HOMEMADE PASTA WITH A TOMATO MARSCAPONE SAUCE

There is nothing better than fresh homemade pasta it is a whole other level of flavour and texture, the pasta also soaks up more of the flavour from the sauce making every mouthful a joy.  It’s great fun making your own pasta and very easy too, just 3 ingredients creates delicious fresh pasta in just 15 minutes.

Prep time for pasta 15 minutes / Cooking time for sauce min 20 minutes

Start the sauce while your making the pasta

(low and slow simmer of sauce up to 2 hours)

Ingredients 

(serves 4)

The Pasta

200g Caputo 00 flour or Gluten free Caputo flour

2 large eggs

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt

Semolina for dusting

Tomato Mascarpone Sauce

I small onion finely chopped

3 cloves garlic sliced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp butter

2 tins of Mutti popla chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato ketchup

Good pinch of Himalayan  sea salt

Good pinch fresh ground black pepper

150ml double cream

2 tbsp mascarpone

4 tbsp finely grated Parmesan

Fist make the pasta, evenly mix the flour and salt and tip out on to your worktop in a pile, make a well in the centre.

Using a fork whisk the eggs

Start to flick the flour in to the eggs, do this from the inside of the well so as too keep the outside wall secure to stop any egg running out on to your work top.  Flick the flour into the beaten eggs while whisking in.



Keep adding flour in to the beaten eggs until the eggs won’t run when you take the barrier wall of flour away then bring together with your hands or pasta scraper to form a dough ball.

Once you’ve formed a dough ball knead for 10 minutes until soft and smooth, form into a ball and leave to rest in a glass bowl for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours at room temperature.



Leave the dough to rest at room temperature in a floured covered bowl for 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Cut the dough into 4, roughly roll out to the width of your pasta roller, generously dust your work top with semolina and the dough, starting on roller gap number one run the pasta through to create a sheet, I went up to number 3 on my rollers for a not to thin tagliatelle.  If your manually using a rolling pin like the Nona’s in Italy then roll out the pasta to your desired thickness, roll the pasta sheet up and starting on the end where you can see the coils thinly slice the pasta with very little pressure so as not too stick the pasta together to create your tagliatelle.

The Sauce

Heat the olive oil and butter medium hot, gently soften the onions and garlic keeping them translucent for 10 minutes, add the tomatoes, ketchup and simmer for 10 minutes or up to 2 hours on a low heat, the longer you simmer the more intensified the flavour of the sauce, add the cream and mascarpone and season to taste, for a smooth sauce blitz the tomatoes before adding the cream.  Keep the sauce warm while you cook the pasta.

To Cook Fresh Pasta

Bring a large saucepan of water to a rolling boil, add 1 heaped teaspoon of sea salt, drop in your pasta and cook for 2 minutes, drain, reserve 2 tbsp of the pasta water, add the pasta water and pasta to your hot sauce, stir to coat well and serve, a fine grating of Parmesan is a reflection finish to this dish.