of foods and sauces. It is also a great way to add bulk to a meal to feed large families or gatherings of friends. While boxed pasta is a great and affordable option, there is something really special about fresh pasta made at home. The texture is super silky, and the taste is wonderful! There really is a significant difference between fresh and boxed dried pasta. The convenience of boxed pasta is great. However, if you are looking to make a special meal, fresh pasta is the way to go, because the taste and texture are amazing! To make fresh pasta dough, you only need a few basic ingredients, so it is still quite affordable, very tasty, and so simple to make! You can also turn the dough into whatever pasta you want! You can even use it to make pasta for lasagna or ravioli. So have fun giving this recipe a try!

Pasta Dough Recipe 

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups of all-purpose flour (or use 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour and 1 ½ cups of 00 flour)
• 5 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil (optional)

TOOLS NEEDED:

• Cutting board, plastic wrap, and metal scraper.
• Pasta maker, manual or mechanical (optional)

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION / INSTRUCTIONS         

                                                                           

BRIEF DIRECTIONS (See the video demonstration for detailed instructions):

1. Collect ingredients. Stir the flour in a bowl using a whisk to loosen up the flour.
2. Dump the flour onto your work surface, form it into a mound, and create a well (large hole) in the center.
3. Next, add half of the eggs (and olive oil) in the well you created. Then use a fork to beat the eggs together and begin to incorporate some of the flour from the inner rim of the well. As you mix the eggs with one hand, use your other hand to push the flour to maintain the well shape. When the egg has a paste-like consistency, add the rest of the eggs and continue to use a fork to slowly incorporate the flour.
4. The dough will start to come together once most of the flour is incorporated with the egg. At this point, start kneading the dough using the palms of your hands to push the dough out on the work surface and fold over (see video demonstration for visual). Once the dough is a cohesive mass, set it aside. Then scrape any dried bits from the work surface and discard.
5. On a lightly floured surface, take the pasta dough and continue kneading for 5 minutes. The dough should end up slightly sticky and elastic, meaning if you press down lightly on the dough you should see it spring back a little.
6. Now wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes (Note: the dough needs to be completely covered in plastic wrap as air will cause the dough to dry out). 
7. Once the dough is rested, it can be used to make pasta using a pasta maker or rolling the dough out and cutting the pasta by hand.