The art (and trials) of fresh pasta making

getting our pasta dough ready

If you go to Italy, there is one food substance that you cannot avoid: pasta. And if you have any interest in food, your trip to Italy will include a lesson where you learn how to make pasta from scratch. During my trip to Italy, I got to experience making pasta in the traditional "grandmother style", and in the modern restaurant kitchen setting. Let me tell you - it is harder than it looks, and if it is not perfect, you will be told so. More often than not in the traditional Italian way; hand-waving and "yelling" included!

In Bologna, I had the opportunity to take a pasta making class with the Cesarinas, women who invite tourists and Italians alike into their homes to teach about the traditional food culture of Italy. I did not know what to expect, as our Cesarina did not speak a word of English, so everything was going to be explained through hand gestures and by the help of our tour guide. However, what I thought would be an awkward experience was anything but. After being eyed from head to toe, she immediately welcomed us in her home and treated us as though we were members of her family. That of course included putting us straight to work.

I was told by our tour guide that several Italian families try to get together once a week to catch up and make fresh pasta. It is this simple act that keeps Italian culture alive for each family. At our Cesarina's, a large pine wood board covered the entire dining room table, showing that the table was not just a place for everyone to eat, but also a place for everyone to gather and prepare the meal. Our dough of flour and eggs was already sitting there waiting for us, so after being handed a large wood rolling pin, we set out to roll a thin sheet of perfect pasta.

being taught (again and again) how to make a torteloni

Forget weights, rolling pasta by hand is the perfect arm-workout. While I struggled to get my pasta to the desired rectangular shape, our Cesarina rolled out her pasta with incredible ease and quickness into the perfect thickness and size. This could only come with years and years of experience. That day, we were going to learn how to make tortelloni and tagliatelle, the two iconic pastas of Bologna. It took me forever to learn how to fold and wrap the perfect piece of stuffed pasta. Mostly because our Cesarina and Italian tour guide each had their own method of doing it, and both women were insistent that her way was the right way. Stereotypical Italian fighting ensued, and I just watch in utter amusement, while I continued to try to make a single tortelloni, in whatever way was most suitable to me. However, when I finally placed a single, almost perfectly folded tortelloni onto the pine wood board, our Cesarina and tour guide cried "BRAVA!" with the enthusiasm and pride as though I were their own child. All arguments were forgotten.

working with tagliatelle

Tagliatelle was easier for me to get a hand on. It was done by taking a thin sheet of pasta and rolling it over itself several times. Then a sharp knife cut the rolled sheet into several pieces, before taking a spoon to release the thin strands of pasta. It was amazing seeing these long strips of pasta unraveling on my wooden spoon. It is truly fascinating that something as simple as making fresh pasta gave me a kind of satisfaction and feeling of accomplishment that I had not experienced in a while. I could not wait to eat it!

Sitting around our Cesarina's kitchen table, we enjoyed the torteloni with a fresh pesto sauce, and the tagliatelle in a traditional Bolognese meat sauce - another recipe that Italians endlessly argue over the "correct" way of making. With a bottle of Lambrusco, we chatted the best we could with our language barriers, mostly using our hands - in true Italian fashion. Full of good food and company - I felt as though I was experiencing the real Italian culture and lifestyle - and it made me understand why so many families continue to make their own pasta today. (In whatever form they think is best!)

i finally made one!