Covered in flour: vegan pasta from scratch

If at first you don't succeed, try, try, and try again. If there's a pasta machine involved, maybe wait for the flour to settle first.

For my birthday I was lucky enough to be given a pasta maker from my parents. I have been wanting to make my own pasta after watching Michela Chiappa's Simply Italian on channel 4 (which, like Little Paris Kitchen and anything Nigel Slater's ever touched, makes for perfect sick-day viewing). Michela has a ton of useful tips for making pasta which I had never come across including using polenta or semolina to stop the pasta from sticking and some beautiful ways of adding herbs and colours to homemade pasta.

My first attempt at making egg-free pasta obviously was nowhere near as easy as Michela makes it look. However, I've managed to eat a meal from each attempt I've made, and the good news is it does get easier and quicker! Once you've got a knack to it and an evening free, dried pasta will feel pretty drab in comparison to the gorgeous pasta shapes you'll be able to make in around an hour. And if all else fails, you can always make bows!

Makes enough for four-six portions (but you can also freeze the dough to use at another point)

Ingredients
2 cups plain flour
1 cup 00 flour (I use a mix of flours and so far this mix has lead to the best results but you may want to experiment)
1  and 1/4 to 1 and 1/2 of water
Pinch of salt

Pour the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour in the water slowly, incorporating a little flour from the edges each time to gradually build up a ball of dough. Use your hands to get all the flour and water mixed together- it needs to be moist but not sticky.

Turn on to a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. These will feel like the longest 10 minutes of your life but after about six you will see the dough begin to change and feel stronger and more elastic- add a little more water if you need it to keep it moist.

Cover the pasta with clingfilm and set it aside in the fridge for half an hour. In this time I start making a sauce to go with the pasta. You could also set up a tray or large plate for your pasta to dry on while you're making the batch. Sprinkle polenta or semolina over the try to stop the pasta sticking, as this will fall to the bottom of the saucepan when boiling the pasta and will not effect the taste.

After 30 minutes is up chop the pasta into four pieces so it is easier to work with, while keeping the rest covered so they don't dry out. I have found each of these portions makes enough for two meals, so you could freeze one of the pieces at this point to use for lasagne sheets or anything else you want to have some homemade pasta on hand for.

Take one of the pasta dough pieces and with your hands stretch it into a shape similar to a lasagne sheet. I have found this easiest to work with through the pasta machine. On the widest setting, roll the pasta through the machine twice. Then run through each roller setting until you get to the thinnest. You may need to fold it over if it gets too long, and add more flour to the pasta and machine if it starts to stick. It doesn't really matter how it looks at this point, just to get it through the rollers.

Once you've been through each setting twice, roll it through your chosen pasta shaper- I've been using the wider setting to make fettucine as this is easiest for now. Hold the pasta loosely in your hands as it comes out the rollers so it doesn't stick together, then place on the polenta tray.

After you've shaped all the pasta, boil a saucepan full of salted water. In another little pan, take a few spoonfuls of the sauce you've made and heat up gently. Once the water is bubbling, drop the pasta in and move around with a fork to stop it cooking together. It should cook much faster than dried pasta- in about 2 to 4 minutes. Then lift out and place in the smaller pan with the pasta sauce, and cook for another minute. This will allow the pasta to soak up the sauce while it is still cooking. Trust me, the finished result is entirely worth the faff.

Amelie's two sauce pasta

To borrow a phrase from Brian Cox, I am not being unduly hyperbolic when I say that Amelie's two sauce pasta is the stuff of legend round the few weird streets of London where I live. People have been known to cross rivers (mostly the Thames), climb mountains (mainly the steps to Amelie's old flat) and brave the two-for-£5 merlot from the local offy to get their hands on a bowl of this stuff.

It may not sound like much, but when it's been left to simmer and there's 1kg of pasta boiling on the stove, somehow it just becomes the tastiest thing ever. Doused within an inch of its life with olive oil and more garlic than truly decent, this is a rich, vegan supper and can easily be made gluten-free with the addition of GF pasta.

After nearly a year of pestering, Amelie finally gave me the recipe for the two sauces last week. Since then I've tried three times to recreate it, and barely come close. So the photos here are of Amelie's two sauce pasta, and Amelie's unadulterated recipe. Because there's no way I'm about to tinker with it.

For 4 people:

2 carrots (not too big)

2 onions (red or white)

2 tins of plum tomatoes (not chopped)

6 cloves of garlic (AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE) 

Good chilli (doesn't have to be spicy, it needs to have a nice chili taste) (I used piment d'espelette powder which I steal from my mum's shop. It's delicious because it gives a nice strong taste of chili without making it super spicy)

N.B.: if you use fresh chili, do not chop it as it will be too spicy (i.e. arrabbiata) Use one or two whole chili instead, and leave it in the saucepan til you serve the pasta.

Thyme

Tomato paste (optional)

Olive oil, of course - half a bottle if possible.

Basil

Start by chopping the onions, carrots, basil stems and garlic. Heat the oil in a saucepan and once it's hot, add the onions, basil stems & thyme and let the onions sweat for a bit.

