While many memories of childhood are related to family time spent in the kitchen, either preparing food or dining, one the most vivid involves learning to make homemade pasta from our fine dining Orlando experts. Nonna always wore an apron and made sure everyone’s hands were clean for the weekly Sunday pasta-making event.
The heavy pasta board was placed on the countertop. It was a large wooden board, probably 2’ by 3’, if not larger. A kitchen towel was placed under it to keep it from slipping around as the dough was mixed, kneaded and eventually rolled out by a well-floured rolling pin.
Three cups of all-purpose flour were sifted into a fluffy white mound in the middle of the board. A well was formed in the very center of the mound and four large, very fresh eggs were cracked into the well. (Today, I would recommend breaking the eggs one at a time into a separate bowl to ensure they are good and that no pieces of shell are evident.). A pinch of salt was sprinkled into the eggs and that was followed by a tablespoon of extra-virgin olive oil being sprinkled over the top of that luscious yellow color. Almost magically a fork would appear and ever so briskly, yet gently the eggs and oil were combined without disruption of the flour mound.
The real work began at this point. Bringing the flour from the outside up and over the well, the egg/oil combination started to blend. Always working from the outside into the center all of the flour was eventually incorporated into the mixture and a ball of dough was formed. Flour was sprinkled onto the board and the kneading began. Everyone took turns using their palms to push in and down and up. A full 8-12 minutes of kneading would turn the ball into a firm and smooth dough. Perfection! The dough ball was placed onto a plate, covered with a slightly damp towel and allowed to rest for about an hour.
After resting the dough, the board was sprinkled with flour again as was the rolling pin. The dough was cut into 3 or 4 sections and each section was rolled flat onto the board. The pasta was turned little by little to form a thin sheet about a sixteenth of an inch thick. If the pasta was destined to be made into shapes such as fettuccine or pappardelle, etc. when the desired thickness had been achieved, the sheet was placed on a lightly floured clean cloth and allowed to dry for 15 to 20 minutes before being cut into the shape desired.
If the pasta was going to be made into ravioli, then the dough was covered with an extremely lightly floured cloth, so the dough would not dry out while rolling out the rest of the sheets. Once all the dough was rolled out, it was immediately cut into squares or circles, filled and crimped into those marvelous little pillows filled with meat or cheese.
A huge pot of salted water was brought to a boil and ever so gently the fresh pasta (whatever the shape, stuffed or not) was dropped in. In just a few minutes, the pasta would float to the top indicating that it was finally ready to be added to a sauce and consumed by a very grateful family.
There is nothing that compares with the taste of fresh, homemade pasta. In today’s busy world when you find yourself craving a taste of the best and freshest handmade pasta by our fine dining Orlando experts, come dine with us at Christini’s Ristorante Italiano. Mangia!
