Fresh pasta is probably the most important ingredient in Italian cuisine, and is actually much easier to make than most people think.
I want to share with you the basics of making the perfect pasta dough, which you can translate into so many shapes and sizes (check out our guide). Bologna is the city in Italy that is the most famous for pasta. Long, short, filled, flat, twisted, you name it, they make it, and each variety has a specific purpose.
Spaghetti, linguine, fettucine, penne, ziti, bucatini, cannelloni, farfalle, fusilli, pappardelle, orecchiette, ravioli, tortellini are just some of the hundreds of pasta shapes that you can make when you know how to make the perfect dough.
Start with the best ingredients—fresh eggs, imported Italian “00” flour, and water… it only takes 3 ingredients, a rolling pin and your hands! If you have a stand mixer, pasta roller and shaper it will save you time and create the smoothest dough. With this recipe I will make pappardelle, a flat noodle that is larger than fettucine and is a perfect pasta for hearty meat and vegetable sauces. So let’s get rolling and make fresh pasta!
Which recipes use fresh pasta? Here’s some examples: