Fresh Spinach Pasta Food

FRESH SPINACH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Add 2 inches of water to a medium saucepan, and fit with a steamer insert. Bring to a simmer. Add 6 ounces spinach, cover, and steam until bright green and softened, about 2 minutes. Let cool slightly. Squeeze out liquid using a clean kitchen towel or paper towels. Puree spinach in a food processor (you should have about 1/2 cup puree).
• Add eggs and yolk to puree in food processor, and process until combined. Add flour and 1 heaping teaspoon salt, and process until dough just comes together, about 20 seconds.
• Transfer dough to a well-floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, 5 to 10 minutes, adding up to 2 tablespoons flour if dough is too sticky. Place on a piece of parchment, and cover with an inverted bowl, or wrap tightly in plastic; let rest for 1 to 2 hours.
• Cut dough into 8 pieces. Working with 1 piece at a time (keep the remaining pieces covered with the inverted bowl), flatten dough into an oblong shape slightly thinner than the pasta machine's widest setting (number 1). Dust dough very lightly with flour, and feed through machine. Fold lengthwise into thirds and rotate 90 degrees. Repeat twice on same setting to smooth dough and increase its elasticity.
• Turn the dial to next narrower setting. Pass dough through twice, gently supporting it with your palm. Continue to press dough, passing it through ever-finer settings, two passes on each setting, until sheet is almost translucent and very thin but still intact (number 5 of 8 on a KitchenAid pasta roller). The dough will stretch to about 16 inches long. If dough bubbles or tears, pass it through again, and dust with flour if the dough is sticking.
• For farfalle, lasagna squares, or ravioli: Place rolled sheet on a lightly floured surface, and cut out as directed in corresponding recipe, using a dry brush to dust flour off if needed. For ribbon pastas: Place dough on a drying rack until slightly tacky, 10 to 15 minutes, and then use a pasta machine or cutting attachment to cut into strands. Drape over rack until strands are semidry and won't stick together, about 20 minutes. Cook immediately, or lay flat on a baking sheet dusted with semolina, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

FRESH SPINACH PASTA

Steps:

• Heat a few drops of olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add spinach and cook, stirring constantly with tongs, until leaves start to wilt and turn dark green, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a strainer set over a bowl; let cool slightly, about 5 minutes. Wrap spinach up in a clean, dry towel and squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
• Transfer spinach into a blender. Add eggs; pulse on and off until pureed. Press puree through a strainer into a bowl if desired.
• Pile flour onto your work surface. Make a large well in the center; add salt, 2 teaspoons oil, and the liquid spinach mixture. Stir some flour into the well until liquid is mostly absorbed. Gather in enough flour to form a shaggy dough. Scrape excess flour to the side. Knead dough for a few minutes until smooth and soft but still moldable. Add extra flour or water if needed.
• Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Cut dough into 4 pieces; keep 3 pieces wrapped in plastic. Roll 1 piece into a tube and press down into a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick, dusting with semolina flour.
• Run dough twice through a stand mixer fitted with a pasta attachment using the thickest setting. Dust with semolina; fold in the rounded ends to retain the rectangular shape. Run pasta sheet through the thickest setting 2 more times. Decrease thickness by 1 setting and run pasta sheet through 2 times. Repeat 2 more times. Dust with semolina if sticky and clean up any edges as needed.
• Cut pasta sheets in half lengthwise and sprinkle with semolina. Let dry for 15 minutes. Roll and dry remaining pieces of dough. Run each sheet through the fettuccine setting and dust with more semolina.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook fresh pasta until tender yet firm to the bite, 45 to 60 seconds. Drain most of the water and mix pasta with any piping-hot sauce you desire.

EASY TOMATO AND SPINACH PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat.
• Add oil to a large, wide pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add in the crushed red pepper flakes, tomatoes, salt, and pepper, and cook until the tomatoes begin to burst and give off their juices, about 9 to 10 minutes. Use a wooden spoon to gently press the tomatoes if they're not bursting on their own.
• Add in the garlic and cook for 1 minute, or until fragrant. Stir in the wine and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Finally, stir in the spinach and cook until slightly wilted.
• In the meantime, add the penne into the boiling water and cook for 9 to 10 minutes, or until al dente.
• Drain the pasta, reserving a 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
• Toss the pasta immediately into the pot with the sauce and stir well to combine. Add in some of the reserved cooking water, if needed. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if needed.
• Remove from heat and divide among serving bowls. Top with cheese and serve at once!

