Homemade Pasta

Since I am terribly behind on this blog, and since I’ve been getting vaguely threatening emails from family members about it, I’m cheating a little and making today’s photo challenge a double-blog.

Tonight I made dinner. This alone is a huge accomplishment. I have been so overwhelmingly busy lately that most days I can manage to make a peanut butter jelly sandwich. Most days. The other days I visit my good friend Jimmy John.

However, I went beyond just making dinner today. I made dinner. Ever since last weekend when I was happily reminded of my favorite marinara sauce, I have been craving spaghetti. But a special sauce like this deserves a special noodle. So I bought some good semolina flour, pulled out the pasta cutter, and got to work.

Homemade pasta is so so so much better than anything you can buy at the store. Making fresh pasta means I know what goes into it. I control the type of flour (hold the bleached, enriched, all-purpose please) and the amount of salt. I also get to use farm-fresh eggs, straight from the ladies in the barn. It’s also ridiculously cheap to make. I’ve already listed all the ingredients, except water and a little olive oil. But perhaps the best part is that, with a pasta cutter, it is really easy! The hardest work is in the kneading, but it’s so much easier than kneading bread, so don’t let that scare you.

I’ve been playing around with different flours, but so far the most versatile and fail-proof flour for me is semolina. It’s easy to work with and yields a smooth, elastic dough. Someday I’ll come across the perfect combination of more unusual flours to share (chickpea and quinoa flours are my favorites to play with).

If you are considering making homemade pasta, I strongly recommend you pick up a good quality pasta cutter. This amazing machine rolls out the dough as thick or thin as you’d like, and it also cuts the dough into noodles. For $50 you get a hand-crank machine that packs up into a tidy little square-foot box. If you are currently buying whole wheat pasta, you’ll recoup the expense in no time!

Homemade Pasta

• 2 cups semolina flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 T olive oil

Mix flour and salt together in a large bowl. Add eggs, water, and oil and stir with a fork to combine. Using your hands, continue working the dough until all the flour is stuck together. Knead the dough for 5 to 10 minutes or until soft and elastic. Add more water or oil if the dough is too dry, or more flour (by the teaspoon) if too sticky. Cover the kneaded dough with plastic wrap or a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.

Roll out the dough to desired thickness (about 1/4″) using either a pasta machine or flour-dusted rolling pin. For spaghetti noodles, cut with a machine, dough cutter, or pizza cutter.

Cook in salted boiling water for about 5 minutes.

Serves 4.

Peanut Butter Truffles

Happy New Year!  Now is the time when everyone is making resolutions, many of which involve eating more healthfully.  Perfect time to post a decadent, irresistible truffles recipe, right?!

I made a pamper basket for my sister-in-law who just had a baby four months ago.  Giving me such an adorable nephew deserved a special thank-you gift at Christmas.  Since I already planned on dark chocolate truffles, it only made sense to add some brightness to the basket with another light-colored treat.  Enter white chocolate.  Peanut butter was an all too easy pairing with the white chocolate, but what to add to the peanut butter to make them something extra special took a few days of thought.  Then inspiration hit.

Candy canes.

That’s right.  I crushed up some good old-fashioned candy cane and stirred it in.  It was delicious.  But not perfect.

Pretzels.

What?  Yeah that’s right, pretzels.  Also crushed into small pieces.  This made for some discomfort while rolling out the truffles, but it was worth it.  I know this, because I tested one out of the sister-in-law’s batch.  Maybe six.  Sorry, Amy.

These take a lot of time to make, but most of it is inactive time waiting for the truffles to chill.

Estimated time:  5 hours total, 40 minutes active       Estimated cost: $6, depending on quality of PB

Peanut Butter Truffles

• 12 oz peanut butter (the best quality you’re willing to buy)
• 24 oz package almond bark or white chocolate
• 1 candy cane, crushed finely
• 1/2 cup pretzels, crushed

Soften 6 oz almond bark in microwave, stirring every 15 seconds until melted.  Add peanut butter and stir until smooth.  Mix in crushed candy cane and pretzels.  Cover and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.

