Pasta Making

The Art of Pasta Making - WC Culinary Symposium 

Bella Dona dei Sorci 

Libro De Arte Coquinaria Maestro Martino da Como 

“Per fare maccaroni romaneschi. Piglia de la farina che sia bella, et distemperala et fa' la pasta un pocho più grossa che quella de le lasagne, et avoltola intorno ad un bastone. Et dapoi caccia fore il bastone, et tagliala la pasta larga un dito piccolo, et resterà in modo de bindelle, overo stringhe. Et mitteli accocere in brodo grasso, overo in acqua secundo il tempo. Et vole bollire quando gli metti accocere. Et se tu gli coci in acqua mettevi del butiro frescho, et pocho sale. Et como sonno cotti mittili in piattelli con bono caso, et butiro, et spetie dolci.” 

For making roman maccheroni, 

Take some flour that is beautiful, and dissolve it to make a pasta a little thicker than the one used for lasagne, and roll it around a stick. And later thrust out the stick, and cut the dough a small finger width, so it remains in the shape of ribs, or strings. And put them in a fatty broth to cook, or in water, depending on if you have time. And you want it boiling when you put it in. And if you cook it in water, put in some fresh butter, and a little salt. And serve them as mussels, in small dishes with good cheeses, butter, and sweet spices.

-Translation by Bella Dona dei Sorci 

“Per fare maccheroni in altro modo. Fa' la pasta nel modo sopraditto. Et similemente li farrai cocere mettendogli li fornimenti sopra scripti facendo la pasta un pocho più grossa et tagliata molto menuta et sottile; et si chiamano triti o formentine. Per fare menestra de radici de petrosimolo.” 

For making maccheroni in another way, 

Make the dough in the way said above. And in the same way you will cook them with the same supplies, making the dough a little thicker and cutting it very small (miniature/miniscule) and thin; and they are called "triti" (minced) or "formentine".

-Translation by Bella Dona dei Sorci 

My eggless pasta recipe by measurements: 

• 300 grams semolina flour 

• 150 ml hot water 

• 1 tbl salt 

• Additional hot water for smoothing dough 

Start by dissolving the salt in the hot water. Form the semolina into a mound, creating a well in the center. Pour the hot salt water into the center well, and using a fork, slowly combine the semolina into the water. Once a rough dough has formed, use your hands to knead the dough until smooth and elastic, dipping your hands into the hot water and adding to the dough if necessary. If your dough is wet or tacky, dust in more semolina. Keading time should be about ten minutes, give or take. 

Place dough in a sealed bag, or cover with a damp cloth, and let rest on the countertop for a minimum of 30 minutes. 

Spice/Herb Note: If you are using dry spices in your dough, the additional hot water will be necessary. You may need less water if using whole fresh herbs. And blending herbs, greens, peas, etc. into your hot water before incorporating into semolina is also an option. 

Flour Note: If you would like 00, you can purchase it, or blend existing flour finely. 

Eggless Pasta Note: I rely on this pasta for handmade shapes that do not require rolling flat first. Semolina is a milled flour of durum wheat, (or other hard wheat), used mainly in pasta. Semolina dough, which is typically eggless, consists of Semolina and warm salt water, and is wonderful for drying. It is a beautifully malleable dough that is particularly suited for hand made pasta shaping. 

My egg pasta recipe by measurements: 

• 220 grams semolina flour 

• 3 large eggs and one egg yolk 

• Hot salt water for smoothing dough (similar to my recipe above) 

Start by dissolving the salt in the hot water. Form the semolina into a mound, creating a well in the center. Pour the hot salt water into the center well, and using a fork, slowly combine the eggs into the water. Once a rough dough has formed, use your hands to knead the dough until smooth and elastic, dipping your hands into the hot water and adding to the dough if necessary. If your dough is wet or tacky, dust in more semolina. Keading time should be about ten minutes, give or take. Place dough in a sealed bag, or cover with a damp cloth, and let rest on the countertop for a minimum of 30 minutes.

Egg Pasta Note: I rely on this pasta for handmade shapes that require rolling flat first. I use egg dough, which is heavy in egg yolks for richness, in my pasta lunga, as it is more firm and will hold it's shape while being rolled and cut. This is not to say that egg dough is never used for hand shaping pasta, only that this dough has a stiff texture less like playdough and closer to pie dough. 

Handmade pasta shapes for today’s focus: 

Malloreddus 

“Homemade Malloreddus may have a pinch of ground saffron in the dough which gives it a slightly yellow colour. To get the characteristic shape, Sardinians traditionally hand-rolled the pieces of dough on a round reed basket. Nowadays, most people use a small wooden board that looks like a gnocchi board. However, this is actually called a malloreddus board and is slightly different to the gnocchi one.”

-The Pasta Project 

We make these two shapes by first hand-rolling dough into long ropes and cutting small pieces that are f ingertip-sized. Those pieces are then either pressed away from the body on a tabletop or gnocchi board/wicker basket. 

Cavatelli 

Cavatelli are considered to be one of the oldest pasta types. Cavatelli have an elongated shape with a hollow cavity made by pressing one’s fingers into small pieces of pasta. But, the size of this pasta varies from region to region. It’s made by pressing a f inger into the center of each piece of dough. The final result is a pasta that looks like a shell or a hot dog bun. 

Cavatelli is especially popular in the Puglia region. 

