October 8, 2015 – Fresh Handmade Pasta

In This Issue:

Perfecting Fresh Pasta
RECIPE: Pinci with Tomato Sauce
Cooking Fresh Pasta
RECIPE: Semolina Cavatelli with Beef Ragu
<Make and Cook Tasty Pasta!>
RECIPE: Sugeli with Potatoes and Garlic
Cookbook Review

INTRO   

“Fresh, Handmade Pasta”

INTRO TEXT   

IN THIS ISSUE, it’s pasta primo! We’re making handmade pastas and pairing them with delicious sauces. With just a few simple ingredients, delicious, fresh pasta can be on the table. We have all the “how-to’s” beginning with Pinci with Tomato Sauce, followed by Semolina Cavatelli with Beef Ragu, and finishing with Sugeli with Potatoes and Garlic.

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“Three Pastas, Three Sauces”

MAIN BODY:

Perfecting Fresh Pasta

Which came first? The pasta or the sauce? Was it the pasta begging for an accompaniment, or the sauce that needed a worthy vehicle? It makes no difference, the pasta and the sauce found each other and have been living happily together ever since.

Flour + Water + Salt 
+ maybe a little olive oil, or maybe an egg

It’s that simple! No complex mixing, just stir together. Use your hands, a spoon, a power mixer – whatever works for you. When wet, the glutens in the flour are activated and form a complex molecular structure that allows the dough to stretch and take on various shapes. Once mixed and kneaded, a brief 30 minute rest greatly assists the dough’s formation and pliability.

THE FLOUR – Choosing the right flour for pasta-making is key. Flours have different protein and gluten qualities depending on their origins, soft or hard wheat. Most pastas are made from a hard wheat, durum wheat, which is ground into durum flour. It’s higher protein and gluten content serves pasta-making well. The exception to using high protein flour is when making soft, pillowy dumpling-type pastas such as gnocchi; in this situation, all-purpose flour is sufficient. Zero doppio (aka “00”) is another common pasta-making flour. It is a finely ground flour from just the wheat kernel’s endosperm, no bran or germ. Semolina flour is made from more coarsely ground portions of durum wheat. To determine which flour to use, consult your recipe or your grandmother.

Pinci with Tomato Sauce  Originating from Tuscany, pinci, or pici as it is sometimes known, is shaped like spaghetti, but with the thickness of a pencil. The toothsome strands provide a hearty pasta plate. Just semolina, all-purpose flour, salt, and water is all that’s needed to make pinci. The simple dough assembles easily, rolls out cooperatively, and transforms into long strands speedily. A simple tomato sauce is all that’s needed to dress the cooked pinci. A few shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano complete this lovely pasta dish.

Reprinted with permission from Pasta by Hand, A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta by Jenn Louis. Copyright 2015. Published by Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved.

Forming the Pasta:
Roll the dough to 1/8-inch thickness.
Cut 1/8-inch strips. Roll each strand into even thickness.
Place on a semolina-dusted pan until ready to cook.

Pro Tips:
(1) Apply Some Power! Use a stand mixer to mix this simple dough. It assembles quickly and accomplishes the kneading at the same time in the same bowl.
(2) Make this Sauce Often! This tomato sauce is rich with flavor! Beginning with aromatics and herbs, summer-fresh tomatoes, canned at their peak, are pureed and reduced creating a delicious concentrated flavor in the process. (3) Secret Sauce Ingredient! Our featured author recommends adding a tablespoon or two of butter in the final sauce-making steps. She’s right! What a wonderful addition to an already great sauce.

Cooking Fresh Pasta

(1) Keep fresh pasta in the refrigerator for up to two days, or frozen for up to one month. Dried pasta has a shelf life of up to two years.

(2) Use a large pot to cook the pasta, one that will hold a generous quantity of water and enough headspace to manage an energetic boil.

(3) Use plenty of water – 4 quarts of water for one pound of pasta. Bring the water to a rolling boil before adding the pasta.

(4) Salt the water. The cooking water should be “like the sea.” Start with about 1 teaspoon of coarse kosher salt per quart of water. This seems like a lot of salt, and it is, but most of this will be discarded when the pasta is drained.

(5) Add the fresh pasta to boiling water and gently stir a few times to prevent sticking. Return the water to a boil, then adjust the burner downward to maintain a boil while not allowing the pot to boil over.

(6) Stir occasionally while the pasta cooks to keep the pieces from sticking to each other or to the bottom of the pot. As fresh pasta cooks, it will float to the top – start testing for doneness.

(7) Fresh pasta cooks much more quickly than dried pasta. Like dried pasta, fresh pasta should be cooked al dente – “to the tooth” – tender, yet chewy, not at all mushy. Test the pasta frequently as it approaches completion.

(8) Do not rinse the pasta. A little starchy pasta water will help the sauce adhere to the pasta.

(9) Add hot, freshly cooked pasta to the sauce’s pan, and allow a minute or two of simmering in the sauce before serving. The pasta will absorb the sauce’s flavors and taste even better.

