How (and Why) to Make Fresh, Homemade Pasta

I looooove eating fresh pasta. It takes on the sauce or condiment in a totally different way, it cooks in a minute or two, and turns a basic meal into something plenty special.

But, I don’t love, or even like, making fresh pasta at home. The traditional “well method” makes a huge mess, and dealing with the mile long pieces of pasta is really tough for a single person.

So, I’m totally in love with this super easy, totally-worth-your-time method:   Use the food processor, roll it out with a rolling pin, and cook in big, luscious sheets.

FEW people make fresh pasta at home, and it’s not difficult to see why. Who wouldn’t be put off by demonstrations that include piles of flour on cutting boards, or pasta-rolling machines spitting out six-foot ribbons of gorgeous dough? Fortunately, there is an easy way. A food processor makes quick work of the dough, and a rolling pin, which predates the pasta machine, still works (though a little practice with the machine can make life easier in the long run). And as for fancy shapes: why bother? The handkerchief (fazzoletti) shape — a rectangle or square, as you like — is as traditional as anything else, and as delicious.

Pasta in the Rough [NYTimes.com]