Checking out...

Today I have had enough of the terrible news headlines and I have made the decision to check out from any news channels, blogs or social media highlighting the continued and constant terrible reminder of the sad state of the planet.

I decided to spend the day in the kitchen.  First on the list, pasta sauce made with left over roast beef.  My recipe?  Well, I don't really have one.  Most of the time I just make it up as I go but I did keep track of what I used.

1 lb left over roast beef cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium yellow onion diced
16 oz organic tomato sauce
16 oz organic diced tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 tbsp minced fresh oregano
2 tbsp minced fresh basil
1 tbsp minced fresh sage

I use fresh herbs from my garden but if you don't have fresh, use half the amount of dried

2 tbsp packed brown sugar
wine or other liquid as needed (I used 2016 Porter & Plot Dolcetto, maybe 1/4 cup at most)

Saute onion in olive oil on low heat, add roast.  Once onions are soft, add the rest of the ingredients.  For more depth in flavor, cook on low heat for a few hours adding liquid or a good wine as needed.  Red wine will add a richness and white wine will add a fruitiness to any tomato based sauce.

Now for the homemade pasta!

Of course you don't need to make homemade pasta but as I was checking out from the world, I figured why not.  You don't need a pasta rolling machine to make homemade pasta, you just need a good work surface and a rolling pin.

2 cups flour
3 large eggs (I used eggs fresh from my lovely copper marans chickens)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
water as needed

Al lot of people mix and knead their homemade pasta by hand but I prefer to use my Kitchenaid mixer with the dough hook.  Either way, you basically do the same thing.  If mixing and kneading by hand, pour the flour onto the center of your work surface, add the salt, make a well, crack your eggs into the well, scramble them up and slowly incorporate the flour.  If using your machine like I do, pour your flour and salt into the mixing bowl, make a well, add the eggs, turn your machine onto a low setting and slowly incorporate the flour.  From here you will want to knead the mixture until smooth.  If dough looks rough, you have not kneaded it enough.  If dough is too wet, add a little four.  If dough is too dry, add a little water.  Dough should be more firm than bread dough

Once thoroughly kneaded, cover tightly and let set for 45 minutes.  This step is very important as it allows the dough time to relax making rolling it out much easier.



I used a hand crank pasta roller and cutter to make the dough into Fettuccine shaped pasta.  If rolling by hand, use a rolling pin working from the center to the outside of the dough like rolling out a pie crust.  If it gets to big for your work space, cut it it half and keep rolling until the dough is thin enough to see your hand through.  Make sure to keep dusting your dough with flour to keep it from sticking to it's self or your work surface.  Once you have your pasta rolled out to the desired thickness, you can either use a hand crank pasta cutter like I did, or gently roll the dough up like a cigar and slice it to the desired width.  





At this point, you can cook your pasta right away, lay it out to dry or as I did, letting the pasta sit on my work surface for about 40 minutes before I cooked it.

Bring a large pot to boil with salted water, once boiling, I turn the pot down to medium high and add the pasta.  Fresh pasta doesn't take very long to cook.  Depending on size it will be ready anywhere from 1-3 minutes.  Pay attention and check to make sure you are not over cooking it.



I like to take the pasta right from the pot to a prep bowl and add the desired amount of sauce, toss it around and then plate it adding additional sauce to the top and of course Italian cheese!