Semolina Cavatelli with Beef Ragu  Cavatelli feature a “sea shell” shape with a thickness that puts it into the dumpling category. Made with sturdy semolina flour, small chunks of dough turn into curled, nicely ridged pasta pieces ready to capture your favorite sauce! We chose a beef ragu for pairing with our handmade cavatelli. It’s a rich meat sauce where the flavors from the aromatics and brisket are coaxed gradually over time concentrating its tastiness. Of course, a topping of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano never disappoints!

Reprinted with permission from Pasta by Hand, A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta by Jenn Louis. Copyright 2015. Published by Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved. 
Forming the Pasta
Roll the dough into a 1/2-inch diameter rope. Cut 1/2-inch pieces.
Roll each piece down a ridged gnocchi board pressing in with your thumb as it curls.
Place on a semolina-dusted pan until ready to cook.

Pro Tips:
(1) Use All Semolina! This is another simple dough of just four ingredients, semolina flour, salt, olive oil, and water. Semolina is a coarser flour that absorbs water a bit slower, but produces a wonderful toothy pasta.
(2) Layers, Layers, More Layers! That’s how great sauce flavor is made – coaxing out the flavors layer by layer. Made in stages, the sauce develops. First the meat is seared and browned forming new flavors, then the aromatics are sautéed in oil releasing key, fat-soluble flavors. Finally, liquids are added and reduced through simmering resulting in a stew of wonderfully rich, concentrated flavors.
(3) Braise the Brisket! Usually a tougher cut of meat, braising the brisket tenderizes it into succulent submission. There are two ways to accomplish this for this ragu: (1) Braise a whole brisket, then chopped it up for the sauce, or (2) grind the brisket, then brown (or have your butcher grind it for you.)

Make and Cook Tasty Pasta!:

MARCATO ATLAS PASTA MAKER
Roll out perfect sheets of pasta with a pasta maker. Use whole sheets, or cut ribbons or threads. An Italian essential.

GNOCCHI BOARD
Evenly spaced grooves form sauce-loving ridges when making gnocchi, cavatelli and other handmade pastas.

CUCINA PRO CAVATELLI MAKER
Turn chunks of pasta dough into perfectly shaped cavatelli. A hand crank operates the whole process.

NORPRO PASTA DRYING RACK
Dry fresh pasta efficiently and evenly with a rack that allows the pasta to hang. Disassembles for storage.

ALL-CLAD 7 QT. PASTA PENTOLA
Pasta loves to cook in a generous amount of water – use a big pot! This one’s perfect for the task including a basket for lifting and draining.

ALL-CLAD PASTA LADLE
Scoop out cooked pasta quickly and easily. Ladle drains and its special design “captures” pasta strands.

FOX RUN RAVIOLI CUTTERS
Expand your pasta-making prowess into ravioli-making with these handy tools that cut and crimp dough.

Sugeli with Potatoes and Garlic  Reminescent of orecchetti, sugeli are little concave discs formed with one’s thumb in a simple, quick motion. The outer edges are thicker than the centers; they form little cups perfect for holding sauce. With this incarnation, the sauce is not saucy, but a thick concoction of garlic, butter, ricotta and potatoes. With these ingredients, how could this dish be anything but fabulous! In a pinch, make this dish with dried pasta -- you will still swoon! 

Reprinted with permission from Pasta by Hand, A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta by Jenn Louis. Copyright 2015. Published by Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA. All rights reserved. 
Forming the Pasta:
Roll the dough into a 1/2-inch diameter rope. Cut 1/2-inch pieces.
Press each piece with your thumb, making the center thinner than the edges.
Place on a semolina-dusted pan until ready to cook.

Pro Tips:
(1) Make Perfect Potatoes! Similar to potato salad, a little kind attention to the potatoes will yield better results. Choose smaller potatoes of similar sizes. Boil until just tender; do not overboil. Immediately cool the potatoes completely before slicing. While making the sauce, gently fold the potatoes instead of stirring.
(2) Choose the Flour! This pasta is made from standard all-purpose flour – nothing special here. However, if you use unbleached flour, the cooked pasta may have a slightly gray appearance. No big deal unless it bothers you, in which case, choose bleached all-purpose flour.
(3) Freeze Some for Later! Enjoy fresh pasta often by freezing some of the sugeli. Lay the sugeli in a single layer, place in the freezer. Once frozen, place the pieces in an airtight bag and return to the freezer. When ready, there’s no need to defrost, simply add the frozen pasta directly to boiling water and cook an extra minute.

COOKBOOK REVIEW:

Pasta by Hand,
A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta by Jenn Louis. Copyright 2015. Published by Chronicle Books, San Francisco, CA.
This new book is making a splash in the culinary world and for good reason. Reviewing this collection of delicious pasta and sauce recipes was a mouth-watering experience with every page turn. Ms. Louis has researched Italian kitchens and replicated authentic traditions making them accessible to all of us. The book is organized by the 20 different regions of Italy with each chapter showcasing local pasta customs. In doing so, we are not only treated to great, accessible recipes, but also gain a deeper understanding of pasta, the many varieties, and its culture of origin. A delicious journey awaits!