I had a bunch of spinach in the fridge that was looking a bit limp, so I decided to make some fresh pasta. I have a pasta roller/cutter attachment for my stand mixer, but you could use manual rollers.
Fresh Spinach Pasta
1 bunch of spinach steamed, or 1 package of frozen spinach thawed. Either way, chop up the spinach finely. I tried using a food mill, which wasn’t a huge success. A blender or food processor or determined knife wielder would work great.
3 eggs
2 1/2 cups of flour
I mixed the three ingredients together and added some of the spinach liquid to make the dough form a ball. I kneaded it by machine for 2 minutes and then by hand for another 1 minute. Let the dough rest for about 15 minutes.
Roll it and cut it. Divide the dough in 4 equal parts. Flatten one piece and feed it through the widest opening on the pasta roller and then fold in half and feed through again. Repeat this several times until the dough is nice and supple. I dust it with flour so it isn’t sticky at all. This helps prevent the pasta from sticking together when you cut it. I put each piece of dough through this and then set the roller to a thinner setting. I made fettucini, so I ended up on setting 5 of my kitchen aid roller. It’s a medium setting, which gives it a nice heft when you are eating it. You don’t have to fold the dough in half for the thinner settings – that’s just on the first setting.
I’m going to get some crushed tomatoes and make a simple tomato and garlic sauce. With a little grated parmesan it should be simple and pretty. Ever notice that Italian food and the Italian flag are the same colors? Coincidence? Nah.
