Pink Pasta Dough Food

HOW TO MAKE BEET PASTA (PINK PASTA RECIPE)

Steps:

• If you bought beetroot juice, then skip this step. Otherwise, chop the beetroot into small enough pieces to fit your juicer chute and juice it.
• Add the flour to your clean working surface, create a well in the center, and then add the beet juice and oil to the center of the well.Make sure not to do this on a surface that stains easily, as beetroot juice can (and will) stain! Alternatively, you can mix the ingredients in a bowl.
• Use a fork or small spatula to mix from the center outwards, incorporating the ingredients into a 'shaggy' dough.
• Use your hands to knead the dough until smooth. This will take around 10 minutes.You could alternatively do this process in a stand mixer with a dough hook. Start on the lowest setting and increase once it reaches shaggy dough. Mix until the dough is smooth ad supple.
• If the pink pasta dough is a little too wet (i.e., it sticks to your hand a lot), then add a little more flour (just a tsp at a time). Then knead until smooth.It's okay if it's slightly 'tacky', though, as the juice will take some time to absorb into the dough properly. However, if it's still a little sticky after resting (next step), then you'll need to add a little more flour.
• Wrap the pink pasta dough in plastic wrap tightly and allow it to rest for 20-30 minutes in the refrigerator. During this time, the gluten will relax - ready for when you roll and shape the dough. If it isn't ready, then the dough will spring back into shape.
• Once the beet pasta dough is rested, it's time to divide it into more manageable pieces. I tend to separate mine into four pieces. Use a sharp knife or bench scraper to cut the dough ball into rough quarters.Working on one section at a time, cover the remaining pieces with clingfilm to stop them from drying out.
• Roll out the pasta dough. You can do this by hand or using a pasta machine. If you want to make pasta shapes like penne or spaghetti noodles, you can even skip the rolling altogether and use a pasta extruder.
• Dust the surface with semolina or flour and then. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out to around 2-3mm. If the dough starts to stick to the rolling pin, dust the dough's surface with more semolina/flour.
• Once rolled out, sprinkle the beet pasta with a little more semolina/flour and then cut to your desired shape; lasagna sheets, bows, ravioli, or noodles like fettuccine, ribbons, pappardelle, etc.
• To hand cut the noodles, loosely roll the pasta dough, trim the ends, and then use a sharp knife to chop the noodles to your desired width. Once cut, toss with a little more flour/semolina, so the noodles don't stick together.Store any cut pasta under a clean kitchen towel and repeat this step with the remaining dough portions.
• Using one section of the beetroot pasta dough at a time, flatten it just enough to fit the widest setting of your pasta machine - sprinkle generously with semolina/flour.
• Feed the beet dough through the machine, fold it like a letter, and re-feed it through the machine a further three times.
• Continue to feed the dough through the machine, working your way through the settings one at a time until you reach the desired dough thickness. Make sure to sprinkle the dough with flour/semolina well, to stop it from sticking to the machine.
• Once the beet pasta dough is rolled out, you can use your pasta machine attachments (such as beet spaghetti/noodles) or cut the shapes by hand. Then repeat with the remaining dough.
• After you've rolled and shaped all the dough, you can either cook the beet pasta immediately or dry it to store for later (read below).To cook the beet pasta, bring a pot of salted water to a boil, then carefully add the beetroot pasta and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. This may take slightly less/longer based on how thick the pasta is and for ravioli.If you're cooking the pasta from frozen or dried, you'll need to add an extra 1-3 minutes. Once ready, drain and serve with the sauce of your choice! This time, I used homemade pesto. Herby butter and sauces with cheese also work particularly well with beet pasta.
• To dry: to dry the pink noodles, you can form them into nests and dry them either in a dehydrator or at room temperature for several hours (or longer, depending on the humidity and temperature). They are ready when the pasta 'snaps' rather than bends. Once dry, you can store it for several months in an airtight container.Fridge: store the pasta in an airtight container, sprinkled with lots of flour to avoid sticking, and use it within two days. The sooner, the better!Freeze: you can freeze the pasta all together or form it into "nests"/individual portions (my preferred choice). Make sure to sprinkle with extra flour. If you form into nests, then allow them to freeze on a tray before storing them in an airtight container for 2-3 months. You can freeze dry pasta for up to 6 months.

