Pasta Dough 1 Recipes

BASIC FRESH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Mound the flour in the center of a large, wide mixing bowl. Dig a well in the center of the mound and add eggs and yolks. Using a fork, beat together the eggs and begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well. The dough will start to come together in a shaggy mass when about half of the flour is incorporated.
• Use your fingers to continue to mix the dough. Press any loose bits of flour into the mass of dough. If needed, add another egg yolk or a tablespoon of water to absorb all of the flour. Once the dough comes together into a cohesive mass, remove it from the bowl.
• Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 4 to 5 more minutes until the dough is smooth, elastic and uniform in color. Wrap the dough in plastic and set aside for at least 30 minutes (and up to 4 hours) at room temperature.
• Line three baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly dust with semolina flour. Set aside.
• Cut off a quarter of the dough. Rewrap rest, and set aside. Use the heel of your hand to flatten the dough into an oval approximately the same width as your pasta machine, about six inches. Set the rollers to their widest setting and pass the dough through.
• Lay the dough out onto a lightly floured cutting board or countertop and neatly press together into halves, so it's again about the same width of the pasta machine. Feed the pasta through again at the widest setting. Think of these first rollings as an extended kneading. Continue to fold the dough in thirds and roll it until it is smooth, silky and even-textured. Do your best to make the sheet the full width of the machine.
• Once the dough is silky and smooth, you can begin to roll it out more thinly. Roll it once through each of the next two or three settings, adding flour as needed, until the dough is about 1/4-inch thick.
• Once the pasta is about 1/4-inch thick, begin rolling it twice through each setting. As you roll, lightly sprinkle all-purpose or 00 flour on both sides of the pasta to prevent it from sticking to itself.
• Roll out pasta until you can just see the outline of your hand when you hold it under a sheet, about 1/16-inch thick for noodles, or 1/32-inch thick for a filled pasta. (On most machines, you won't make it to the thinnest setting.)
• Cut pasta into sheets, about 12 to 14 inches long. Dust the sheets lightly with semolina flour and stack on one of the prepared baking sheets and cover with a clean, lightly dampened kitchen towel. Repeat with remaining dough.

FRESH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Mound the flour on a clean work surface. Hollow out the center making a well in the middle of the flour with steep sides.
• Break the eggs into the well. Add the salt, and olive oil to the hollow center and gently mix together with a fork. Gradually start incorporating the flour by pulling in the flour from the sides of the well. As you incorporate more of the flour, the dough will start to take shape.
• With your hands or a bench scraper continue working the dough until it comes together. If the dough is too dry, add a little water; if too wet or sticky, add a little flour.
• Begin kneading the dough and keep kneading until it becomes smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. At this point, set the dough aside, cover it with plastic, and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes. You can store the dough in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours, but allow it to return to room temperature before rolling it out.
• Divide the pasta dough into 4 even sections. Keep each section covered with plastic wrap or a clean towel while you work with each one. Flour the dough, the rollers of a pasta roller (or your rolling pin), your hands, and the work surface.
• If using a pasta machine: Flatten 1 of the of the dough pieces between your hands or with a floured rolling pin until it forms a thick oval disk. Dust the disk, the roller, and your hands with additional flour. Flour a baking sheet to hold the rolled out finished pasta.
• With the roller on the widest setting, pass the pasta through the machine's rollers a few times until it is smooth. Fold the dough over into 1/3, and continue to pass through a few more times until the pasta is smooth again. Begin adjusting the pasta machine settings to become thinner, passing the dough through a few times at each setting.
• If rolling the pasta by hand: Flatten a dough piece into a thick oval disk with your hands. Flour a baking sheet for the rolled out finished pasta. Place the oval dough disk on a floured work surface, and sprinkle with additional flour. Begin rolling out the dough with a floured rolling pin working from the center of the dough outwards, constantly moving the dough and lifting it to make sure it's not sticking.
• Flavor and color variations:
• Cook's Note: All color additions should be added to eggs before incorporating into the flour. Keep in mind that you will need to add a little bit of flour to your basic pasta recipe to compensate for the additional liquid added
• Spinach Pasta Dough (green hue): Blanch 8 ounces (about 3 cups) spinach leaves. Puree in a food processor or blender until smooth. Press the spinach puree through a small strainer or chinois, removing the liquid before mixing with the eggs. Add 3 tablespoons spinach puree to the eggs before mixing. If the dough feels too sticky, add additional flour until a soft, silky dough is achieved.
• Tomato Pasta Dough (orange hue): Add 2 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste to the eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Beet Pasta Dough (pinkish-red hue): Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Roast 1 large beet in aluminum foil, about 45 minutes, or until tender. Peel the beet and puree in a food processor. Add the beet puree (about 4 tablespoons) to eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Herb Pasta Dough (speckled): Mince 1/2 cup fresh herbs and add to eggs before incorporating into the flour.
• Squid Ink Pasta Dough (black hue): Add 1 tablespoon squid ink to the eggs before incorporating into the flour.

