Blair P. Houghton wrote:

> Reg wrote:
>
>>Louis Cohen wrote:
>>
>>
>>>The posts from a few years ago found the pasta extruder uniformly
>>>lousy. The pasta roller and cutter attachments, however, work fine.
>>
>>Seconded. The rollers are outstanding, the extruders almost
>>ruined my motor.
>
>
> I noticed it was bogging down at first, but got much more peppy in the
> middle. I think it needs the dough to be slightly warmed, or a little
> moister. This recipe (110g or 3/4 level cups AP flour, one x-large AA
> egg, a teaspoon or so of water) didn't include salt, though most do;
> and I wonder if the salt has some chemical purpose in modulating the
> stiffness.
>
> How do you make extruded shapes like spaghetti and macaroni without
> extrusion equipment?
>

You can't, though you can theoretically roll
spaghetti by hand. It's not something I go for.

> Also, on playing around a bit, I realized that the toys are just that,
> and anyone can make orecchietti, cavatelli, gnocchetti, or troffietti*
> without so much as a rolling pin. Just pinch off a bit of dough and
> apply fingers.

Another suggestion: experiment with different flour mixes. I like
to mix in things like buckwheat, chickpea flour, etc.

--
Reg