Homemade Pasta
Am looking for some assistance. I make a type of homemade spaetzle, handed down from my grandmother (the recipe lol). While we LOVE the "homemade noodles", they are not quite right for things like alfredo sauce. They seem to be more like mashed potatoes (on which you might put butter, gravy, etc) as opposed to pasta (where you would put red or cheese sauce). I could not even imagine how.....unsound it would taste to put alfredo sauce on these. I have a VERY simple alfredo type sauce that my spouse loves and would enjoy making hm pasta to put it on.
Could anyone give me some direction for a recipe or technique or ingredient that makes a (I HATE to say this) more of a dried boxed pasta tasting noodle?
My current recipe/technique is very simple--1 egg to 1 cup white flour, some crushed dried parsley, and some milk to make it workable. Roll it out thin and cut it with this REALLY nifty pasta cutter (It looks like a pizza cutter, but has multiple blades mounted side by side).
I am not sure if it is a flour issue, a technique issue, or something else. I figured that, while this is not bread, it IS dough and it does have to deal with flours, and y'all are my "go to" for all things dough and flour :).
Thanks!
Typically pasta-making calls for durum flour.
Are you trying to get a firmer, more "chewy" noodle?
If yes, you might substitute bread flour for all-purpose. You might also try using water rather than milk, as, IMHO, milk produces a softer noodle.
I am trying to get something like a boxed pasta (though better tasting), so yes, probably more chewy (though not chewy....it just has a whole different taste/texture/appearance/etc). I will try the water thing though, that might be part of it. What about oil, do you think that makes a difference?
As for the durum flour...was afraid that you were going to say that....I cannot get that here. Might have to order some in.
Thank you SO much for y'all's help! I would love to make my own pasta.
This recipe has worked well for me for all applications of the "sauced pasta" - "noodle" - "ravioli" and "lasagne" varieties.
2/3 cup type 000 or all purpose flour
2/3 cup semolina
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 TB olive oil
I mix the flours and salt together in the workbowl of my food processor, then mix the egg and oil together and drop them down the feed tube while pulsing. I develop the dough to a firm dough. (I'm sure that this can be done by hand - you know make a well in the flour, mix in egg and oil, knead) It must rest at least 1 hour, preferably more.
Roll out with your favorite device (I use an Atlas hand cranked pasta maker) - cut as desired and cook. Fettucine cooks in about 3 mins at my altitude.
I have made this same recipe with just all purpose flour, but the semolina is key to good taste and good color.
I'm not always good at describing the method, so if you have questions, let me know.
Hope this helps. Happy Pasta-ing!
Like the previous post, I always use a semolina based recipe. I took the one from the back of a bag of Bob's Red Mill Semolina and use it all the time. Here's the recipe from the website:
http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_detail.php?rid=543
I've made fettucini and ravioli using the above recipe with great success. Good luck!
I have made great noodles with just regular flour,egg or water,salt. The idea is to make a very firm but still rollable dough and to dry them separately before cooking. They will be more tender than the storebought and cook very rapidly in boiling,salted water. If you use egg, they will be yellower and hold together better.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Homemade-Noodles/Detail.aspx
THis lrecipe looks right.
Lkarner: right, spaetzle is not quite pasta...hence my issue with trying to make pasta :) All I know is the german way--the spaetzle.
Although I have to say that I also fudge the german way. I do not use a spaetzle maker but rather make more of a dough than a batter and cut them. We serve them with butter. This is the way my grandmother made them, so that is how I do it. I have tried a spaetzle maker but was driven to frustration and went back to my way.
Thank y'all for your suggestions! I am going to see if I can get some semolina to see if that works. I need a different flavor/texture experience than what I have been making in order to go well with the sauces I have in mind. :)
I took a class while in Italy and we made fresh pasta, semolina is what they use. Its very easy and taste wonderful!
Ok, I would have to ship in semolina. However, I wondered if cream of wheat (farina) would offer some of the qualities that semolina does? Anyone know? Has anyone used cream of wheat as either an add in or as the base for pasta or bread?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semolina
I never realized farina is actually a form of semolina.A different variant of wheat and a little coarse. I haven't been able to find any noodle recipes but how about dumplings?
http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1837,153182-245195,00.html
or just try to make some noodles with the farina and see what happens.
...It is what most of us make Gnocchi with, should make very tasty dumplings.
They may be chewier, not mushy, more firm, but yummy all the same.
Does anyone have a recipe for pasta, noodles that is eggless? No raw eggs.