Tomato Pasta Dough
Submitted by casey1033
Homemade tomato pasta dough tinted a gorgeous rosy-orange from tomato paste, with optional fresh basil kneaded right in. Make it by hand or food processor, then roll into fettuccine, ravioli, or any shape you like.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
10 minREADY
40 minMaking your own pasta sounds like a project, but this dough comes together faster than you’d expect, and the payoff is unreal.
Tomato paste gives it a beautiful sunset color and a subtle, concentrated tomato flavor that pairs with practically any sauce you throw at it.
Optional fresh basil flecked through the dough adds green specks and an herby fragrance that hits you the moment you start rolling.
You can knead it by hand on the counter the old-fashioned way, or pulse it together in a food processor if you’re short on time.
Variations
- Swap tomato paste for pureed sun-dried tomatoes for a deeper, more intense flavor.
- Skip the egg and bump the olive oil to 1 tablespoon for a vegan version.
- Roll it thin for delicate fettuccine or keep it a bit thicker for stuffed ravioli and cannelloni.
Pro Tips
- The dough should feel smooth and elastic after kneading, not sticky or crumbly. Add water or flour a tiny bit at a time to dial it in.
- Let hand-kneaded dough rest for at least an hour wrapped in plastic. This relaxes the gluten and makes rolling much easier.
- Drape cut pasta over a chair back or hanger for 10 minutes before cooking. This quick dry keeps the strands from clumping together.
- Dusted with flour, cut pasta freezes beautifully in bags for months.
Ingredients
Directions
To make dough by hand: Mound the flour on a work surface basil (if desired), and salt to depression.
Slowly incorporate the egg mixture into flour with a fork or your fingertips until it’s evenly and thoroughly absorbed.
Add water 1 teaspoon at a time, as necessary, to form a workable dough.
Knead 5 to 10 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic.
If dough is sticky, add a small amount of flour.
If dough is dry, add water while kneading, a few drops at a time.
Wrap dough in plastic wrap and let rest for 1 hour, or for several hours.
To make dough in a food processor: Add flour, eggs, oil, tomato paste, basil (if desired), and salt to processor and pulse several times while adding small amounts of water until incorporated (dough will be crumbly, not elastic.)
Knead as directed in preceding method.
Food processor pasta dough doesn’t require a resting period, but it doesn’t hurt either.
Refrigerated dough should be returned to room temperature before rolling.
Rolling and cutting the dough: Using a hand-cranked pasta desired thinness.
Filled pastas such as ravioli and cannelloni, should not be rolled too thin and can be shaped right away.
For cut pasta such as fettuccine or linguine, drape the rolled pasta sheets over the back of a chair or cardboard- covered clothes hanger for about 10 minutes.
This brief drying time will prevent the pasta from sticking together when cut.
Cut pasta can be cooked immediately, or dried, or dusted with flour and frozen in bags for late use Pasta sheets can be stored lightly dusted with flour and wrapped in plastic. This recipe is for an egg pasta. Omit the egg and increase the olive oil to 1 tablespoon for an eggless version.
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