Siena, With One ‘N’ Like the City in Italy | Basic Pasta Dough
It would be funnier if you knew how often I have to say the title of this article out loud. Pretty much whenever I introduce myself, or whenever I hear my husband do so, this is how it has to go. “Yes, like the city, not the minivan.”
We are Italian. I was Italian before we married, too, so I feel like I’m allowed to speak on behalf of pasta-from-scratch. It’s a matter of pride in old-school Italian families, especially near the Philadelphia and New York areas of the East Coast. We know our pasta, we love our pasta and we take our recipes seriously.
This recipe is a basic, standard and simple pasta dough for any purpose. You can roll it out and die-cut it into pasta, make sheets for ravioli or roll it into manicotti or cannelloni. If you add flavor to the dough, your pasta will carry that flavor to the final plate. And if you use more or less semolina, your pasta will have a smoother or coarser, nutty texture.
My father and I made pasta from scratch on most of the weekends we spent together, either in a pile on the counter or in our Ronco-style pasta machine. We mostly cut it into spaghetti or linguine. We’d also make gnocchi sometimes, which I’ll make for the YouTube channel at some point, I promise!
My great-grandfather on my mother’s side used to make pasta from scratch every Sunday after church, from what I understand. I was very young when he passed, but from the stories told, every surface in the kitchen was covered in flour and drying pasta strands for hours. And he seriously believed that not eating spaghetti made you sick. I told you I was Italian.
In any case, I certainly hope you keep this recipe handy. You probably won’t make your own pasta from scratch every week like Pop-Pop-Pop did but it’s a great way to teach kids how to cook on a basic level with cheap ingredients. Customize your ravioli fillings and enjoy creating food from scratch in an age where everything’s already done for you.
And let me know how you do. Remember, it’s Chef Jill Siena, one ‘n’ like the city in Italy.
Basic Pasta Dough
Use this dough to create your own manicotti, ravioli and die-cut pastas. Freeze made dough, wrapped tight, if you need to.
Ingredients
1 1/3 cup semolina flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
Dash salt
½ cup water
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp. good olive oil
Directions
- In a large bowl or on a large flat surface, pour flours and salt; mix together with hands or a fork.
- Form the flour mixture into a mound with a large well in the center.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the water, yolks and oil until thoroughly mixed.
- Add to well in middle of flour mixture. Gradually incorporate wet into the dry with a fork or your hands to form a flaky dough.
- Form dough into a ball and knead for 10-15 minutes or until smooth and dough is elastic.
- Wrap gently in plastic wrap and let sit 30-45 minutes to relax gluten.
-Roll out into sheets then either form ravioli, cut and roll into manicotti shells or die-cut into pasta shapes of your choice. Allow cut pastas to dry at room temperature 15-20 minutes before cooking or packaging and freezing.
(Makes about 1 ½ lbs. dough, about 8 servings)
Nutrition: (based on chef’s preparation; your data may vary slightly | per serving)
Calories = 201; Total Fat = 5g; Cholesterol = 52mg; Sodium = 22mg; Total Carb = 32.4g; Fiber = 1.5g; Sugars = 0g; Protein = 5.8g.
Reduce Fat and Cholesterol by: omit yolks; add 2 egg whites and 1 extra tbsp. olive oil instead
Make it Vegan by: replacing egg with 2 extra tbsp. water and 1 extra tbsp. olive oil
What kind of pasta did you decide to make with your dough? Tell me below!