Cookaholics Bulletin Board

I am on a bit of a homemade pasta kick, having finally gotten the technique down for rolling homemade pasta as thin as it needs to go (thank you YouTube). However, I find I have the best luck when I rest the dough for a full hour after kneading, which is impractical for us on a weeknight. I get home from work at around 6:30 or 7:00 pm and we wouldn't eat until much too late if I made fresh pasta for dinner.

So, does anyone one have any tips or ideas on how to make this feasible? I assume that I can't make the dough in the morning and leave it in plastic wrap on the counter (my house gets into the high 80's during the day when we aren't home this time of year) until I get home because I use egg in my dough. Mixing it and putting it into the fridge will probably take as long to warm up as it would a fresh made dough to rest. I could put it into a cooler with an ice pack so it doesn't get too hot or too cold, but wouldn't that just prolong the time in the "danger zone"?

I could make it ahead and dry it, but that isn't what I am after. I really prefer the fresh made dough, I just can't figure out a way to make the timing work. Any ideas or should I just keep fresh pasta dishes for the weekend?

Thanks,

--Lisa

PS, Duck confit ravioli is now on the list as soon as I source some reasonably priced duck legs. YUM!

Pasta dough does need resting, there is no question.

Pasta also freezes really well, so you can make and roll and cut and freeze, taking out as needed.

I typically do not make egg pasta because I want the dough to be flexible enough to last for a few days without turning color. I use a combo of semolina and bread flour with water, salt and (if desired) another element, such as spinach. The dough holds really well, and can be rolled out after a large amount of time in the fridge.

That's a good option if you don't want to freeze.

Amy

Lisa,

I roll out my pasta directly from the the fridge. No need for you to wait for it to warm up.

Amy - thanks, I have always used half semolina, half 00 flour, egg and a pinch of salt. If you can send me the proportions to try with water, I will try it!

Josh - do you roll your pasta by hand? I am using a board and a rolling pin and I just *a$$sumed* that it would be too hard to roll cold dough. I will give it a try if it really is doable.

I keep thinking about a pasta machine or the kitchenaid attachment but really, for the two of us it is pretty easy to roll out by hand and then I don't have something else to clean.

Thank you!

--Lisa

Lisa,

Basically I do a 4-to-1 ration of semolina/flour to water with appropriate amount of salt. I typically do 3/4 flour and 1/4 semolina, but it depends on the application. And, your level of water may vary dramatically from mine, as you live in a very humid environment, and I in a very dry one.

The key is the autolyse. Just get the flour semolina and water mixture to hydrated in your mixer with a dough hook, and then rest for 20 minutes. Finish mixing (adding more flour or water to get to a slightly tacky state). You can roll out from there, making sure to fold the dough with some more flour in the first few roll-outs.

Hope that makes sense.

Amy

Hi Amy,

Thanks, I'll give it a try at some point. I pre-mix my semolina and 00 50-50 so I will probably use that ratio 4:1 with water. And you are right that it won't need as much water as yours does. Pie crust too me forever to master when I was younger because it was always too wet when made exactly following a recipe.

Thanks,

--Lisa

Lisa,

No, I have a Kitchenaid pasta roller attachment. It would be harder to roll out cold pasta dough by hand; I'm not sure how much harder.

I just heard some la-de-da chef talking about how hand rolling pasta was better than using an extruder as it left more air pockets or some such thing. I have a dump everything in, turn on a knob machine and I think that is darn good, when I take the time to get it out. Respect to you, Lisa, for rolling out dough on a weeknight!

Mary

Would you respect me less because I have a KitchenAid to do the heavy mixing? Also, my KA is right up against a wall, so I would have to pull it out, unplug it and move it elsewhere to use the attachment, which makes it a lot less desirable of a project. And if I was cooking for more than two I probably wouldn't want to do it.

--Lisa

Thanks, I suspected so. But that might be a reason to get the attachment and move the machine from time to time.

--Lisa