HOMEMADE SPINACH PASTA

Steps:

• Combine water and ice in a bowl. Preheat a skillet over medium heat; add spinach. Cook, stirring continuously, until spinach turns bright green, about 30 seconds. Plunge into ice water bath; remove when spinach is lukewarm. Squeeze out excess moisture with cheese cloth.
• Combine spinach, eggs, olive oil, and salt in a food processor; blend until smooth. Add flour; blend until dough no longer sticks to the blades, adding flour as needed.
• Roll dough into a ball; wrap in plastic wrap. Rest at room temperature for 20 minutes.
• Remove plastic wrap from dough. Transfer to a work surface generously dusted with flour; cut dough into 4 pieces with a sharp knife. Roll out dough with a rolling pin to 1/4-inch thickness; shape into rectangles.
• Dust pasta maker rollers with flour. Run the dough rectangles through a pasta maker on the widest setting. Repeat rolling dough through rollers, gradually reducing the setting to desired thickness. Change pasta maker's attachment to preferred noodle shape; cut pasta with pasta maker.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Lower pasta gently into water; use a spoon to keep noodles from sticking together. Cook until pasta is firm but soft, 3 to 6 minutes. Remove from the water with tongs; transfer to a bowl.

SAUTEED CHICKEN BREAST WITH FRESH SPINACH PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add linguine and cook until a little less than al dente, about 8 minutes. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and 1 tablespoon of butter, heat until the butter is melted. Then add the chicken breasts, skin side down and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until lightly colored.
• When done, transfer chicken breasts to a plate and set aside. Discard any fat from your skillet. Now, to the skillet add 2 tablespoons of butter, heat until butter is melted. Add onion, celery, carrots and salt and pepper. Cook, stirring until vegetables are softened, about 3 minutes. Return chicken to the skillet, add rosemary, and bay leaf and cook, covered over moderately low heat for 5 minutes more or until chicken is cooked through but still slightly springy to the touch. Again, remove chicken from the skillet and transfer to a plate, pouring any remaining juice into the skillet and set aside. Now, prepare the sauce. To the same skillet add madeira and chicken broth, cook until reduced by half. Then add heavy cream and reduce until sauce is lightly thickened. Drain and pat dry linguine and transfer to a serving plate and toss with remaining tablespoon of butter. Top with chicken breasts. To the sauce add minced fresh herbs, taste for seasoning, adding salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste. Gently pour sauce over linguine and chicken, making sure to evenly coat the entire surface. Serve immediately.

FRESH TOMATO AND SPINACH PASTA

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions.
• Drain; keep warm.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook onion and garlic in hot oil over medium heat until onion is tender.
• Add tomatoes, salt, black pepper, and, if desired, red pepper.
• Cook and stir over medium-high heat for about two minutes or until the tomatoes are warm and release some of their juices.
• Stir in spinach, heat just until greens are wilterd.
• To serve, top pasta with tomato mixture; sprinkle with parmesean cheese.

FRESH SPINACH PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Put the spinach into a glass mixing bowl. Season with a tiny pinch of salt. Cover with plastic wrap. Cook in microwave, on high, for four or five minutes, or until well collapsed.
• Remove and chop very finely, or bring in a processor, do not wring dry.
• Put flour, salt and gluten into the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir. Add spinach and eggs.
• Work, with the dough hook attached, over speed 4 until a dough comes together, that pulls away from the sides.
• Reduce speed to 2, and allow mass to be kneaded for 7 or 8 minutes.
• Rest, covered, 30 minutes before use.

LOW-FAT SPINACH AND RICOTTA PASTA

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté until onions are soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes, making sure the garlic doesn't brown.
• Add spinach and basil to the skillet and stir until wilted.
• Then add ricotta cheese and milk (and optional lemon juice and zest) to skillet and stir well.
• Drain pasta, reserving 1/4 cup or so of the cooking water.
• Combine cooked pasta and ricotta mixture in a large bowl. If it is too thick, add a bit of the cooking water to the mixture.
• Serve immediately with some freshly ground black pepper and an optional 1 teaspoon of grated Parmesan cheese per serving.