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE PASTA

Steps:

• Place the flours on a work surface and create a hole with your hands. For those who are making homemade pasta for the first time we recommend using a bowl because the job will be easier. Split the eggs and put them in a bowl then pour the eggs into the hole.
• With the help of your hands, mix the eggs with the flours, incorporating a little at a time, until everything is combined. Knead the pieces of dough together.
• After ten minutes, make a big ball and wrap it in a cling film. Let it rest for 15/30 minutes.
• Make sure that your pasta maker machine is clamped firmly to a clean surface. Dust your work surface with some durum wheat flour. Take a lump of pasta dough the size of a tennis ball and press it out flat with the palms of your hands. Roll the lump of pasta dough through the widest setting of your pasta machine. Remember to dust the pasta dough with durum wheat flour if you feel it's becoming sticky.
• Fold the pasta dough in half and then again in half.
• Roll again the sheet of pasta dough through the widest setting of the pasta machine. Repeat the process for 3/4 times. You have to work the dough till it's smoother. Finally, you can start to roll the dough through all the remaining settings of your pasta machine, from the widest to the narrowest.
• So now you have long strips of fresh pasta dough that you can use for different types of pasta, like tagliatelle, tagliolini or lasagna.

BASIC PASTA

Steps:

• In a medium sized bowl, combine flour and salt. Make a well in the flour, add the slightly beaten egg, and mix. Mixture should form a stiff dough. If needed, stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons water.
• On a lightly floured surface, knead dough for about 3 to 4 minutes. With a pasta machine or by hand roll dough out to desired thinness. Use machine or knife to cut into strips of desired width.

