Chapter 8: Pasta, Part 2
TWO PATHS TO HOMEMADE PASTA
By Sara Hauman and Jordan Mackay
This, the second chapter to address Italy's greatest contribution to world cuisine — pasta — offers a perfect opportunity to hear from the highly accomplished chef behind these recipes, Sara Hauman. If you're consuming this online cookbook as intended, you are not only reading these recipes and introductions, but you are also viewing the online cooking videos in which she demonstrates every step of each dish. In these, you will notice one very salient detail in how Sara cooks: it's all by feel and by hand — she rarely measures or weighs anything.
This cooking embodies the Italian culinary sensibilities of informality, inclusiveness, and joy. You won't find sous vide machines, xanthan gum, or spherification here. Sara uses her fingers, not titanium tweezers, and it behooves you to get comfortable cooking like this, especially when making pasta.
"I'm just not that person who wants this very strict, by-the-book precision," says Sara. "It's nice that a recipe can be a little different every time. It only adds to the personality and charm."
Cooking by feel not only offers character benefits, but it's also practical. "This is nature you're dealing with in these ingredients," she says. "With pasta, everything is variable — freshly milled flour contains more water, while flour that's been sitting on your shelf for a year will be drier. Two eggs are rarely the same — some have more water or more protein. You can't just be a robot. You must get in there and actively participate in the cooking process, which is fun and keeps you alert."
This chapter focuses on two paths of homemade pasta — tender, rich egg noodles and harder, toothsome semolina pasta — and offers use-case scenarios for each. But one thing holds for both styles. "It's really important to not add too much liquid [i.e., egg or water] at the beginning because the flour needs a certain amount of time to hydrate."
Thus, Sara goes slow when making the pasta for this chapter. It's better to take more time and let the process play out. "I'll bring the dough together into a shaggy ball that might seem too dry at first," she says. "Then I'll wrap it in plastic and let it sit on the counter for 15 to 20 minutes before analyzing it and kneading again. If it needs more water, just put a little on your hands. I might repeat this process over an hour or two to let the flour fully hydrate."
Drier is generally better, as the least possible amount of liquid yields the chewier — and more satisfying — noodle. Experience is a great teacher, and soon your hands will know the smoothness of proper texture by feel. Sara notes that it is possible to over-knead by running it through the cylinders of a pasta roller too frequently. Each time increases the surface area, which dries it out faster. She says that if the edges start to crack, you've gone too far.
Once you've got your two basic kinds of pasta, Italy is at your fingertips, as the recipes suggest. Semolina pasta is like homemade dried pasta. You can use it the day you make it, Sara says, or if shaped or cut into noodles, you can let it slowly dry over a period of days for dried pasta. The brilliant Pugliese orecchiette dish with broccoli rabe and sausage shows a toothsome pasta at its best. Next in our recipes, use dried spaghetti cooked al dente for the Roman classic of pasta carbonara. (Leftovers of this are great for breakfast—after all, it's basically just Roman bacon, eggs, and toast). Leaning more delicate to the tooth, the golden egg pasta shows beautifully with the indelible classic of tagliatelle alla Bolognese from Italy's breadbasket, Emilia Romagna. And finally, in the Napolitano spinach-mushroom lasagna, homemade egg noodles add elegance to a heavy dish.
With these extraordinarily versatile pasta, it doesn't matter what you drink, so long as it's wine. Whites will pair beautifully. Try a Chardonnay (or Chardonnay blend like Annia), Massican, or otherwise, with the creamy Carbonara. In the other pastas, maybe something a little sharper to counter the tang of broccoli rabe and spinach — Sauvignon Blanc or Gemina from Massican or, say, a Greco, Fiano, or Verdicchio from Italy. Red wine works well across the board — something crisp, crunchy, and not too heavy — a young Chianti or Montepulciano d'Abruzzo or an Etna Rosso.
As with the cooking, the wine pairing should be casual, fun, and accessible. Sara reminds us that making pasta at home isn't an ordeal. "Just give yourself a little time, take it slow, and don't stress about it," she says. "Pasta doesn't want to be worked too hard." And, we could add, it doesn't want you to work too hard to enjoy it.
