Flavored Pasta Dough-Homemade

By MJH

Ingredients

• COLOR THE PASTA:
• 1 2/3 cups Italian “00” flour (or half Italian “00” flour and half Farina di Semola)
• 2 medium or large eggs
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• A pinch of sea saltColor the pasta
• Spinach:
• Follow the Basic Pasta Dough recipe.
• Sift the flour onto a clean work surface.
• Next, puree 3/4 cup frozen cooked leaf spinach (squeezed to remove as much moisture as possible) in a food processor.
• Add it to the well in the flour.
• Continue as per the Basic Pasta Dough method.
• Tomato:
• Add 2 tablespoons tomato paste or sun-dried tomato paste to the well in the flour.
• Use 1 large egg instead of 2 medium ones.
• Continue as per the Basic Pasta Dough recipe.
• Beet Roast:
• 1 red beet until softened, about 45 minutes.
• Let cool.
• Peel and grate or puree in a food processor.
• Add 2 tablespoons grated cooked beet to the well in the flour.
• Use 1 large egg instead of 2 medium ones.
• Continue as per the Basic Pasta Dough recipe.
• Saffron:
• Soak 1 sachet of powdered saffron in 2 tablespoons hot water for 15 minutes.
• Strain the water, discarding the solids.
• Use 1 large egg instead of 2 medium ones and whisk with the vibrant saffron water before adding to the well in the flour.
• Continue as per the Basic Pasta Dough recipe.
• Herb:
• Add at least 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh green herbs to the well in the flour.
• Black squid ink pasta:
• Add 1 sachet squid ink to the eggs and whisk to combine before adding to the flour. A little extra flour may be needed.

Preparation

Step 1

Make the basic pasta dough
Sift the flour onto a clean work surface and make a well in the center with your fist.
Break the eggs into the well and add the oil and a pinch of salt to the well.
Gradually mix the egg mixture into the flour using the fingers of one hand, bringing the ingredients together into a firm dough.
If the dough feels too dry, add a few drops of water; if it’s too wet, add a little more flour. (You will soon grow accustomed to how the dough should feel after you’ve made it a few times.)
Knead the pasta until smooth, 2 to 5 minutes.
Lightly massage it with a hint of olive oil, pop the dough into a plastic food bag, and allow it to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. The pasta will be much more elastic after resting.

Start to feed the blob of pasta dough through the widest setting of a pasta machine.
As the sheet of dough comes out of the machine, fold it into thirds and then feed it through the rollers again, still on the widest setting.
Pass the dough through this setting a total of 4 or 5 times.
This effectively kneads the dough, ensuring the resulting pasta is silky smooth.
Pass the pasta through the machine again, starting at the widest setting and gradually reducing the settings, one pass at a time, until the pasta achieves the required thickness.