BASIC PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• PLACE the flour on a board or in a bowl and make a well in the centre. CRACK the eggs into the well, add a pinch of salt then with a fork, mix the egg into the flour as much as possible so it's not sticky. Don't worry if there are lumps in the dough. Keep mixing and then when crumbs form put it on a flat surface and knead together. You can also speed this up by mixing your ingredients in a food processor until they bind. ONCE it is all combined, knead until you have a silky, smooth, elastic dough. You are aiming to achieve a playdough texture. If your dough is crumbly (too dry) add a teaspoon of olive oil. If the dough sticks to your hands (too wet) add a little extra flour. COVER with cling film and rest for 30 minutes. TIP: The general rule for portions is 100g flour, 1 egg and a pinch of salt for a generous portion of pasta for 1 person *****You can catch us making this on our YouTube channel***** WHEN using a pasta roller, take a tennis ball-sized amount of dough, squash it flat with your fingers (remember to keep the rest of your dough covered with the cling film so it doesn't go dry and crusty) push it through the pasta roller on the widest setting. Fold into thirds, then repeat 3 times. Once you have a rough square shape, start working it through the machine, taking it down one setting at a time, until the thinnest setting. If your pasta is too sticky, it won't go through smoothly, so add a little flour to each side before you put it through the roller. Try to avoid too much flour - the less you use, the better otherwise your pasta can start to feel heavy and claggy when cooked. YOU should end up with a long sheet of pasta about 8-10cm wide. Place this on a flat surface with flour underneath to stop it from sticking. This is the most versatile form as from this sheet you can create so many different shapes and dishes. See our individual recipes for suggestions on how to make linguine, tagliatelle, pappardelle, ravioli and tortelli etc. LINGUINE: Sprinkle a little flour over both sides of the pasta sheet and fold it into thirds (short edges together). using a sharp knife, cut into 3mm- wide strips, lengthways. When you unfold the pasta you will have long linguine. TAGLIATELLE: Sprinkle a little flour over both sides of the pasta sheet and fold it into thirds (short edges together). using a sharp knife, cut into 1cm- wide strips, lengthways. When you unfold the pasta you will have long tagliatelle. PAPPARDELLE: Sprinkle a little flour over both sides of the pasta sheet and fold it into thirds (short edges together). Trim the long edges straight with a sharp knife, and cut into 2.5cm-wide strips, lengthways. When you unfold the pasta you will have long pappardelle. FARFALLE: Place your sheet of pasta on a floured surface. Use a pasta cutting wheel or sharp knife to cut your pasta into strips roughly 3-4 cm wide then cut across to create little rectangles. Take each rectangle and with lightly floured fingers, pinch in the middle to create your butterfly shaped pasta. If your pasta is too dry, wet your fingertips with some water. Lightly dust a few trays with polenta or semolina to prevent the farfalle from sticking together. Place the farfalle onto the trays and repeat the process until you have used all the remaining dough. Leave to dry for 20 minutes so they hold their shape when cooking. YOU can also roll your dough by hand using a rolling pin but you'll need some serious elbow grease to get your pasta sheets really thin (about 1 playing card thick). DOUGH can be stored in the fridge overnight if you don't want to cut it immediately, however any longer and you risk the dough turning black. ONCE you've cut your pasta shapes, if you make more pasta than you want to use (I like to cook 100g of pasta per person), leave it to air dry for 2-3 days and once completely dry it will keep in a bag or jar for several months. COOKS TIPS QUANTITIES: 100g of flour makes approximately 150g dough - enough for 1-2 people. 400g flour makes approximately 600g dough - enough for 4-6 people. Add one egg per 100g flour and scale up or down depending on the number of people you are serving. THE CUP: Find a cup that is equivalent to 100g flour when full. Keep this to avoid having to weigh your flour each time. THE DOUGH: This recipe is easy and basic and doesn't change. What does change is the quality of the flour, the size of eggs and the humidity in the air (think of how your hair reacts differently when you wash it if it's a sunny day or wet day). Don't panic; what is important is to know what consistency you are trying to achieve, then you can adjust things accordingly. THE FEEL: The consistency of the dough should be like playdough - it shouldn't be too dry or fall apart but it shouldn't be too wet either or stick to your hands. It's ok if it's a little crumbly provided that all the flour is binding together. Once rested it will be much better. To help you achieve the right consistency you can do the following: Hold back the last egg if you are using more than 100g of flour. Check the consistency, then add the final egg slowly yolk first, then the white - if you need it. This should help make sure the dough isn't too wet. If it is too wet (sticking to your hands) add a little flour until it binds. If the dough is too dry (i.e. completely falling apart and not binding) add a teaspoon of olive oil. But only do this if it is absolutely necessary. Remember it's ok for the dough to look a little dry and crumbly after you've done the kneading. If you leave it to rest it will improve. You should be able to easily mop up all the remaining flour on the surface with your ball of dough. NOT TOO MUCH FLOUR: Don't be tempted to add too much flour - the more flour you add, the heavier the pasta will be. When flour is added to water it basically turns to glue, so if you add too much flour to the mix, your pasta will become claggy and heavy. This is why, you should always place pasta shapes on a tray with polenta or semolina rather than flour, as it disperses when the pasta is put in the water. TYPE OF FLOUR: You really should use type '00' flour when making fresh pasta as it makes the world of difference to the texture. You don't want to make your life difficult, so invest in your flour. TYPE OF EGGS: Again you can use any medium sized eggs but the better the quality, the better the dough. In Italy they buy eggs with a large and very yellow yolk which gives the dough and pasta a vibrant yellow colour - try corn fed for the same effect. CLING FILM: Always keep the dough under cling film or a plastic bag once formed - otherwise it risks going hard and forming a crust. RESTING: If you are in a hurry, then it is not essential to rest the dough, but if you do have time, a 15 or 30 minute rest will really help your pasta have the elasticity it needs to stretch. PREPARING YOUR SHAPES: Once you've cut your pasta shapes, place them on a tray which has a dusting of polenta (as mentioned above). Space them out so that they air-dried a little and don't stick together. Alternatively, if making long strips of pasta, you can hang them on a clean coat hanger or clothes horse. STORING EXTRA PASTA: Once you have cut your pasta shapes, if you make more pasta than you want to use, leave it to air dry for 2-3 days and once completely dry it will keep in a bag or jar for several months. WASHING UP: You might call us crazy but don't wipe your surfaces with a dish cloth if they have lots of flour on them. Remember flour + water = glue. Our mum used to go mad if we wiped up a load of flour with her new clean dish cloths. Instead, we use anything with a firm flat edge (plastic scraper, back edge of a blunt knife) to get the excess flour off and then wipe the remains with kitchen towel.