OUR PASTA DISHES TO COMPLEMENT YOUR REGIONAL DINNER PARTY
You can download all the recipes as a PDF by clicking the button below.
Puglia: ORECCHIETTE WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND SAUSAGE
Rome: SPAGHETTI CARBONARA
Bologna: TAGLIATELLE ALLA BOLOGNESE
Naples: SPINACH & WILD MUSHROOM LASAGNA
SEMOLINA PASTA DOUGH
Makes 1 lb. of fresh pasta dough
Ingredients:
· 13 oz. semolina flour
· 6 ½ oz. water
· ½ tsp. salt
Preparation:
1. Place the semolina flour in a mound on a clean surface and using your hand or a spoon create a well in the middle of the flour.
2. Pour the water into the well and add in the salt.
3. Using a fork, slowly incorporate the semolina flour into the water until a shaggy dough begins to form.
4. Use your hands to bring the dough together and start kneading the pasta dough.
5. Use more flour if the dough seems sticky; or wet your hands if the dough seems too dry.
6. Knead for 10-12 minutes or until the dough is elastic and smooth.
7. Cover with a tea towel and rest for 30 minutes before using.
EGG YOLK PASTA DOUGH
Makes 1 lb. of fresh pasta dough
Ingredients:
· 18 oz. “00” pasta flour
· 14 yolks
· 2 whole eggs
· ½ tsp. Salt
Preparation:
1. Place the flour into a large mixing bowl.
2. Create a well in the middle of the flour, then add in the whole eggs, yolks, and salt.
3. Stir to combine, then bring the dough together with your hands.
4. Continue kneading the dough until it is homogenous and becomes very smooth.
5. Store in plastic wrap or under a damp tea towel if using immediately.
6. This dough can be made 2 days ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator wrapped tightly in plastic wrap.
ORECCHIETTE WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND SAUSAGE (PUGLIA)
Semolina Pasta Dough
Serves 6-8 people
To shape the orecchiette:
Using the freshly made semolina pasta dough, remove 1/4 of the dough; and cover the remainder of the dough with a damp kitchen towel so it does not dry out.
Roll this quarter-piece of dough into a 1/2" diameter rope using the palms of your hands.
Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the rope into 1/2" pieces.
Using the dull side of a butter knife or bench scraper, press down each small piece of dough against the work surface, pushing and twisting away from you to create a thimble-sized round of dough. This may take a few attempts to figure out how much or little pressure is needed to keep the dough from tearing or from being too thick.
Place the small piece of dough on the tip of your thumb and use your other fingers to gently pull the sides of the dough down around the tip of your thumb to create an indentation.
Set the “little ear” shape pasta on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper that is dusted with semolina flour.
Repeat until all the dough is made into orecchiette.
Ingredients:
· 1 lb. fresh orecchiette (“little ears”) pasta
· ¼ cup olive oil
· ½ lb. Italian sausage, spicy or mild, casing removed
· 2 shallots, diced small
· 6 garlic cloves, minced
· ¼ tsp. red chili flakes, plus more for serving
· ½ cup dry white wine
· 2 bunches broccoli rabe, washed and trimmed
· About 1 cup reserved pasta water
· 1 ½ oz. parmesan, grated
· 1 ½ oz. pecorino, grated
· Salt
Preparation:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. Heat a large sauté pan to medium-high heat, then add the olive oil.
3. Add the Italian sausage to the pan and cook; smash the sausage with the back of a wooden spoon or spatula to break it apart and facilitate quicker cooking.
4. Once fully cooked, lower the heat, then add in the shallots and garlic and allow to cook for about one minute, stirring constantly.
5. Add in the chili flakes, and toast them for 30-60 seconds.
6. Pour in the white wine and let simmer until most of the moisture has evaporated.
7. Add the broccoli rabe to the pan and stir to combine all the ingredients.
8. Increase the heat to medium and cook the broccoli rabe for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until wilted. (Tips: If your pan is overcrowded, complete the above in two batches. If you need more moisture in the pan to create steam, add more dry white wine or water, 1 Tbsp at a time as needed. Season with salt as desired.)
9. Boil the orecchiette until al dente, reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain the pasta and transfer the pasta to the pan with the broccoli rabe mixture.
