Proper Italian food is a labour of LOVE. It may take a long time but it can be a fun family experience.
A few year back I travelled with a mate in Italy on our way to join friends on a fabulous cruise. We arrived 2 days before boarding to explore the city a bit. As a surprise he planned the most amazing tour...Culinary Tour & Class in Rome. It was an experience that changed my life forever. It was a day of food shopping and sampling, cooking and eating fresh pasta, we spent the day making our favorite things.
We first met our teacher at the Roman food market to start our journey through an array of fruits and vegetables so rich in color and aromatic that we wanted to try everything. Whatever was offered as a sample we were on it. I have been food shopping before and I have seen all those fruits and veggies but never this appealing. The tomatoes were a deep red, the legumes were presented with such elegance that you wanted to buy whatever they were selling even if you did not know what it was. We started with the fruits and veggies, then moved to the cheese shops and followed by the butchers, and then we went to her kitchen to start cooking.
We spent 3 hours cooking as a class and although it seems long it went by so fast, of course the wine we had while cooking helped.
We made 3 types of pasta and sauces
1- Tagliatelle with Roman Tomato Sauce
2- Gnocceti Sardi
3- Ravioli Stuffed With Ricotta & Spinach
Here is my favorite Dish of the 3.
RECIPE: Tagliatelle With Roman Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
1k San Marzano tomatoes
2 Onions
1 Garlic clove
1 Cup Basil
30g Burgundy Wine
1 Bouquet garni: Thyme, Parsley, Bay Leaf
1 Pepper
1 tbsp salt
2 tsp Pepper
3 tbsp Olive Oil
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Step 1- Cut the tomatoes into halves and onions, garlic, and peppers into quarters and put aside.
Step 2- Pour Olive oil and heat in deep deep saucepan and heat in medium high temp.
Step 4- Add garlic to heated oil and let sizzle and golden while stirring to prevent burn for about 3 -4 min.
Step 5- Add Onions and cook until onions are translucent 10 min.
Step 6- Add Peppers cook for 10 min.
Step 6- Add tomatoes, parsley, basic, salt, and pepper and stir.
Step 7 - Cook for several hours until tomates have merged with the sauce and it is getting dark red.
Step 8- Use a metal strainer to strain sauce and make it soft. Make sure you take out all the liquid especially at the end.
Step 9- Continue Cooking the sauce, add burgundy, EV Olive Oil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and continue to cook in low heat until all the water has evaporated. It may take up a couple more hours.
While the sauce is cooking you can go ahead and start the pasta dough.
Tagliatelle Recipe (2 Servings)
2 Large Brown Egg
200g of Tipo "00" Flour
Make sure to clean and thoroughly dry the counter you will be using to make the dough. The flower is very sensitive to moisture. Have a bowl and a fork ready.
Step 1- Take 180g of the flour pour it over the counter and make a volcano mount with a hollow center to fit the egg yolks and be able to mix.
Step 2- Crack both eggs and place in the center. Use the fork to break the eggs and beat them in a circular motion lightly while getting the flour in the mix. DO NOT BREAK THE WALL
Step 3- Once all the flour has been mixed it is time to use your hands to finish mixing the dough. The dough should not stick to your fingers, if it is too soft dabble a little flour to the mixture and continue working it (remember a little flour goes a long way)
Step 4- Once the dough has the right consistency, work the dough with the heal of your palm for 10-15 min until the tough is smooth and very elastic.
Step 5 - Shape the dough into a smooth ball using your hands and wrapped it tightly in a cling wrap and twist the tips together to remove all air pockets. Refrigerate for 30 min.
Once the dough has cooled, take out and flatten. You will need to sprinkle some semolina flour on your counter top. Cut the dough into quarters and flatten to enable it to fit into the pasta maker or use a roller.. Start from the biggest setting, roll, fold, and roll again in each setting until it is as thin as you want it. Once you have the thickness desired, start cutting it with a knife:
How to Cut Pasta by Hand:
Now you can boil the pasta for 3 min and serve!!!
