#41 Pasta Dough

Another step in the homemade lasagna journey...pasta dough. I decided to go ahead and give the pasta dough a whirl, even though I do not have a pasta machine. I thought that lasagna noodles didn't have to be super thin anyway.

Pasta Dough

2 cups all purpose flour
3 large eggs

1. Scoop the flour onto the counter and shape it into a volcano.

 

Break the eggs into a bowl, pour them into the center of the volcano. Oh....did I mention that my beautiful eggs are home grown too.

Then beat eggs with a fork, just incorporating the yolk and the whites. Use the fork to gently mix the flour into the egg mixture working from the center out, maintaining the wall of the volcano as the center hole gets bigger. Don't be afraid of errant egg skating across the counter- just guide it back to the mix.

 

When the egg is thoroughly incorporated, push the dough together into a ball and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap while you clean your hands and your work surface.

Mine was a little dry and it would not come together, so I wet my hands with water and just that little bit of water helped it come together. Unwrap the dough and place on a clean counter and begin kneading it.  Vigorously push the dough down and away from you with one hand and fold it over with the other for about 5 minutes or until dough has a smooth surface.

 

Cut the dough into 6 pieces and shape into balls. Cover with plastic wrap and rest for 30 minutes.

If you are using a pasta roller ,follow your machine's instructions. If using a rolling pin, roll out each ball of dough, one at a time. To mimic the gradual thinning of the pasta roller, first roll to one thickness, then thinner, then thinner until 1/16 of an inch. Cut to your preferred shape. I left mine in big sheets for the lasagna. You do not need to boil the pasta first when making lasagna.

 

 

If you are not using right away, hang pasta to dry until ready to cook, at least 5 minutes, up to 2 hours. Make sure the pieces of pasta do not touch as they dry, or they will stick together.

You can keep pasta dough wrapped in plastic in the fridge for 2 days. Dried pasta wrapped into small nests, covered container for 2 days. In the freezer, first dry at room temp for 1 hour, then place in freezer bag up to 3 months- cook right from the freezer.