PINK PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Peel and cut into cubes about 300 grams of beet. Pre-boil it in cold water until ready (about 40 minutes). Puree until smooth and allow to cool.
• Mix the ingredients for the dough and knead it. Wrap it in foil and let it rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

BEETROOT PINK PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• ROAST your raw beetroot in a 200c oven until it is cooked through. BLEND the beetroot in a food processor until you have a paste. MIX in the egg and salt into the puree and continue to blend until you have a smooth puree. PLACE your flower on a dry surface and create a well in the middle. POUR the pink puree into the middle of the well and slowly mix in the flour to start creating a dough. (you can also mix the flour and puree in a food processor). KNEAD the pasta mixture well until a silky smooth elastic dough is formed which is similar to the consistency of play-doh. This dough is often sticky due to the moisture of the beetroot, so add extra flour if necessary until the dough stops sticking to your hands. COVER with cling film and leave to rest for 30 minutes. TIPS: See our basic egg pasta dough for instructions on how to roll out pasta You can cook the pasta straight away - it'll be ready in around 10 seconds, but for the best results, leave it to dry overnight as it will retain its colour better. As you pass the dough through the pasta roller, if it starts to stick or struggles to come through the machine, add a light dusting of flour to each side. Cooking the pasta will bleach some of the pink colour out of the pasta, so don't worry if the pasta ends up a little paler than expected. This pasta cooks super quick - if you make it fresh it cooks in under 10 seconds. Always remember to try it before you serve; you want it soft but al dente - with a little bite.

BASIC PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• On a clean dry work surface, make a mound of the flour and, using your fingers, make a well in the center of the mound. Using a fork, break the shell of the eggs one by one and drop the eggs into the center of the well you made of the flour. With the fork, beat the eggs together. Again using the fork, slowly begin to fold the flour in towards the center of the well to incorporate the flour into the beaten eggs. As you mix the flour with the beaten eggs, it will begin to form a doughy mass. Work this mass using your fingers until it begins to lose its moist and sticky character.
• When the mass begins to feel uniformly dry, begin to work the dough using both hands: kneading with the palms of both hands, pushing from the center of the ball of dough outwards and folding the near edge inwards to begin the kneading cycle again. The kneading stage should take about 10 minutes by hand.
• After the dough has been fully kneaded, it is time to thin the dough into sheets suitable for cutting. A manual pasta machine works wonders at this stage. Cut the ball of dough into three equal pieces. Form these pieces, by hand, into equal rectangular shape to be passed through the rollers of the pasta machine. Set the cylindrical rollers at their widest opening, put a piece of dough in the space between rollers and crank the handle to pass the dough through. As the sheet of pasta comes out the bottom of the rollers it should be set on a dry cotton towel to rest while you begin on the next piece. Repeat the thinning process with the remaining pieces of pasta, thinning and then setting aside, consecutively so that each piece of pasta is equally rolled out. When all the pasta has passed through the first rolling stage, set the machine to the next setting to begin rolling the pasta thinner. Start the rolling process again, beginning with the first piece of dough and continue with the remaining pieces. As each is rolled thinner set it aside and continue onto the next.
• As you return to the first piece of dough, set the cylinders one setting closer. Continue in this fashion until the pasta dough has been rolled out as thinly as possible.
• As the sheets of dough rest, keep them on a cotton towel, to prevent sticking to the work surface. When they are all rolled out you are ready to cut the pasta into the desired shape. They can be cut using the cutting wheels of the rolling machine or by hand using a knife.

PERFECT PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Place the first 5 ingredients in a mixer using the paddle attachment (not dough hook).
• Gradually add the water (you may not need it all) until the dough begins to form a ball and is sticky.
• Remove and place on floured service; kneed for 4-5 minutes incorporating enough additional flour into the dough until the tackiness is gone.
• Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes.
• Cut into 6 pieces, and flatten (with roller or by hand) into a rectangular shape. Keep a dish towel over the other pieces to keep them from drying out.
• Run through the pasta machine at the widest setting 6-10 times until the dough is smooth. If one end is narrower than the other, fold the narrow end until the width evens a bit. To make linguine, I then begin narrowing the roller width step by step, sending the noodle though once on each setting, through the second thinnest setting. (Thinnest setting for spaghetti) Place on a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with another towel.
• Repeat with the remaining pieces, slightly flouring in between noodles as you stack them. If the noodles are longer than your baking sheet, cut them in half with a pastry cutter.
• Allow the noodles to sit for 10 minutes before cutting them. It usually takes me longer than 10 minutes to roll the noodles, so I flip the noodles over and start cutting the first one rolled.
• Your sheets of noodles should no longer be tacky, and should process through the cutter without sticking. If the noodles are still sticky, you may want to flour them a bit before putting them through your cutter.
• Place noodles through desired cutter and lay on baking sheet to dry for 10-20 minutes before cooking. Dust each batch with a tiny bit of flour and separate them with your fingers to ensure they don't clump.
• Place in boiling, salted water and cook until they float to the top; 5 minutes or until your desired tenderness.