A new feature on this site: make-it-yourself recipes for things you ordinarily wouldn’t! And I’m starting things off with one of the most daunting make it yourself things of all: fettucine.

I realize it’s daunting because I resisted making pasta at home for a long, long time. Why bother, when there was so much good, dried pasta around? Pasta made by machine, so every strand was perfect? Pastas made by real Italians, who would certainly know more than I on the subject?

Here’s why to bother: because homemade pasta rocks. That’s not an overstatement- if you’ve never tried freshly made pasta, your head will explode from how deliciously different it is from the dried, packaged stuff.

And you know something else? I don’t even own a pasta machine. Just a good old rolling pin.

Ingredients:
300g semolina flour
3 whole eggs
a pinch of salt
1000ml or one liter of water

Mound the flour on a flat, clean surface. I use a large wooden chopping board.

Make a well in the pile of flour with a spoon or your hand. Afterwards, pour the eggs into the well and use a fork to mix. Add the salt.

Knead the mixture to make the dough… until it is smooth and firm. When done, cover with cling wrap until you ready to work with it. At this point, I usually stick it in the fridge to give it some time to rest and chill.

When you’re ready, roll it out thinly, and slice into fettucine strips.

This pasta takes about two minutes to cook, and it is heavenly.