I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
really is:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c

Anthony

"Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message
...
>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
> really is:
>
> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c
>

My sister used to make this regularly, and I can tell you, it is just that
involved. The end product, to me, was so-so. It never seemed to be
al dente, though her cooking times were low.

I cannot imagine going through all that for pasta.

I might do it for some special, say, spinach or beet pasta. But probably
not as long as someone was selling it somewhere.

On Mar 1, 9:53*am, Anthony Ferrante >
wrote:
> I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
> crap.

Where the effort/reward tipping point falls differs for everyone, I
suppose. I agree with you with two exceptions. Homemade egg noodles
are not much trouble and vastly superior to store bought dried egg
noodles, so if I make a stew or braise or soup that I want egg noodles
with I just add in the time to make the noodles when I plan the meal.
And stuffed pasta like ravioli just has to be freshly made. If I
don't feel up to the effort we just eat something else.

You say you've never made fresh pasta, you say, so I would suggest
that you remember that time and effort decrease as experience and
skill grow. You may eventually change your mind about this. -aem

"cybercat" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message
> ...
>>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
>> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
>> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
>> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
>> really is:
>>
>> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c
>>
>
> My sister used to make this regularly, and I can tell you, it is just that
> involved. The end product, to me, was so-so. It never seemed to be
> al dente, though her cooking times were low.
>
> I cannot imagine going through all that for pasta.
>
> I might do it for some special, say, spinach or beet pasta. But probably
> not as long as someone was selling it somewhere.
>

You know what is so funny - I've been planning to make fresh-raviolli for
the first time - using a very similar pasta machine for the first time -
since before Christmas. But I'd put-off trying it because I was utterly
intimidated because I'd never done any of it before. Then I watched the
video and all I could think was 'that looks sooo easy - and hardly any work
at all.' So I'll be buying some veal tonight for the filling and making it
tomorrow.

<grin>

Maybe I'll feel differently in a few days. But right now that video segment
fills me with a sense of hope and confidence, not dread.

MJB

aem wrote:
> On Mar 1, 9:53 am, Anthony Ferrante >
> wrote:
>> I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
>> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
>> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
>> crap.
>
> Where the effort/reward tipping point falls differs for everyone, I
> suppose. I agree with you with two exceptions. Homemade egg noodles
> are not much trouble and vastly superior to store bought dried egg
> noodles, so if I make a stew or braise or soup that I want egg noodles
> with I just add in the time to make the noodles when I plan the meal.
> And stuffed pasta like ravioli just has to be freshly made. If I
> don't feel up to the effort we just eat something else.
>
> You say you've never made fresh pasta, you say, so I would suggest
> that you remember that time and effort decrease as experience and
> skill grow. You may eventually change your mind about this. -aem

I like fresh noodles. I often make fresh knife cut noodles and they are
well worth the little work to do them. One of my favorite are lamian
(hand pulled noodles) in a good mutton soup but I haven't quite
perfected making them.

"Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message
...
>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
> really is:
>
> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c

Fresh pasta is really easy to make. I never had a pasta machine. I just
made it by hand. You can also buy fresh pasta at the grocery store.

On Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:47:12 -0500, George >
wrote:

>aem wrote:
>> On Mar 1, 9:53 am, Anthony Ferrante >
>> wrote:
>>> I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
>>> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
>>> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
>>> crap.
>>
>> Where the effort/reward tipping point falls differs for everyone, I
>> suppose. I agree with you with two exceptions. Homemade egg noodles
>> are not much trouble and vastly superior to store bought dried egg
>> noodles, so if I make a stew or braise or soup that I want egg noodles
>> with I just add in the time to make the noodles when I plan the meal.
>> And stuffed pasta like ravioli just has to be freshly made. If I
>> don't feel up to the effort we just eat something else.
>>
>> You say you've never made fresh pasta, you say, so I would suggest
>> that you remember that time and effort decrease as experience and
>> skill grow. You may eventually change your mind about this. -aem
>
>I like fresh noodles. I often make fresh knife cut noodles

Do you mean the things that are also called hand-shaved noodles? If
so, would you post your recipe?

"Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message
...
>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
> really is:
>
> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c
>
> Anthony
>
It's different; it's much better; it's a pain to make.
In the San Francisco Bay Area we can buy excellent fresh pasta. It changes
the dish, almost always in a positive way.
Look around to see if anyone in your area is making it for sale.

Kent

cybercat > wrote:

>"Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message

>>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
>> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
>> stuff from the store

>My sister used to make this regularly, and I can tell you, it is just that
>involved. The end product, to me, was so-so. It never seemed to be
>al dente, though her cooking times were low.

Yes, that would be the main problem with fresh pasta -- it's too
soft for dishes that are better with al dente pasta.

