Foolproof Pasta

Making pasta at home can seem really daunting, but with the right tools, you can be making pasta of all shapes in sizes in no time!  The traditional way to make pasta is using the well-method, where you put a big pile of flour on a flat surface and create a well in the middle for the eggs. You gradually mix the flour into the eggs until you form a dough. But this method can be hard to master, so for the purposes of this post, I am going to show you the base recipe for pasta that you can make right in your KitchenAid mixer. No messy hands and no kneading required!  Once you feel confident with how pasta dough should look and feel, you can use this same recipe with the well-method.

To make the fancy pasta shapes shown in the pictures above, you will also need the KitchenAid Pasta Extruder attachment (which can be found here). I love this attachment because it takes all of the guesswork out of pasta making. You can make so many different types of pasta (spaghetti, rigatoni, bucatini, fusilli, macaroni, and more) with the one attachment and it is so easy to use. And the best part is – clean up isn’t that bad either!

Print Recipe

Foolproof Pasta

This is my favorite pasta recipe - it makes the best textured pasta that is a beautiful color from the semolina and the extra yolks. This pasta dough is easy to make but seems very impressive!

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups semolina flour
• Pinch of salt
• 5 large whole eggs plus 2 yolks
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

• Fit your KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the flour, semolina flour and salt. 
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs. 
• With the mixer on medium speed, slowly add the eggs to the flour mixture.
• Once the eggs are incorporated,  stop the stand mixer and scrape down the sides.
• Return the mixer to medium speed and add in the olive oil. 
• Allow the mixer to knead the dough for 6-8 minutes, or until it is smooth.
• Remove the dough from the mixer and wrap tightly in plastic wrap.
• Rest the dough at room temperature for 30 minutes. 
• Once the dough is ready, you can either use the KitchenAid pasta extruder to make speciality pasta shapes or use a pasta machine or rolling pin to roll out the dough.
• Once the pasta is in your desired shape, cook in a pot of boiling salted water for 1-8 minutes, depending on thickness. The pasta is complete when it is al dente, or tender but not mushy. 
• Drain the pasta, toss with your favorite sauce and enjoy! 

Notes

Unused pasta dough can be kept in the fridge for 2 days if it is tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and kept in an airtight container.