This fresh pasta recipe yields 1 pound of smooth, elastic dough ready to be cut into your favorite shapes. Knead, roll, and cook immediately for tender, flavorful pasta, or dry or freeze for future meals. Ideal for homemade Italian dishes.
Recipe Information
Yield:
1 pound, about 4 servings
Ingredients
2¼ cups unbleached flour
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
Directions
- In a bowl combine flour and salt; make a well in center. Crack eggs into the well. Beat the eggs with a fork until blended. Gradually pull in flour while mixing. When dough becomes too stiff to mix with a fork, continue mixing in flour with hands.
- Turn out dough and flour onto work surface. Knead in enough of the flour to make a firm dough that is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Wrap in plastic wrap. Let rest at room temperature 1 hour.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Work with 1 portion at a time, keeping remaining portions covered.
- To roll out by hand, on a lightly floured surface use a rolling pin to roll 1 portion of the dough into a 12×8-inch rectangle that’s about 1⁄16 inch thick. Stretch dough to produce the best texture. Starting from a short side, roll up jelly-roll style; set aside. Roll out remaining portions of dough. (To roll out using a pasta machine, follow manufacturer’s directions.) Cut as desired.
- Cook fresh pasta right away or dry for later cooking. To dry, hang from pasta drying rack or spread on wire cooling rack overnight. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 3 days. Or, dry pasta at least 1 hour; freeze up to 8 months.
- In a large pot, bring 3 to 4 quarts water to boiling, adding 1 tablespoon salt just before pasta. Stir in pasta all at once. Return to boiling. Cook for 1½ to 5 minutes, depending on thickness and dryness of pasta, or until al dente. Drain, leaving some water clinging to pasta.
