Subject: Basic Recipe for Fresh Pasta
From: Unicorn (unicorn@indenial.com)
Date: Mon Jan 14 2002 - 02:37:50 EST
__________________________________________________
F O O D F U N N Y
__________________________________________________
Here's a vintage true food funny from reader Kris Stang:
This story has been told and retold in my family for nearly 60 years.
During WWII, my parents were newlyweds. Dad was stationed in New
Orleans, Louisiana -- and my mother, not knowing anyone, grew
homesick. They saved enough money for Mom to take the train home for
a visit. Before she left, she asked Dad if there was anything she
could bring him from home when she returned. He said, "Yes, but
you'll be mad at me if I tell you." Mom said, "No I won't, what do
you want me to bring?" Dad said, "I'd like you to go over to my
mother's and learn how to fry potatoes like she does." Mom said OK,
boarded the train, and came home to Maryland.
After a short visit, Mother returned to New Orleans. Her first night
back she fixed Gram's fried potatoes. Dad came into the apartment,
smelled the potatoes frying in the iron skillet, and was in heaven.
"Oh boy! she learned how to do potatoes just like Momma's!" he said,
and went running for the shower to get cleaned up for dinner. When
Dad was ready, he sat down at the table. There was the skillet,
covered with a lid -- just like at Grams; sitting on a magazine --
just like at Gram's. Mom lifted the lid -- Voila! -- the potatoes
were BLACK on both sides!
Mom then told Dad -- "I went to your mother's house two different
times to learn how to fry potatoes just like she does. Both times,
just as she was going to turn them over, she got a telephone call, and
the potatoes burned. I figured that you liked them burned, so I burnt
both sides just to make sure they were right!" Dad ate the whole pan
of potatoes... and the next night Mom cooked them the "real" way that
Gram did.
__________________________________________________
T O D A Y ' S R E C I P E
__________________________________________________
It's time once again for a "Favorite Ingredients" theme, and pasta is
truly one of my favorite ingredients - I could live on the stuff. Its
versatility has caused it to be accused of being nothing more than an
excuse to eat rich and fattening sauces, but what an excuse it is!
Whether prepared simply or with an elaborate sauce, it is filling,
satisfying, and (depending on the sauce) healthful. Rather than
starting with an appetizer this week, our "Starter" is a basic recipe
for fresh, homemade pasta which can be used in the rest of this week's
recipes.
The following recipe requires a pasta machine for kneading, rolling,
and cutting the pasta. They can be bought for about $40 in any
gourmet shop or department store, and the investment will return a
lifetime of fresh pasta. Please insist on the type with rollers, as
the extruder types don't knead the dough and produce an inferior
product.
Basic Recipe for Fresh Pasta
2 1/2 cups (625 ml) all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
2 tsp (10 ml) olive oil
Place the flour in a large mixing bowl or on a flat work surface and
form a well in the center. Beat the eggs and oil together and pour
into the well. Using a fork, begin mixing the flour and egg mixture
in the center of the well, gradually working towards the outside of
the mound of flour as the ingredients are combined. When the mixture
becomes too stiff to work with the fork, begin incorporating the
ingredients with your hands until a ball of dough is formed. The
dough should be firm enough to handle and not sticky. Adjust the
consistency with additional flour or a few drops of water if
necessary. Alternately, the ingredients may be combined in an
electric food processor and processed until a ball is formed. Knead
the dough by running it through the pasta machine set on its widest
setting six or seven times, folding the dough in thirds after each
pass and dusting lightly with flour if the dough becomes sticky.
After kneading the dough should be firm and have the texture of smooth
leather. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 30
minutes to 3 hours.
To make noodles, cut the dough into 6 pieces and roll through the
pasta machine set on the widest setting several more times, folding in
thirds and dusting lightly with flour if needed to prevent sticking,
then begin decreasing the width by one notch with each successive pass
through the machine until the dough has reached the desired thickness.
Most noodles require the thinnest setting, but thicker noodles such as
spaghetti and pappardelle require only the next-to-last setting on the
machine. Let the dough dry for about 15 minutes and then pass through
the cutting mechanism on your machine, or cut by hand. The cut
noodles may be cooked immediately, or may be frozen or dried and
stored for several weeks in an airtight container. To dry, roll the
noodles gently into small "nests" or simply allow to dry flat.
To cook, boil at least 4 quarts (4 L) of salted water for this recipe.
Add the pasta to the boiling water and stir gently. Fresh pasta, even
when dried, cooks much faster than commercial dried pasta. Depending
on the thickness of the noodles, the pasta will be done in as little
as 5 seconds, and in no case should it take longer than 1 minute to
cook after the water has returned to the boil. Test the pasta
frequently and drain it in a large colander as soon as it is tender
but still firm. Makes about 1 lb (500 g) to serve 4 to 6.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b28 : Fri Feb 01 2002 - 00:00:01 EST