The egg and flour phenomenon..a guide to making your own pasta

To make pasta from scratch and no it does not mean that you have to buy a package of pasta and scratch the label. What you need are simply two things, pasta flour and egg yolks. For the flour, you can use all-purpose flour that can be found in the grocery or tough flour. I recommend using durum wheat semolina often called semolina/wheat flour since it contains a lot of protein which gives a fuller flavour. As for the egg, you can use whole eggs but if you want your pasta to be of good quality then by all means use the yolks only. I usually keep the whites for omelettes or meringue.

Moving on, to make your noodles, start with creating a well at the center of the flour. Add the yolks and gently mix with the flour until incorporated. If you think it takes a lot of effort then my only advise is to do it in a heavy duty food processor or mixer. Start at the lowest speed setting until ingredients are mixed to avoid flour dust from flying off and build up the speed until the dough easily comes off the equipment. Make sure that the bowl is clean when taking the mixture out. If not then let the mixer do its job for a couple more minutes. Ratio of flour to egg: 1cup flour; 2 medium egg yolks.

The job does not end there, the next step is to knead the dough with your bare hands. First step is to sprinkle a thin layer of flour on the prep table and knead the mixture on top of it. Gradually add flour if the dough is too moist. Work the dough for about 8-10 minutes or until desired consistency is achieved. It should be smooth and elastic at the same time. The warmth of your hands helps to break down the protein in the flour making it smooth and elastic. Cover with cling wrap or put inside a clean plastic bag and seal so it does not dry out. Let it rest at room temperature (20minutes) or put in the fridge until ready to use. I would advise you to use it within three days to be able to enjoy the quality.

To make your noodles, take the dough out of its wrap and divide into desired sizes. Roll it out with a rolling pin before feeding into the pasta machine. If you don't own a pasta machine, then use a rolling pin (some kitchen nowadays uses a 1.5 ft. PVC pipe which I won't recommend) flatten the dough until the desired thinness is achieved. From there you can make varieties of noodles such as spaghetti, lasagna, cannelloni, tortellini, tagliatelli, ravioli, etc.

One advantage of using fresh pasta for restaurants is that it only takes around four to five minutes to cook. Fresh pasta provides more flavour and can be as well stored long enough by air drying. Here in Baguio city, it is rare to see restaurants that serve fresh pasta. This explains why some are soggy due to overcooking. The quality is rather not at par and culinary art is totally ignored. Though I am still hoping that someday, the passion of cooking among the local chefs would come back.

Just a simple recipe:
1 cup cooked spaghetti
2tsp butter
1tsp mixture of chopped chervil and chives
1/2 tsp pureed garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Procedure: melt butter in a pan over medium heat, add the pasta and heat thoroughly, add the garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant add the herbs turn off the heat, mix well and season to taste. The dish can be eaten as it is but you can add your own tomato or white sauce if you wish. I enjoy this dish served with beef stroganoff or pan fried tilapia with creamed spinach. Yummy.