DIY Dinner Party: Roll Your Own Pasta
Posted by ReadyMade
Project by Lia Huber; photo by Andy Lyons
ADVICE FROM: Lia Huber, Nourish Network, Napa, California
Several years ago, Huber and her husband traveled throughout Northern Italy to train with pasta makers, grandmothers, and chefs for the pasta shop they had planned to open. “In Tuscany and Abruzzo we’d see chefs discreetly cracking eggs into dough they insisted over and over again was just flour and water--aquafarina,” Huber says. “But then I’d ask the ingredients again, pointing accusingly, and finally they’d shrug their shoulders and admit, ‘e un poco uovo’ (a little bit of egg).” Which makes sense; egg adds strength and elasticity to the dough.
Skill Level
Very Easy
Active Time
Half a day
Cost
$
- 4 c artisan bread flour or pasta flour (or blend 3 cups all-purpose flour with 1 cup whole wheat flour)
- 1 c water
- 1 egg
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 t salt
Materials
- Food processor
Tools
Pulse together the ingredients in a food processor until they form a loose ball. Turn out onto a floured board and knead for 8-10 minutes, until dough is pliable and has a dull gloss. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
Flatten dough into a ½-inch-thick disk and slice into ¼-inch-wide strips. Cut each strip into 1-inch lengths. Working with one length at a time (keep others covered with a slightly damp dish towel) on an unfloured wooden cutting board, use your fingertips to roll and stretch the dough from the middle to the ends until it resembles a thick piece of spaghetti.
Set the pici on a cookie sheet lined with a piece of floured parchment paper and repeat with remaining pieces. Fluff the pasta occasionally with a sprinkle of additional flour to prevent the strands from sticking together.
TIP: Easier-than-pici pasta: Try the bucatini from Rustichella d’Abruzzo (sold in rustic brown bags), which is cut on bronze dies from the 19th century. rustichella.it, markethallfoods.com
