Going Italian

We’re going Italian tonight. The Fox is going to make some meatballs in tomato sauce. I’m in charge of the pasta.

So it is this morning I’ve been making some tagliatelle rose. It’s a while since I last made pasta. In fact I think I’ve only made one lot of pasta since we had the bathroom redesigned into a wetroom. And that’s four years ago.

I’m not quite sure why I’ve not made much pasta of late. We’ve certainly had plenty of pasta meals, but so often it’s been spaghetti or using the short forms of pasta & they’re just as easy, & more economical to buy dry, or even fresh these days.

Part of the reason I’ve not been making fresh pasta has been the disappearance of my normal stockist of 00 flour. Finally Morrisons has decided to stock it so I’ve hastily bought some. Using ordinary plain flour, even strong plain flour, doesn’t give the right consistency.

Anyhow the pasta is now hanging up on the towel rail to dry.

I’d forgotten how satisfying it is to make fresh pasta. First there’s the kneading of the dough  – and getting rid of any angst in the process – to make it silky smooth. As I knead I rock back & forward in a steady regular rhythm. Then there’s the gentle rolling and cutting.

Now I’ve just got to pick & bag the pasta & put it in the fridge ready for this evening. It will only a take a quick couple of minutes to cook this evening. Hopefully it will be delicious & more satisfying than the shop made variety.