Using a teaspoon or melon baller, scoop out a portion of the chilled mixture and form into a ball by gently rolling it in your hands.  Place truffles on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and chill 2 hours.

Melt remaining almond bark in a double boiler over medium heat.  Using a fork, dip truffles and roll to coat.  Return the coated truffle to the parchment-lined cookie sheet to cool.

Makes about 2 dozen truffles.

 

Seven Grain Cereal Bread

Once upon a time I liked to make no-knead breads.  It resulted in the health benefits of homemade bread without the sore wrists.  I was willing to sacrifice the light and airy sandwich bread for the dense but hearty whole wheat variety (which, no matter what I did, would never fully rise).

Then I met this beauty, worth every minute of hand-kneading!

Despite the need to knead, this is a relatively simple bread to make.  It contains few ingredients, the most out-of-the-ordinary being seven grain cereal, which I’ve decided needs to become a staple in my home anyway.  Mix it, rest it, knead it, rise it, shape it, bake it.  Nothing to it!  Kudos to Bread World, my new go-to for all things baked.  I found that it took closer to 3 cups of flour to get the right consistency, and next time I might add a little more honey and a little less water for a less subtly sweet taste.  That said, following the recipe exactly got a beautiful rise and a perfectly airy loaf.

I let Will stay up a little late tonight just to have a slice.  He took one bite and loudly exclaimed “This is the best thing I’ve ever eaten!”  Pretty sure the neighbors heard him.  He then proceeded to give me a monster hug that nearly knocked me into the still-hot oven, thanking me for letting him have a slice before bed.  Really?  An unsolicited hug and thank you??  This bread is a keeper.

Seven Grain Cereal Bread

Makes: 1 loaf

2 to 2-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 envelope (or 2 1/4 tsp) RapidRise Yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons honey
2/3 cup seven grain hot cereal

Combine 1 cup flour, undissolved yeast and salt in a large bowl. Heat water, milk, butter and honey until very warm (120^o to130^oF). Stir in cereal; let stand 2 minutes. Gradually add to flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cover; let rest 10 minutes.

Divide dough in half; roll each half to 7-inch rope. Place ropes side by side in greased 8-1/2 x 4-1/2-inch loaf pan. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Bake at 400^oF for 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; cool on wire rack.

Day 31 and Beyond!

October is over, and some of you may be wondering how I fared with my challenge to eat only unprocessed foods for a month.  I talked to my dad the other night and he brought up my bumpy road post and jokingly wondered if it had only gotten worse.

To be perfectly honest, I did have a few slip-ups.  Some were intentional.  When a girl is sick and put in charge of pizza delivery, one can expect certain liberties to be taken with said pizza.  Other slip-ups were discovered at the very end of the month.  Who knew chili powder would have anti-caking powder and “natural” flavors?

Overall, I think I did pretty well with keeping my diet in check.  I diligently read labels, I shopped exclusively at the local co-op, I gave away my refined/enriched/preservative-laden foods.  I even donated a nearly full case of Vanilla Coke to the needy (i.e. friends with a very busy toddler).  And you know what?  I feel fantastic!

Yes, it takes more work to bake my own bread than to buy a loaf at the store.  Sure, it’s a tad annoying to grate my own cheese rather than buy a bag of already shredded.  Of course I still miss my soda… but not nearly as much as before.  In exchange for opting out of these conveniences, I have more energy, I sleep better, and my concentration is improving.  The memory thing is taking a little longer, but let’s not expect miracles here.

Perhaps my biggest success story, or at least the one that is most fresh in my mind, is that I went trick-or-treating with my son and have yet to sneak a piece of his candy.  He even tried tempting me this afternoon, listing off each variety saying “You know you want it!”  (Incidentally, where does an 8-year-old learn this sort of taunting?)  Each time I said no thanks until finally, frustrated, he said “Don’t you like any kind of candy??”  Honestly, none of it appealed to me.  Not in the least.

