homemade fresh pasta

How To Make homemade fresh pasta

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  1

  In a bowl, mix together the flour and salt. Make a wide deep well. Put eggs and oil in the well.
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  2

  Use a fork to whisk the eggs; slowly adding a little flour from around the edges as you go.
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  3

  When the flour starts to get clumpy and thick, it's time to stop mixing with the fork.
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  4

  Work your hands into the dough. Pull the flour together with the dough forming a loose ball.
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  5

  When the dough has come together and there isn’t any flour left in the bowl, put the dough on a lightly dusted workspace. Dust the top of the dough with all-purpose flour.
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  6

  Begin kneading by folding the dough in half repeating again and again for one minute. It will be tacky at first, but it should become less tacky after a minute. If it is still too wet after a minute, add another dusting of all-purpose flour.
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  7

  At this point, stop kneading the dough by folding it in half. Instead, pinch the edges of the dough and fold it towards the center pressing it with your thumb.
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  8

  Press with the heel of your hand. Keep pinching the edges towards the center, pressing with your thumb and heel of your hand, and spin the dough as you go for another 8 to 10 minutes. The dough will become smooth.
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  9

  The dough is ready when it's very smooth on top. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap. Let rest for 30 minutes.
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  10

  Attach the pasta maker to the countertop. Using a cloth or a silicone mat between the pasta maker and the countertop will help to protect the countertop. Set the pasta maker to the widest setting. This is commonly setting 7 (depending on your pasta maker).
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  11

  When the dough is done resting, cut the ball of dough into fourths to make wedges. Remove one wedge and wrap the rest of the wedges in plastic wrap. Roll out the dough one section at a time.
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  12

  Work the section of dough into a flat disk.
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  13

  Pass dough through the pasta maker.
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  14

  Trifold the dough to form a rectangular shape.
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  15

  At the widest setting, pass the trifolded dough through the pasta maker two additional times.
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  16

  Sprinkle the dough with semolina flour. Cut the dough in half. Wrap up one half with parchment paper and set aside.
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  17

  To keep the dough from sticking, dust the counter with a little semolina flour. Lower the setting by two (setting 5) and pass the dough through this setting twice. Lower the setting again by two (setting 3) and pass it through this setting twice.
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  18

  Lower the setting one more time (setting 1). Pass it through this setting once or twice depending on how thin you'd like the pasta. At this point, the pasta sheet should be very thin and long.
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  19

  When the pasta is thin enough to see a hand through, it is ready to cut into noodles.
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  20

  Dust the pasta sheet with semolina flour then cut to the length preference of the noodles. Semolina flour keeps the pasta from sticking. It also gives the pasta cutter something to grip onto making the pasta easier to cut.
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  21

  Sprinkle more semolina flour on the counter. One at a time, pass pasta sheets through the teeth setting of the pasta maker.
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  22

  Once the pasta is cut, lightly dust the pasta again with semolina flour. Separate the strands. Hang them on a pasta drying rack or lay them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet until they are ready for boiling. Process the remaining pasta dough.
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  23

  Salt boiling water. Gently drop the pasta into boiling water. Boil for 1 1/2 minutes.
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  24

  After 90 seconds, using a spaghetti spoon, move the pasta from the pot to a strainer resting in a bowl. Don’t pour the pasta into the strainer. The semolina flour sinks to the bottom of the pot and will spill over the pasta giving the pasta an unpleasant texture.
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  25

  To prevent sticking, drizzle and toss the pasta noodles with olive oil. Serve with a sprinkling of herbs or your favorite sauce.
• 26

  Note: Instead of a bowl, a food processor can be used to prepare the dough. Add the flour and salt to a food processor. Pulse once. Add eggs and olive oil. Pulse until all the flour has pulled away from the sides of the food processor and formed a soft ball. Proceed with directions 6 through 25.
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