Try making macaroni and cheese with fresh pasta and having it
not come out a globular mess.

Steve

On Sun, 2 Mar 2008 01:28:59 +0000 (UTC), (Steve
Pope) wrote:


>Yes, that would be the main problem with fresh pasta -- it's too
>soft for dishes that are better with al dente pasta.
>
>Try making macaroni and cheese with fresh pasta and having it
>not come out a globular mess.
>
>Steve

What a lot of folks seem to forget is that some pasta dishes are
actually better with dried pasta. Even such noted cooks as Marcella
Hazan, and Lidia Bastianich say that both have their purposes in that
some pasta dishes should be made with fresh pasta, and others with
dried. Sometimes it doesn't matter.

Christine

Anthony Ferrante wrote:
>
> I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
> really is:
>
> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c
>
> Anthony

I can't watch the video on this machine, but I can tell you that making
fresh pasta is not at all difficult once you've done it a couple times,
and fresh pasta is quite a bit better than dried in most dishes, mac and
cheese being a possible exception.

On Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:47:12 -0500, George
> wrote:

> One of my favorite are lamian
>(hand pulled noodles) in a good mutton soup but I haven't quite
>perfected making them.

Howdy,

What do you add to the dough to allow for the stretch?

I had experimented with this a while back but have gotten
away from it.

Thanks,
--
Kenneth

If you email... Please remove the "SPAMLESS."

>>
>
>You know what is so funny - I've been planning to make fresh-raviolli for
>the first time - using a very similar pasta machine for the first time -

If you want to make ravioli, check out Youtube again. Is there
anything that is not there? Anyway, go here and scroll down and check
out the videos:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=57OloQdbRYM&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=uz9X68h3dpE&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=dufoH9mFEeE&feature=related


http://youtube.com/watch?v=-P2jjUBGYFA&feature=related (fresh pasta.
This video is cool!!)

"cybercat" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
>
> "Anthony Ferrante" > wrote in message
> ...
>>I have never had freshly made pasta noodles, but after watching all
>> the time and effort it takes to make it, I think I will stick with the
>> stuff from the store, Of course, the better brands, not the cheap
>> crap. This video from Youtube showed me how involved the process
>> really is:
>>
>> http://youtube.com/watch?v=_5PMUKP5E9c
>>
>
> My sister used to make this regularly, and I can tell you, it is just that
> involved. The end product, to me, was so-so. It never seemed to be
> al dente, though her cooking times were low.
>
> I cannot imagine going through all that for pasta.
>

I didn't see that video because I am on dialup, but I teach pasta making all
the time, using the rolling machines. It's all in practicing so you know
how much of each step is enough. Once you are experienced, it's just as
easy as say, mincing onion. I can start with flour and an egg and have
cooked noodles on my plate in 12 minutes flat. Obviously if I am making
more than 2 portions it takes longer, but not 12 minutes per egg.

If it isn't al dente it's overcooked, period, possibly under kneaded as
well. Is your sister running it through the largest space 10 to 12 times,
folding between rollings? Is the pasta cooking more than 1.5 minutes or
just until it floats to the top of the water?

In the typical Italian kitchen it is merely 100 g of 00 soft wheat flour,
one egg and a pinch of salt, mixed and kneaded by hand and rolled out either
by hand which takes longer or using the little machine. The water is
waiting, the saucing is ready and voila! It's obvious that the quality of
flour and egg are everything here.

Making ravioli or other stuffed pastas is a bit more complicated, but not
that much with experience. The first time you do these things of course it
seems touchy, but didn't making a pie crust or bread also seem hard at the
time?

--
http://www.judithgreenwood.com

"Christine Dabney" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
> On Sun, 2 Mar 2008 01:28:59 +0000 (UTC), (Steve
> Pope) wrote:
>
>
>>Yes, that would be the main problem with fresh pasta -- it's too
>>soft for dishes that are better with al dente pasta.
>>
>>Try making macaroni and cheese with fresh pasta and having it
>>not come out a globular mess.
>>
>>Steve
>
> What a lot of folks seem to forget is that some pasta dishes are
> actually better with dried pasta. Even such noted cooks as Marcella
> Hazan, and Lidia Bastianich say that both have their purposes in that
> some pasta dishes should be made with fresh pasta, and others with
> dried. Sometimes it doesn't matter.
>
> Christine

The two pastas taste different! How could they not with an egg in there?
Some dishes are not good with that egg flavor, some need it.

Also, egg pasta is made with soft wheat flour usually so it won't take the
long cooking in the oven. Dried pasta is made with durum wheat and has a
lot more stretch to it, so you can boil it and then bake it and it will
still look like itself.

Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest of
tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be the
lightest not the most rib sticking.
--
http://www.judithgreenwood.com

On Sun, 2 Mar 2008 11:18:21 +0100, "Giusi" >
wrote:

snippage of conversation
>
>Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest of
>tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be the
>lightest not the most rib sticking.

One of my favorite restaurants is Cafe Mediterraneo.
http://kokoscorner.typepad.com/mycor..._to_bring.html

They have a lasagna like how you describe. I haven't had that yet but
my friend loves it. The sheets of pasta are sooooo thin and there's a
minimum amount of sauce. It's a vegetarian lasagna and they use a
bechamel rather than tomato sauce.
I keep meaning to order it but have fallen in love with the Tutto Mari
and the artichoke pizza. I'll try it next time.

koko
---
http://www.kokoscorner.typepad.com
updated 2/24
"There is no love more sincere than the love of food"
George Bernard Shaw

Giusi > wrote:

>"Christine Dabney" > ha scritto nel messaggio

>> (Steve Pope) wrote:

>>>Yes, that would be the main problem with fresh pasta -- it's too
>>>soft for dishes that are better with al dente pasta.
>>>
>>>Try making macaroni and cheese with fresh pasta and having it
>>>not come out a globular mess.

>> What a lot of folks seem to forget is that some pasta dishes are
>> actually better with dried pasta. Even such noted cooks as Marcella
>> Hazan, and Lidia Bastianich say that both have their purposes in that
>> some pasta dishes should be made with fresh pasta, and others with
>> dried. Sometimes it doesn't matter.

> The two pastas taste different! How could they not with an egg
> in there? Some dishes are not good with that egg flavor, some need it.

Just as a datapoint, not all fresh pasta contains egg. The
fresh pasta shop local to me (Phoenix, in Berkeley) makes whole-wheat,
eggless, vegan pasta. I buy it frequently.

Steve

In article >,
"Giusi" > wrote:

> In the typical Italian kitchen it is merely 100 g of 00 soft wheat flour,

Judith, is soft wheat flour the same as America's all-purpose flour or
is it cake flour? Or is it just *not* semolina?

--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; I Think I've Seen it All, 2/24/2008

In article >,
"Giusi" > wrote:

> Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest of
> tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be the
> lightest not the most rib sticking.

I had that type of lasagne in Tuscany. It was heavenly. I love pasta
and the thin sheets used in the layering were so good! The sauce not
thick and meaty. Cheese only on top as you say. Ah, sweet memories.

--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; I Think I've Seen it All, 2/24/2008

In article >,
wrote:
> One of my favorite restaurants is Cafe Mediterraneo.
> http://kokoscorner.typepad.com/mycor..._to_bring.html
>
> They have a lasagna like how you describe. I haven't had that yet but
> my friend loves it. The sheets of pasta are sooooo thin and there's a
> minimum amount of sauce. It's a vegetarian lasagna and they use a
> bechamel rather than tomato sauce.

You must! Do!
>
> koko
> ---

--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; I Think I've Seen it All, 2/24/2008

On Sun, 02 Mar 2008 10:35:06 -0800, wrote:

>On Sun, 2 Mar 2008 11:18:21 +0100, "Giusi" >
>wrote:
>
>snippage of conversation
>>
>>Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest of
>>tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be the
>>lightest not the most rib sticking.
>
>One of my favorite restaurants is Cafe Mediterraneo.
>http://kokoscorner.typepad.com/mycor..._to_bring.html

Wow, those pics sure made me hungry! While all the food looked
delicious, I really liked the Caesar Salad. It looked tasty and
simple, and like you said, it wasn't swimming in dressing. Nice.

The rigatoni dish looked equally good. I would have loved to taste
that! In fact, everything looked real good.

Thanks for sharing.
Anthony






>
>They have a lasagna like how you describe. I haven't had that yet but
>my friend loves it. The sheets of pasta are sooooo thin and there's a
>minimum amount of sauce. It's a vegetarian lasagna and they use a
>bechamel rather than tomato sauce.
>I keep meaning to order it but have fallen in love with the Tutto Mari
>and the artichoke pizza. I'll try it next time.
>
>koko
>---
>http://www.kokoscorner.typepad.com
>updated 2/24
>"There is no love more sincere than the love of food"
> George Bernard Shaw

>>
>It's different; it's much better; it's a pain to make.
>In the San Francisco Bay Area we can buy excellent fresh pasta. It changes
>the dish, almost always in a positive way.
>Look around to see if anyone in your area is making it for sale.
>
>Kent
>
I will look to see if anyone has it for sale. I have decided that it
is too much work, at least for me. I will just continue to buy dry as
I have always done.

