I make most of our bread/buns/french bread. I have thought about pasta but I thought I would need a machine. Can you direct me to a book or web site for instructions as to how to get started in pasta making?
Pasta machine just saves labor.
Pasta making is easy but you have to learn how "feel when it is right"
1 egg
1 tsp oil ( I like olive)
couple of hand fulls of flour.
Salt and pepper.
Some people just make a pile of flour on the counter, make a well in the flour, dump in the egg and start beating.
I don't like my counter to get funky, so I do the first steps in a bowl.
Once you have a sticky paste, start adding flour and beating it in.
Flour counter well and start kneading. You want a nice pliant dough with no stickiness but you don't want it to get stiff.
Start rolling it out. Keep it floured. Keep turning it.
You want it very thin. Rub the excess flour off and roll it up.
Use a pizza cutter to slice it about 1/4 inch , I usually use my pinky finger for a uniform measurement.
Unroll, voila Egg noodles.
Makes the best Chicken noodle soup ever. You don't have to dry them to use. Just feed them into the broth a few at a time and stir.
You can make an eggless variety using water but they aren't as flavorful.