Pasta is pretty much my favorite food group. Fettuccine, vermicelli, angel hair, rice noodles, udon, pasta-stuffed breadbowls — I love it all. I don’t write about it so much here because I usually just eat the pre-packaged dried stuff. Boring. But there’s nothing better than going out to a great Italian place and remembering how much more amazing the fresh stuff is.
For Christmas this year I got something I’ve been wishing for several years running now: a shiny new pasta machine. I tore out the directions that came with the box and whipped up some fresh raviolis. And by whipped up I mean spent three freaking hours cooking. Damn, this is time-consuming. Also, I just didn’t love ’em. I mean, they were fine. But not a hundred times better than regular old, out-of-the-box pasta. Clearly, I’m not expecting the first attempt to be Batali quality, but I am a little bit at a loss as to where I go from here. That’s where you come in.
I know tons of you guys have homemade pasta tips, right? What recipes do you use? Do I need a special flour? A new unitasker? Kneeding advice? Ancient family secrets? Bring it all.
Feed me!