Though I have learned to appreciate dark chocolate.  Mmm.

So the big question I’ve been getting lately is “How long are you going to keep this up?”  The big answer is “For as long as I want.”  This is my new food lifestyle.  I don’t plan to be as strict as I was last month.  But I will still check every label before purchasing food.  White flours and sugars are limited to the rare special occasion.  High fructose corn syrup will have no place in my home.  I’ve switched to natural sodas and am only consuming them on my weekly “indulgence day.”  When I do indulge, it will be with intention, acknowledging that, while not good for my body, every once in a while the soul deserves a little treat.

Days 4-6: A Bumpy Road

Day 4.  Ugh.  How many days left??  I’m getting sick of spending all my time in the kitchen.  Not to mention the dishes.  And the mishaps that abound.  And the constant cleaning and rearranging of my counter tops.  And the dishes.  And daily grocery store trips.  Have I mentioned the dishes?

To be fair, I brought today’s struggles on myself.  I volunteered to make dinner for friends who were too sick to slice bread.  I knew exactly what I was going to make by noon (Poblano Jack Pizzas, made from fresh garden peppers!!), and planned to make the same for dinner at home as well.  However, once I got home I failed to double-check my recipe for the most-awesome-pizza-ever to see how long it took to make it and exactly what ingredients went into it.  I also forgot to check my dough to see if I had enough for two pizzas.  Which I did not.  Dumb, right?

I needed corn.  I always have frozen corn in the freezer.  Except, of course, for today.  So I cheated.  I found a can of corn in my cupboard, and I cracked it open.  Don’t ask why I even had canned corn in my cupboard, because I don’t know the answer myself.  But there it is.  I ate 1/4 cup of processed canned corn.  Sigh.

The pizza was delicious, by the way.  Horribly misshapen, slightly doughy crust, but delicious.  Recipe to follow… after the dishes are done.

Highlight of the day:  I bought a 2 liter of Ginger Ale for above-mentioned sickos and managed to deliver it without cracking it open for a sip!

 

Day 5.  After so many hours in the kitchen these past several days, I promised myself a day off.  I cooked a double batch of beans the night before so as not to be tempted to worry about it tonight.  With plenty of leftovers in the fridge there was no concern for what to eat for dinner.  So the most labor-intensive kitchen moment for today was tossing a fresh veggie salad with homemade vinaigrette.  Ahhh.

So what did I do with all this free time?  Cleaned.  Yep, I had so much energy that would otherwise have been devoted to cooking that I decided to sweep and mop the floors and give my bathroom a good scrub.  Livin’ it up!  I also managed to avoid anything that resembles a grocery store.  I’m starting to feel normal again!

Highlight of the day:  Ate lunch next to an open bag of Sun Chips (my mouth is watering just typing the words) and didn’t sneak a single one.

 

Day 6.  I wasn’t sure I was feeling the positive effects of eating unprocessed.  Until today.  I had a business lunch meeting this afternoon.  I was nervous about grilling the waitress (ha!) in front of a client, so I did some homework in advance.  I checked out the menu online and then called the restaurant to see what items were made in-house.

Thinking I was pretty clever, I ordered a salad (hard to go wrong there) with local bleu cheese, grilled chicken (don’t tell Will!), and walnuts.  I knew that all their dressings were house-made, and I asked for plain walnuts instead of the candied variety.  Well… the chicken was so salty that I just pushed it to the side.  And the dressing was so sweet that I found myself looking for undressed lettuce.  So very unlike me.

So, try as I might, this meal was another bump in the road.  Not surprisingly, shortly after lunch I faced a sugar crash.  Big time.  In fact, I’m still not recovered at 9pm!

I think it’s safe to say that eating clean, while not an easy road to travel, is a more enjoyable journey.  One which I can have the energy to appreciate!