Marc and I love making our own stuff. If we can make our own bread, we know what ingredients go into something, and we appreciate it so much more. We have had many adventures with this kind of philosophy. We say “Let’s have tacos” and realize we have no taco shells, so we make them. We make our own yogurt, pizza crust, sauces etc etc.

Last year for Christmas we got a cheese-making kit which was tons of fun. And we got a pasta maker. We have virtually stopped buying pasta from the store because we have so much fun with this one. So, dear readers, you get to embark on a Pasta-Fantastica making lesson.

Step 1: Make a little pile of flour, 2 cups. And shape it into a volcano.

Step 2: Crack 3 eggs into the centre of the “volcano.”

Admire your egg volcano with a few pictures. (This is not an official step. But it is definitely crucial to making true Pasta Fantastica.)

Then take a whisk or o fork and stir the eggs to break the yolk.

Take off any rings and/or jewellery and be prepared to get your hands messy! Mix the flour and eggs together to form a dough.

When you form a dough, using more flour to get the right consistency. (That is: a dough lump that is not sticky anymore.) Take your dough and press it flat, then put it through the setting 1 on your pasta roller. If you don’t have a pasta roller, get out your rolling pin, wine bottle or whatever and roll out the dough as thin as possible.

We have a pasta cutter attachment on our pasta maker. We run the flat-as-a-pancake dough through the pasta cutter and voila! You have pasta!

Likewise, if you do not have a pasta attachment, you may use a knife to cut it into pasta strips. You can leave the pasta dough un-cut and use it for lasagne noodles. We have also cut the pasta dough into squares and made our own ravioli with mozza cheese and sundried tomatoes. Or ricotta cheese and spinach. There are other variations of making the pasta with spinach or tomatoes to change the colour.

If you wanna get really exotic, you can add squid ink and make your pasta black. But I prefer asthetically pleasing Pasta Fantastica.

When you finish making your pasta, you chuck it into a pot of boiling water with a little salt and olive oil and you cook it for 5 minutes max.

This Pasta Fantastica is very filling. You will not need as much as store-bought pasta.

What have you tried making from scratch lately? Any new culinary adventures?