Homemade Item: BASIC PASTA DOUGH

What do you get when you combine flour, eggs, and water? Not mush silly, but pasta. Every food storage should contain a basic pasta dough recipe because it is so straight forward and the ingredients are already in your food storage.

I started making my own pasta last winter after a friend recommended I try it. There is nothing wrong with boxed pasta, I certainly eat enough of it myself, but fresh pasta is so flavorful. The great flavor alone would be enough for me to keep making my own pasta, but it is also so easy! Oh how I love easy tasty things.

I received this book a while ago and love the basic pasta dough recipe in it. It is a simple flavor but compliments most any pasta dish. Plus your kids will love helping to roll and cut the dough.

Bust out your stand mixer. You can make this recipe in a food processor or by hand, but I like that the stand mixer does all the work for me.

Add the flour to the bowl.

Then add the eggs, one at a time. This is the dough after the eggs have been added, nice and crumbly.

Then add the water, a little at time until you get a nice ball. Because pasta dough is really tough stop mixing as soon as the dough forms a nice ball, just a few minutes, so you don’t kill your stand mixer.

Dump it out on the counter and mix by hand for just a few minutes to make sure everything is nicely incorporated.

Then cover the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes. After the rest period you can either freeze the dough or turn it into your favorite pasta!

Recipe comes from Making Artisan Pasta, by Aliza Green

Find it on Amazon.com here

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

3 large eggs at room temperature

1 egg yolk, also at room temperature

2 to 3 tablespoons warm water

Directions:

In the bowl of a stand mixer add the flour. With the paddle attachment begin mixing slowly. Add the eggs and egg yolk one at a time. The dough will turn into coarse crumbs.

Add the water, one tablespoon at a time until the dough starts to form a ball.

Stop the stand mixer as soon as the dough forms a ball so the motor doesn’t get damaged.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for a few minutes to make sure everything is incorporated thoroughly.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and allow to rest for 30 minutes.

After the rest is over the dough is ready to be made into pasta or place in the freezer to be used within 3 months.