10. Add in the reserved pasta water and cook on medium heat until the pasta has absorbed most of the liquid.
11. Remove the pan from the heat and sprinkle in the parmesan and pecorino.
12. Toss or stir the pasta continuously until the cheese has melted and emulsified with the remaining liquid in the pan.
13. Adjust the seasoning as needed then serve immediately with more red chili flakes and your choice of grated cheese sprinkled over the top.
SPAGHETTI CARBONARA (ROME)
Dried Pasta
Serves 6-8 people
Ingredients:
· 1 lb. dried spaghetti
· 1 ½ oz. parmesan, grated
· 1 ½ oz. pecorino, grated
· 2 large eggs
· 4 large yolks
· 2 Tbsp olive oil
· 4 oz. guanciale, pancetta or thick bacon, diced small
· ½ cup reserved pasta water
· Salt
Preparation:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
2. In a small bowl, add the parmesan, pecorino, whole eggs, and yolks. Stir to combine. Set aside.
3. In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil and add in the guanciale, pancetta, or bacon.
4. Cook on low heat until the fat has rendered and the meat is golden brown and crispy.
5. Boil the spaghetti until al dente, reserve ½ cup of pasta water, then drain the pasta and add the pasta to the pan with the rendered pork.
6. Add in the reserved pasta water.
7. Heat until the liquid in the pan begins to bubble.
8. Remove from the heat, then add in the cheese and egg mixture, while simultaneously stirring to incorporate the egg and cheese into the pasta. It is important that this step be done off the heat to not scramble the eggs. The egg and cheese mixture should be glossy and coat the spaghetti.
9. If you need to thin the sauce, add water 1 Tbsp at a time as needed.
10. Season with salt and serve immediately.
TAGLIATELLE ALLA BOLOGNESE (BOLOGNA)
Egg Yolk Pasta Dough
Serves 6-8 people
Kitchenware needed for this recipe:
· Hand Pasta Roller
To prepare the tagliatelle:
Using the egg yolk pasta, cut ¼ of the dough and knead it to a flat rectangular piece slightly narrower than the aperture of your pasta roller.
Set your pasta roller on the widest setting and pass the dough through.
Fold your rolled dough in half, onto itself, and then roll through the widest setting again.
Repeat folding the dough onto itself until it is smooth. This usually takes about 3 passes.
Continue to pass the dough through the pasta roller, decreasing the setting by 1 notch each time until you have reached the thinnest setting.
Once thin, fold the dough onto itself and cut your tagliatelle noodles approximately 1/4" wide and 10" long.
Ingredients:
· 1 lb. fresh tagliatelle pasta
· ½ - 1 cup reserved pasta water
· 2 Tbsp olive oil
· 2 Tbsp butter
· ¾ lb. ground beef
· ¼ lb. pancetta or bacon, chopped small
· ½ medium yellow onion, diced small
· 4 cloves garlic, minced
· 2 carrots, peeled and grated
· 2 celery stalks, diced small
· 4 oz. tomato paste
· ½ cup dry white wine
· 1 cup chicken or beef broth
· ½ cup milk
· Salt
· Good olive oil
Preparation:
1. In a large sauté pan add the olive oil and butter.
2. Once the butter has melted, add the ground beef and pancetta to the pan.
3. Cook thoroughly by smashing the meat with the back of a wooden spoon to break up the meat and facilitate a quicker cooking time.
4. Once the meat has been browned, add in the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery and a couple pinches of salt.
5. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally until the vegetables have softened, about 4-6 minutes.
6. Add in the tomato paste and cook for another minute or two. The sugars in the tomato paste will begin to stick to the bottom of the pan.
7. Add in the white wine and scrape the bottom of the pan to dissolve what is stuck.
8. Once the bottom of the pan is cleaned and most of the wine has evaporated, add in the broth and milk.
9. Simmer the Bolognese for 20-25 minutes on low heat, taste, and adjust the seasoning as you go.
10. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil then cook the tagliatelle until al dente.
11. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water then remove the pasta from the water and place directly into the large pot of Bolognese.