I usually buy the De Cecco brand. I have always found it to be quite
good, plus I saw it being used on The Sopranos. Carmella wouldn't
serve Tony just anything, would she...

http://www.rosafoods.com/dececco.html


Anthony

In article >,
Melba's Jammin' > wrote:
>In article >,
> "Giusi" > wrote:
>
>> In the typical Italian kitchen it is merely 100 g of 00 soft wheat flour,
>
>Judith, is soft wheat flour the same as America's all-purpose flour or
>is it cake flour? Or is it just *not* semolina?

I'm not Judith, but I know that 00 wheat flour is different from both
American all-purpose (which has a lot of "hard" wheat in it) and cake flour -
more "gluteny" than cake flour.

King Arthur Flour sells it, and can probably tell you much more about the
specific differences, but it's probably tough to find on store
shelves here (while it's probably widely available in Italy). I suspect
you could use a mix of regular US and cake flour to approximate it (if you
didn't want to just work out how to do it with regular flour).

(Of course now I'm wondering if, say, a mix of King Arthur and White Lily
would do the trick, but I can't get White Lily on my grocery shelves,
either.

Charlotte

--

"Melba's Jammin'" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> "Giusi" > wrote:
>
>> Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest
>> of
>> tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be
>> the
>> lightest not the most rib sticking.
>
> I had that type of lasagne in Tuscany. It was heavenly. I love pasta
> and the thin sheets used in the layering were so good! The sauce not
> thick and meaty. Cheese only on top as you say. Ah, sweet memories.

When I lived in CA, I could get some spinach and cheese ravioli that was
made with really thin sheets of pasta. You could almost see through it. I
loved that stuff because for the carb count, I could eat a lot more of it
than I could the regular kind.

"Melba's Jammin'" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
> In article >,
> "Giusi" > wrote:
>
>> In the typical Italian kitchen it is merely 100 g of 00 soft wheat flour,
>
> Judith, is soft wheat flour the same as America's all-purpose flour or
> is it cake flour? Or is it just *not* semolina?
>
> --
> -Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ

It may be a little lower in protein than US all purpose, but takes the place
of it. 00 is fine ground, 0 a little less fine, but both are the same wheat
and both work for pasta.
--
http://www.judithgreenwood.com

"Melba's Jammin'" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
> In article >,
> "Giusi" > wrote:
>
>> Lasagna in my neighborhood is thinnest sheets of egg pasta with lightest
>> of
>> tomato sauces and a sprinkling of cheese. Cooks vie to see whose can be
>> the
>> lightest not the most rib sticking.
>
> I had that type of lasagne in Tuscany. It was heavenly. I love pasta
> and the thin sheets used in the layering were so good! The sauce not
> thick and meaty. Cheese only on top as you say. Ah, sweet memories.
>
> --
> -Barb, Mother Superior,

Here's something you might like. Roll the pasta out as thin as possible, to
the highest number. When making the last topping sheet, take one ultrathin
sheet, lay washed and dried fresh herb leaves on it and lay another sheet
over, then run it through the roller one last time. Put that on the top of
the lasagna. It's gorgeous.

--
http://www.judithgreenwood.com

"Charlotte L. Blackmer" > ha scritto nel messaggio
...
> In article >,
>>Judith, is soft wheat flour the same as America's all-purpose flour or
>>is it cake flour? Or is it just *not* semolina?
>
> I'm not Judith, but I know that 00 wheat flour is different from both
> American all-purpose (which has a lot of "hard" wheat in it) and cake
> flour -
> more "gluteny" than cake flour.
> (Of course now I'm wondering if, say, a mix of King Arthur and White Lily
> would do the trick, but I can't get White Lily on my grocery shelves,
> either.
>
> Charlotte

Really, for making pasta and pizza don't bother. For decades before I moved
here I used plain all purpose flour and never had a single problem. For no
egg I used semolina with a bit of oil and that was no problem either.

Homemade egg pasta is mommy food here. No one goes to enormous trouble.
They spend much more time getting it rolled really thin and delicate than on
anything else. My neighbors tend to make it up when the eggs are over
plentiful or when tradition demands stuffed pastas.

--
http://www.judithgreenwood.com

In article >,
"Giusi" > wrote:

> Here's something you might like. Roll the pasta out as thin as possible, to
> the highest number. When making the last topping sheet, take one ultrathin
> sheet, lay washed and dried fresh herb leaves on it and lay another sheet
> over, then run it through the roller one last time. Put that on the top of
> the lasagna. It's gorgeous.

Thanks, Judith. Fine Cooking magazine had instructions for doing that
some years back. I think they used flat-leaf parsley. I've never done
it but, strangely, have been thinking about it for a while (maybe
because of all the egg noodles I've made and all the use the machine has
been getting).
--
-Barb, Mother Superior, HOSSSPoJ
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com; I Think I've Seen it All, 2/24/2008