Add the finely chopped carrots, the garlic and the chili and let it cook for around 10 minutes. You could also add a tablespoon of tomato paste. Add salt. Once the carrots are cooked, add the tomatoes and half a tin of water (or a bit more, depending on the thickness of the tomato juice).

DON'T crush the tomatoes yet. Let them cook nicely.

Put the lid on the saucepan but don't close the whole thing, leave some steam out. The tomatoes need to cook for 15-20 minutes, then they'll be easy to crush. After you crushed the tomatoes, the sauce will have to reduce a little bit as you will release some of the tomatoes' juice (sounds gross).

Put it on a very low heat, with the lid covering 3/4 of the pan...and leave it like this for up to 30 minutes.

It doesn't have to cook for ages and it's quite nice when you let it 'rest' for a bit before serving.

Don't forget to add salt and pepper and a SPLASH of olive oil. You could add some more chili powder too.

Voila!

Add the chopped basil leaves at the end, on the plate (and some olive oil).

OR make a pesto - olive oil, basil, 1 clove of garlic, almond or pine nuts depending on how rich you are, salt and pepper. N.B.: I don't recommend making pesto with cashew nuts...that's like fusion food gone too far.

One of the most important things about this recipe is to make sure the onions and carrots are well cooked and that the onions/carrots/garlic/chili/thyme mix is really tasty on its own. 

In spring/summer you could replace the carrots with a red pepper - yummy!

The mighty minestrone

It's bright, it's cold, it's time for minestrone. Perfect for sick days and hangovers alike, I love cooking up a huge pot and just leave it covered on the hob over the weekend. The word minestrone comes from the idea of a big and very substantial soup, and is believed to PRE-DATE the Roman Empire! Woah there. Although there are many recipes using meat stock or leftovers from other dishes, the earliest origins of minestrone are said to be when the Latin tribes of Rome lived off a vegetarian diet by necessity, making minestrone vegan by default, which is truly the best kind!

Makes enough for four

Ingredients
1 pack of Pedon Italian-style minestrone with pasta (or use your preferred pulses and teensy pasta)
3 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped,
2 cloves garlic
Olive oil
1 carton chopped tomatoes
Handful fresh and ripe tomatoes
1 handful chopped basil
Salt, Pepper
Vegetable stock

In a large pan, sweat the onion for 3 minutes in a good glug of olive oil until it starts to go translucent, then add the carrot, garlic and minestrone mix. Add a little more olive oil to make sure everything is covered in it, then pour in around 300 ml of vegetable stock (or enough so it covers the entire mix, with an extra inch of water in the pan- as the pulses and pasta will absorb this). Leave on a medium heat for about 10-20 minutes (as per instructions for the pulses you have used).

While the minestrone is cooking, chop up the tomatoes into small chunks, along with the basil.  Add along with the carton of chopped tomatoes to the soup.

Leave to cook for another 20-30 minutes until the pulses have absorbed all the flavour and the soup has thickened up- season to taste, then eat with plenty of doorstep bread.

Pronto! Perfect minestrone.

800 miles away

I had some time off from London last week. I left behind my Blackberry, laptop, Twitter feed and everything else, only bringing my camera along for the ride.

Summer Suppers: Courgette and pea pasta with vegan basil and parsley pesto

Courgette and pea pasta with vegan basil and parsley pesto


Inspired by Yotam Ottolenghi's Fried courgette pasta in Plenty, this is a super easy dish to put together before the sun goes down, and of course, if you make enough it just gets better for lunch the next day.


Because the sauce here is a vegan pesto, the pasta is best if it's light and not shaped to absorb much sauce - the main thing is that you use plenty of the best olive oil you can get your hands on, as that's what will bring out the flavour in the courgettes and peas.

Yields four portions, i.e. dinner for two and lunch for two.


Ingredients:
400g pasta
1 courgette, chopped into 5mm width slices on the side
1 onion, chopped and diced
Two good handfuls of peas
1 handful of basil 
1/2 handful of parsley
Olive oil
Salt and pepper


Heat a frying pan with a little oil and start to fry the courgette pieces. It's vital you don't over-crowd the pan as they will go soggy and steam each other instead of crisp up. So take your time and do in three or four batches. Leave to drain away any excess oil in a colander over a plate.


Now you're only a few minutes away from serving, so put the kettle on to boil and pour into a saucepan with the pasta to start cooking, adding salt if you want.


Without washing the frying pan, add the onions and allow to go slightly translucent, then add the peas. They'll take on the oil and juices from the onion and taste even better.


If you have a herb chopper knife, chop the basil and parsley as small as it will go, and mix with around three or four tablespoons of olive oil, and plenty of salt and pepper. If you have a hand blender you could also use this to chop the herbs, or just use the sharpest knife you have to really chop it all up tiny. You've now got your vegan pesto.


Drain the pasta and allow to cool in the pan for a few seconds. In this time you can transfer the onions, peas and courgettes into a big serving dish. Pour in the pasta and the pesto to the mix, and then give everything a good stir. Add a little extra olive oil or pepper to taste, and you're good to go.