How to Make Homemade Pasta

 Making homemade pasta is easier than you think: just a few simple ingredients and a little work, and you'll have fresh homemade pasta your family is going to love.

With help from our grandson Tyler, who loves to bake and cook, we made this fresh pasta on a Saturday for Sunday dinner.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs
• 6 to 8 tablespoons of cold water (or more if needed)

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl or on your countertop, add the flour and create a well in the middle.
2. Add the eggs in the middle and begin working the flour into the eggs.
3. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, as needed to bring the dough together. 

The pasta dough will look like this. You want the dough firm, not too wet. Cut small pieces and flatten with a rolling pin. Now we use our Atlas pasta machine or, if you have a KitchenAid Stand mixer, the pasta attachment is perfect.

We ran the flattened dough through the Atlas rollers on the number 2 setting. The second time through, we set the knob on the left-hand side to 4 to roll the dough to our desired thickness. Lay these out onto a floured surface.

Now it was time to cut the pasta. We ran the dough through the machine's wide cutters, then laid the pasta on a floured surface to dry.

My grandmother made these all by hand, with no machine. She made the dough, rolled it, flattened it, and cut it by hand, and they were perfect every time. 

Today it's a little easier with the Atlas pasta machine or the KitchenAid pasta attachment.

MARCATO Atlas 150 Classic Manual Pasta Maker Machine, Made in Italy, Chrome Steel with Black Hand Crank. Makes Lasagna, Fettuccine & Tagliolini. Made in Italy3PCS Pasta Maker Attachment for KitchenAid Stand Mixers, Stainless Steel Pasta Roller with Spaghetti & Fettuccine Cutter, 8 Adjustable Thickness Compatible with All KitchenAid Mixers

 

Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms with Spinach and Artichoke Hearts

 Last week, Fran came home from the grocery store with four beautiful portobello mushrooms. We stuffed these with a combination of veggies and cheese for a delicious meal.

These were easy to make, and we had them as a main dish. We had four mushrooms, and I could hardly finish the second one. So, four of these could easily feed four people.

Ingredients:

• 4 portobello mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 of a large onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, chopped
• 1 package frozen spinach (thawed and squeezed dry)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella (divided)
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Mushroom stems, finely chopped

Instructions:

1. Remove the stems from the mushrooms and finely chop them. Scrape the gills from the underside of the mushrooms.
2. Brush both sides of the mushrooms with olive oil and place the cap-side down on a greased cookie sheet. Roast for 10 minutes at 425 degrees.
3. In a non-stick skillet, heat one tablespoon of olive oil. Add the onions, garlic, red bell pepper, and mushroom stems. Stir and cook until these are tender, about 6 minutes.
4. In a bowl, mix the cream cheese and sour cream with a hand mixer. Fold in the cooked mixture, artichoke hearts, drained spinach,1/2 mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Flip the mushrooms and fill them with the mixture. Top off with mozzarella cheese.
6. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, until the cheese is browned.

These made a meal for Fran and me all by themselves. You could also serve these as an appetizer if you cut into smaller pieces.

David Burke GeoClad Ceramic Hybrid Non-Stick 10Nordic Ware Naturals 3 Piece Set - USA Made Aluminum Commercial Quality Sheet Pan for Baking or Roasting, Encapsulated Galvanized Steel Rim Prevents Warping; Half Sheet, Jelly Roll and Quarter Sheet