Fagiolini/Capunti 

Capunti — a short, oval pasta resembling an open pea pod — comes from Puglia (the heel of Italy’s boot) and is historically made by hand with the highest- quality durum wheat. 

We make this shape by grabbing pieces of dough from the whole and rolling them into elongated ovals. (Think long footballs) We then use three f ingers to first press forward into the shape, and finish by pulling down and back toward ourselves against the countertop. 

Orecchiette 

Some historians believe the origin of the orecchiette pasta goes back to the 8th century when the Norman-Swabians ruled the city of Bari in the Puglia region. Orecchiette pasta resembles the roofs of the traditional, cone-shaped huts, called ‘trulli,’ present in the region during that time. 

We will make this shape by first creating long ropes. After cutting the rope into small f ingertip-length pieces, we stretch the pasta beneath a knife pulling backward on the tabletop, and finishing by pulling the shape inside out over our finger/thumb. 

Strozzapreti 

Strangolapreti, also known as strozzapreti, is a pasta from Trento pasta that translates to "priest chokers." Dating back to the Council of Trent, the name refers to the gluttonous clergymen who would eat so much of it that they would choke. 

Variations of Strozzapreti include: 

• In Trentino the strangolapreti is gnocchi made with stale bread, spinach, egg, and a Trentinese grain, served with melted butter and sage. 

• In Milan, soft cheese is added. 

• In Umbria, it's an elongated square-shaped pasta made from flour and water. 

• In Lazio, the strozzapreti are spaghettoni cut by hand and slathered with a layer of Tartufo. 

• In L'Aquila, they resemble thick cords made with semolina and are about 20 cm long. 

• In Salento, they've become potato gnocchi. 

• In Calabria, it's a gnocchi made with flour, egg, and salt. 

We will make these by rolling out pasta sheets, folding the pasta over itself, and cutting into strips. We then cut the strips into finger length pieces and roll them between our hands to create the ridges. 

Lorighittas 

“The first written reference to Sardinian lorighittas dates back to the sixteenth century. This was a report on regional economic activity drawn up for the King of Spain. At the time, Spain controlled much of Southern Italy, including Sardinia, Naples and Sicily. The document mentioned a particular braided and ring-shaped Sardinian pasta, obviously lorighittas.” 

-The Pasta Project 

“According to historians, the first written mention of lorighittas dates back to the 16th century and, more precisely, to an official document redacted for the King of Spain whose possessions at the time included the island of Sardinia. In it, a peculiar variety of pasta, a sort of pleat-shaped like a ring is described: it was the lorighittas. Lorighittas used to be made specifically for All Saints' Day: local women would gather together and prepare them by mixing water and durum wheat semolina (locally known as trigu murru or trigu arrubiu), shaping them like little garlands and placing them to dry in large wicker baskets, arranged in beautiful lace-like patterns. As it always happens in the best of rural traditions, the time when lorighittas dried wouldn't go wasted, but used to prepare their sauce….” 

-ItaloAmericano.com 

“..The pasta originates from Morgongiori, a small mountain town with a population of just 800 residents, surrounded by jagged cliffs on the Italian island. Lorighittas noodles must be handmade--they can't be replicated by a machine, as most dried pasta shapes can. Lore surrounding the pasta suggests the shape is meant to resemble a woman's earring, and was originally made only by unwed women in Morgongiori. The word lorighittas itself, however, references loriga, a Sardinian word for an iron ring affixed to the outside of a house for tying up horses.” 

-atlasobscura.com 

We make these by rolling semolina dough into thin ropes, then looping them twice around our index and middle fingers, and pinch off to form a ring. We then gently twist the two ropes around each other to finish. 

Tools we may use: 

Gnocchi Board 

This Beechwood paddle is widely used for making the traditional grooves that you see in malloreddus, gnocchi, garganelli and many other variants. These tools are always made of wood and never have a varnish, as that would contaminate the pasta. 

The gnocchi board, or paddle, can be used with a roller or by using your f ingers to run the pasta down the paddle to ensure a consistent grooves that will allow the pasta, or in the case of gnocchi - dumplings, to not only be more ornate, but to also absorb more pasta to its surface area, and to cook more evenly. 

The grooves on this tool can be mimicked by rolling pasta down the prongs of a fork, or a wicker basket. 

Ferretto 

The ferretto (or fero), meaning "wire" and "iron", is a roughly 30 cm brass tool used for making all pasta al ferretti. This 5x5 millimeter- square Calabrian tool is typically used to make pasta shapes including bucatini, maccheroni, busiate, and fusilli. 

The dough is rolled around the ferretto, making the desired corkscrew result. 

The action of this tool can be mimicked by using a knitting needle or a pencil. 

Fluted and Non-Fluted Bicicletta 

Whether homemade or professionally made, this traditional tool is a necessity. The single bicicletta is used for making flat and fluted cuts and is essential for making farfalle, ravioli, mafaldine, and more. 

Rolling Pin 

It is believed that the cylindrical wooden tool called a rolling pin was first used by the Etruscan civilization in Italy starting in 800 BC. 

Now often seen with or without carved handles, traditional rolling pins were fashioned out of wood without varnish, and without handles. These long cylinders typically range from one foot to one meter and are an essential tool for both home and professional pasta makers alike.

 This tool can be substituted with a wine bottle