PASTA DOUGH #1

Steps:

• In a large glass or plastic bowl combine 1 cup flour and remaining ingredients.
• With a mixer on low speed beat 2 minutes, scraping the bowl.
• You can do this part by hand.
• With a wooden spoon stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough.
• Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface, knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
• cover dough and let rest 30 minutes.
• Follow pasta machine instructions at this point, or lightly flour your counter and rolling pin, cut dough down to manageable size and roll, turn, roll, turn until desired thickness.
• Cut to desired shape.

MASTER RECIPE FOR PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Pulse flour in workbowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade to evenly distribute.
• Add eggs; process until dough forms a rough ball.
• (about 30 seconds.
• If dough resembles small pebbles, add water, ½ teaspoon at a time.
• If dough sticks to side of workbowl, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, and process until dough forms a rough ball.).
• Turn dough ball and small bits out onto a dry work surface.
• knead until dough is smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until you're ready to run through pasta machine.

BASIC PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• On a clean dry work surface, make a mound of the flour and, using your fingers, make a well in the center of the mound. Using a fork, break the shell of the eggs one by one and drop the eggs into the center of the well you made of the flour. With the fork, beat the eggs together. Again using the fork, slowly begin to fold the flour in towards the center of the well to incorporate the flour into the beaten eggs. As you mix the flour with the beaten eggs, it will begin to form a doughy mass. Work this mass using your fingers until it begins to lose its moist and sticky character.
• When the mass begins to feel uniformly dry, begin to work the dough using both hands: kneading with the palms of both hands, pushing from the center of the ball of dough outwards and folding the near edge inwards to begin the kneading cycle again. The kneading stage should take about 10 minutes by hand.
• After the dough has been fully kneaded, it is time to thin the dough into sheets suitable for cutting. A manual pasta machine works wonders at this stage. Cut the ball of dough into three equal pieces. Form these pieces, by hand, into equal rectangular shape to be passed through the rollers of the pasta machine. Set the cylindrical rollers at their widest opening, put a piece of dough in the space between rollers and crank the handle to pass the dough through. As the sheet of pasta comes out the bottom of the rollers it should be set on a dry cotton towel to rest while you begin on the next piece. Repeat the thinning process with the remaining pieces of pasta, thinning and then setting aside, consecutively so that each piece of pasta is equally rolled out. When all the pasta has passed through the first rolling stage, set the machine to the next setting to begin rolling the pasta thinner. Start the rolling process again, beginning with the first piece of dough and continue with the remaining pieces. As each is rolled thinner set it aside and continue onto the next.
• As you return to the first piece of dough, set the cylinders one setting closer. Continue in this fashion until the pasta dough has been rolled out as thinly as possible.
• As the sheets of dough rest, keep them on a cotton towel, to prevent sticking to the work surface. When they are all rolled out you are ready to cut the pasta into the desired shape. They can be cut using the cutting wheels of the rolling machine or by hand using a knife.

PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• All you need do is to mix flour with eggs, olive oil and salt. If too dry, sprinkle with water and add flour if too sticky.
• It is now important to wrap dough in plastic and leave it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until you want to use it. Humidity will bind the dough.
• For the dough using a pasta machine. We get a smooth dough and flavored. Add flour if necessary, it does not stick and we'll cut to desired shape.
• We leave them to dry for another day or we boil water with salt for 1-2 minutes.

HOMEMADE PASTA

Steps:

• Combine the eggs, flour, olive oil, salt and 1 tablespoon water in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until a dough forms, about 10 seconds. Remove the dough from the food processor to a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic, 4 to 5 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball; wrap with plastic and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Cut the dough in half and keep one half refrigerated. Cut the remaining half into two equal pieces. (Make sure to keep the unused dough pieces covered.)
• Working with one piece at a time, roll the dough with a rolling pin as thin as possible (but still thick enough to be lifted off the counter without breaking, about a 10-by-16- inch rectangle; the dough should be paper-thin, but you shouldn't be able to see through it.)
• Dust each dough sheet with flour. Fold the dough in half (using the short ends) and dust the top with flour. Repeat twice more, dusting with flour between each layer to create a stack. Use a sharp knife to cut the dough into thin strips (1/4-inch wide).
• Separate the noodles into "nests" and let dry on a lightly floured surface, about 1 hour. Repeat the process with the remaining dough piece, then with the remaining refrigerated dough.

EASY HOMEMADE PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Beat flour, eggs, olive oil, and salt together in a bowl. Add water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to flour mixture until a smooth and very thick dough forms.
• Turn dough out onto a work surface and knead for 10 minutes. Let dough rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Divide dough into 8 balls and use a pasta machine to roll and cut dough into desired pasta shape.