The pasta thread

jaykush

jaykush

mmmm hash
A thread for the pasta lovers. For those who make it, buy it, or simply just eat it. This is the place to post it. To get everyone started here is what i made for lunch today. the pasta is handmade. the sauce is from the garden, i bought the cheese.

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Fresh garden tomatoes chopped, tossed into sauteed onions/garlic/mushrooms. fresh basil, oregano, etc. Add cooked shrimp (or whatever) tasty and easy ....I used linguine. Fresh shredded cheese. Made it two days ago and already jonesin'. :D
 
Jay,good thread,thanx eh??.....:rollj:
Rosso,can I bring my home made herb beer/wine too???....pasta looks great:jumpgreen:....
 
Bro, how do you make that pasta? A pasta maker contraption or something?
Click to expand...

i figured someone would ask so i took pics while making them.

i don't have any traditional tools, i have improvised to get the same effect though. the rolling board is a bunch of kabob skewers taped together( which should be a gnocchi rolling board). any flat handheld piece will work to replace the red and white dough scraper i use.

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take your final dough, cut pieces off and roll out a long snake. the thinner you make it the smaller the pieces will be. the ones above came from a snake about 1/2" thick. then cut those snakes into small pieces. put them on the skewer board, take the flat piece and put it on the dough like so.

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press down and pull towards you, it will roll over on itself while indenting the shell pattern (which holds more sauce than smooth ones) its very simple to do, the other day a 7 year old helped me make a few hundred of them.

if that made no sense, this video might help make more sense of it. it still hard to see the rolling part, and i dont use my finger.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JhsW1V_4OM

thanks for posting everyone.
rosso you making me want to make some lasagna. specially some nettle and sausage lasagna.
 
enough for 1 person, or two lightly hungry people.

1 cup flour
1 egg( or two and use less water)
enough water to make the dough the right consistency( add a tablespoon at a time)

EDIT: for the hungry stoner, double what is above.

its all on learning how wet the dough needs to be. don't expect to get it perfect the first go around. it needs to be wet enough to knead well, but dry enough to not be a sloppy sticky mess and to not get soggy when you cook it. its a lot drier than bread dough or pizza dough.

simply mix, knead until smooth, adding a little water or flour depending on if its too wet or dry, then let it rest for 15 minutes for rolling into snakes for shaping things like the ones i posted above, and 20-30 for rolling flat. and then cut and shape your pasta.

its real simple, and the google videos get you the basics visually. from there you can learn what the dough needs to "feel" like for that perfect pasta. the stuff in the bowl above was perfectly al dente. it took me at least 5 times to get the pasta to where i wanted it. but now its so easy i can make all i need in 20-30 minutes, which is how long it takes to cook the pasta sauce. so when the sauce is done im ready to toss the pasta in boiling water. from there it cooks in 2 minutes far faster than dry store pasta.
 
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since we all love green so much.

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arugula pasta, i covered it with a cannabutter/Parmesan based sauce and im ripped from lunch :magic:
 
Real nice Jay, I like the way you use the skewers to roll out the pasta..I'll be giving a "how to make pasta" post next week if I can get the right semolina..

I had the time to make gnocchi today and take pictures..here's the recipe..you can cut the recipe in half but since making gnocchi is so time consuming and makes such a big mess I'll make a good sized batch to last me..it get's frozen anyway..
I boil about 12 large russet potatoes..I've noticed that potatoes in the winter seem better for making gnocchi..most recipes say to bake your potatoes in the oven but that's up to you..I like boiling them and then drying them out in the oven for 10 minutes..a little moisture is good..any left over potatoes you'll have you can make hash browns out of for breakfast:eat:
 
next step is to mash them..never whip or beat your potatoes.. don't get kinky on me..:D
it'll make a starchy mess..I run mine through the kitchen aid grinder..or you can use a potato masher..if there's a few small clumps don't sweat it..
I measure out 6 cups of potatoes..don't worry about it being exact..don't forget to peel them and for those of you not use to handling a hot potato you might need gloves..they need to be hot..
 
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next add your flour..3 cups worth..about 4 teaspoons of kosher salt..2 tablespoons of olive oil and then 4 beaten eggs..you can mix it all together by hand or use your paddle mixer on the kitchen aid..it's very important not to over mix..you just want to incorporate all the ingredients..on my kitchen aid I just give it about 30 seconds on low..
 
it's going to be sticky mess but that's good..I've had gnocchi in Italy and some top notch restaurants in the U.S. and where many make the mistake is adding to much flour and making it into a dough..we're not making bread here..we're making fluffy little dumplings of goodness..
you'll need a large surface..use lots and lots of flour covering you surface area and divide your gnocchi into 4.. stretch out one of the quarters and cut into what ever size you like..I like mine about the size of my upper thumb..
 
now it's time to start rolling them..I use a grater because it's simple and fast..the only reason for this is to make them more uniformed and it also allows the center to cook more evenly when boiling..
 
I like using food wrap on a cookie sheet heavily coated with flour..it makes it easier to pull them off the tray after they're frozen..I've made about a million of these mofos and it takes practice..your first time won't be easy..
this is very important to know..gnocchi dough starts fermenting very fast because of the natural sugars in potatoes and flour..it'll start rising like bread dough so you only have 2 options..cook them right away or freeze them immediately..my recipe makes about 250 gnocchi so I freeze them and can make small portions whenever I want..just freeze them on the trays and then place in freezer bags for storage..
 
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now comes the cooking :eat:
large pot of boiling salt water at a rapid boil..they only take about 2 minutes to cook..you can tell when they're done once they float to the top..
don't drain them in a colander..they're to delicate so scoop them out with a slotted ladle onto a plate and then finish with your favorite sauce and butter in a saute pan..
 
one of my favorite treats is gnocchi fried in butter..a must try:)
you have to cook them the day before and refrigerate..pat them dry with a paper towel and saute with clarified butter until crispy and golden brown..sprinkle with kosher salt..
better then any french fry..here they are with a hamburger steak with melted cheese and toppings..
 
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