Nests of freshly made  Fettuccine Pasta

“Straw and Hay”  Spinach and Egg Pasta

Once you have eaten freshly made pasta you can never go back!  The delicate pasta practically melts in your mouth and does not leave you with a  feeling of heaviness. It does, however, leave you feeling “Heavenly”.

The process is a bit time-consuming but I find it to be a very relaxing and comforting pastime that evokes such pleasant memories of my days working at Ristorante Pastore.  In  Italy it is customary for the “Nona” of the family to make  Pasta on a daily basis to feed her family.  The recipe for basic pasta in my cookbook comes from Nona Maria Pastore that I learned to make while cooking at our family’s restaurant, Ristorante Pastore.  It was truly one of New Orleans’ finest Northern Italian restaurants.  Pastore’s Pasta recipes start on page 90.  Their famous sauces start on page 86.

Lasagna Bolognese

Just a note about the ingredients.  I always use large eggs at room temperature.  The pasta can be made with all purpose flour or half all purpose and half semolina.  Semolina is readily available at most large grocery stores or specialty stores, usually in the Organic Food section.  Also, I like my pasta pretty thin so I will process it down to the last or second to last setting.  I also place a cotton tablecloth on my dining table, lightly sprinkle with flour and use this to lay my pasta sheets on it to dry slightly until ready to run through the cutter.

…a mangiare….buon appetito…….until next time, Chiqui