The Verni Pasta Factory

In the winter, when my sister and I were home from school for a snow day, or winter break, there would always be one day when we didn't want to go outside, there was nothing on TV, and the roads weren't plowed so we couldn't see anyone or have anyone over. That would leave only one thing to do. One thing that would take the entire day. "Dad, can we make pasta today?"

Dad did the most work when it came to making pasta, so it was always up to him, and he never said no. When my parents had remodeled the kitchen upon buying the house, they saved the piece of the counter that was cut out for the sink, and this was our all-purpose workspace. Dad would lay it on the kitchen table, measure out the flour, and dump it in a big pile on the board. Then he'd make a well, crack a few eggs into it, and mix it all together with his hands. I don't remember ever seeing him use a recipe or even use exact measurements, and for pasta, you don't really have to. There are only those two ingredients, and if the dough can be kneaded without sticking to your hands, then you got it right.

We'd assemble the Atlas Pasta Maker and clamp it to the kitchen counter, and this was where my sister and I came in. This was always a three-person job. One person to feed the dough through the rollers, one to turn the crank, and one to catch the pasta. And of course we wanted a turn at every position. But when it was time to run the dough through the cutting rollers, Dad was always the one to catch because he'd then immediately hang the pasta on a collapsible clothes rack to dry. We always made enough to fill the entire rack, but I'd sneak a strand or two off and eat it raw. This was before I knew anything about salmonella.

After the pasta was dry, Mom would boil a giant pot of water, and in a second pot, she'd make alfredo sauce. This was the only way we ever ate fresh pasta. It was always cut into fettuccine and it was always served with alfredo sauce. Then I'd beg her to put ham in the sauce. And when it was all done, we ate every last noodle.

Now I have an Atlas of my own, and make the whole thing myself. Feeding, cranking, and catching is a bit of a challenge with no help, but it's manageable. And my favorite thing to do with leftover Christmas ham is dice it up and throw it into the alfredo sauce.


Verni Family Fettuccine Alfredo

Pasta:
The ratio is 2 parts eggs to 3 parts flour by weight. If you don't have a scale, use the following for 3-4 people:
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 eggs
A pinch of salt

Alfredo Sauce:
1 stick of butter
2 cups heavy cream
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, plus more for serving
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese

To make the pasta using a stand mixer, add the flour to the bowl, create a well in the center and add the eggs and a pinch of salt. Using the dough hook attachment, let the mixer run until the dough has gathered into a ball. You may have to scrape down the sides of the bowl. If you don't have a stand mixer, you can do this all by hand. Start with a fork and mix the eggs together in the well, gathering flour little by little as you go. Once the mixture starts to stick to the fork, use your hands to mix the dough until it's smooth. If it's too sticky, add more flour. If it's too dry, add a little water.

Form the dough into a ball, place in a covered bowl, and let it rest for 15 minutes. In the meantime, assemble your pasta machine. When the dough is ready, roll it out into a half inch thickness and cut into 4 pieces. Run each piece through the machine at the thickest setting, and continue through each consecutive setting until you reach the 7th setting. The dough may become sticky throughout this process, so dust the sheets with flour whenever necessary. You will also need to keep the length manageable. I find that around the 4th setting, the pieces will start to become too long. Just cut them in half an continue.

Leave the sheets hanging to dry slightly, about half an hour. If you try to run the dough through the rollers at this point, the dough will be too soft and you'll end up with a single sheet of pasta dough with the markings of where the cutting roller pressed it.

When the dough is still floppy, but you can't feel much moisture, run each piece through the fettuccine roller and hang the pasta to dry completely.

Bring a large pot of water to boil, and while waiting for the water to boil, assemble the sauce.

For the sauce, heat the butter in a medium sauce pan (if you want to add diced ham, this is where you would do that, and let the ham cook for about a minute.), add the minced garlic and cook for a few seconds, just to release the flavor. Next add the cream, constantly whisking as you go, to incorporate it.

Add the pasta to the boiling water. Fresh pasta only takes about 2 minutes to cook, so watch it carefully. When the pasta is done, strain it and reserve about 2 tablespoons of the cooking water to remain in the pot, so the pasta doesn't stick. Remove the sauce from the heat and add the pepper and cheese, stirring to mix thoroughly. Add salt to taste.

Pour the sauce into the pasta and gently toss. Serve with fresh ground pepper and extra grated parmesan.

Serves 4