12. Add the reserved pasta water and heat until the sauce begins to bubble and thicken.
13. Stir or toss the pasta constantly until the noodles are coated with sauce.
14. Season with salt as desired.
15. Serve immediately with a drizzle of good olive oil over the top.
SPINACH & WILD MUSHROOM LASAGNA (NAPLES)
Egg Yolk Pasta Dough
Serves 6-8 people
To make the lasagna sheets:
Using the egg yolk pasta, take ¼ of the dough and knead it to a flat rectangular piece slightly narrower than the aperture of your pasta roller.
Set your pasta roller on the widest setting and pass the dough through.
Fold your rolled dough in half, onto itself, and then roll through the widest setting again.
Repeat folding the dough onto itself until it is smooth. This usually takes about 3 passes.
Continue to pass the dough through the pasta roller, decreasing the setting by 1 notch each time until you have reached the thinnest setting.
Trim the lasagna sheets to fit your casserole dish (see below).
Ingredients for the marinara sauce:
· ¼ cup olive oil
· 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
· 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
· 2 carrots, grated
· 52 ounces canned whole peeled tomatoes
· Salt
· Pepper
Preparation:
1. Heat the oil in a medium-sized heavy-bottom pot.
2. Add the onion, garlic, and carrot to the pot and cook over medium heat with a pinch of salt, stirring frequently, until very soft and translucent, about 10 minutes.
3. Crush the tomatoes with your hands, then add to the cooked vegetables.
4. Season with more salt and pepper and then bring to a simmer.
5. Continue to simmer the sauce for about an hour or until it reaches the desired thickness.
6. This can be made ahead of time and kept for up to one week in the refrigerator or three months in the freezer.
Ingredients for the bechamel sauce:
· 5 Tbsp butter
· ¼ cup all-purpose flour
· 1 qt. whole milk
· 1 tsp. salt
· ¼ tsp. grated nutmeg
Preparation:
1. Melt the butter in a medium pot.
2. Add in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes.
3. Whisk in the milk slowly, making sure that there are no lumps in the flour, and cook on low to medium heat.
4. Add in the salt and nutmeg and continue whisking the sauce until it has thickened and is the consistency of melted ice cream.
5. Remove from the heat, and cool to room temperature.
6. This sauce can be made up to one week in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
Ingredients to assemble the lasagna:
· 1 lb. lasagna dried or fresh lasagna sheets, boiled and drained
· 1 lb. whole milk ricotta cheese
· 10 oz. package frozen spinach, thawed, and squeezed dry
· 12 oz. wild mushrooms, chopped, and cooked
· 1 cup parmesan, grated and divided in half
· 3-4 cups marinara sauce
· 3-4 cups bechamel sauce
· 1 lb. mozzarella cheese, grated and divided into three portions
· 1 large egg, beaten
To cook the mushrooms:
In a large hot pan, add an ample amount of oil, more than you think.
Once the oil is hot, add in the cleaned mushrooms.
Mushrooms love fat, salt, and vinegar so make sure you season the mushrooms well while they are cooking.
Some mushrooms may leach liquid into the pan, continue cooking the mushrooms until this liquid evaporates.
Once the mushrooms are tender, remove from the heat, add in a tablespoon of butter and a splash of red wine or sherry vinegar, and combine.
Preparation:
1. Preheat your oven to 400F.
2. Combine the ricotta, spinach, and cooked mushrooms and set aside.
3. Combine the marinara and bechamel sauces and set aside.
4. In a shallow rectangular or square casserole dish, place ½ cup of the sauce mixture and evenly spread along the bottom of the pan.
5. Layer par-cooked pasta sheets on top, ensuring to fully cover the bottom of the pan.
6. Spread half the ricotta mixture on top of the pasta sheets.
7. Sprinkle half the parmesan cheese and 1/3 portion of the grated mozzarella over the top of the ricotta, then half of the remaining sauce mixture.
8. Layer another row of pasta sheets on top and repeat the same process.
9. When you have a three-layer lasagna, combine the beaten egg with the last measurement of grated mozzarella and top your lasagna with this cheese mixture.
10. Trim the edges of the pasta to fit the casserole dish as needed.
11. Bake the lasagna for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top.
12. Remove the lasagna from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
13. The lasagna can be assembled and refrigerated for up to 5 days before baking.