Rolling and Cutting by Hand

Divide the dough into manageable balls and keep them covered until needed.

Working ball by ball, press out the center wit your hand. Using a long rolling pin, roll each evenly and smoothly on a board lightly dusted with flour. Lift and turn the dough often, and don't be in a hurry; you want an even thinly rolled sheet of pasta. The pasta will swell a little with cooking, so roll it thinner than the desired cooked thickness. For filled pastas the dough should be almost paper thin.

When you're happy with the proportions, cover each sheet with a layer of plastic wrap, then cover with a damp tea towel to prevent drying out. If the dough is to be cut into strips like tagliatelle, let it dry lightly; this prevents the ribbons from sticking together. Then cut the sheets into rectangles approximately 10 inches long and roll these up, jelly roll style, along their length. Using a sharp knife and with smooth strokes, cut uniform slices that unroll to become, for example, tagliatelle, 0.25 inch wide, pappardelle, 0.75 inch side, or whatever pasta type you decide to make.

Rolling and Cutting with Pasta machine

Starting with the rollers on the widest setting, roll a flattened ball of dough through two or three time.

Fold the dough in thirds and roll again. Repeat this process four of five times or until the dough is a smooth and elastic sheet of even proportions Now pass the dough through the rollers with them set at decreasing widths apart, until the desired thickness is reached. Try to avoid adding flour, bur if dough becomes sticky, a light dusting should help it through.

If, before cutting, the dough seems too wet, let it sit, uncovered, for 15 minutes or so. It should be dry enough so that the cut lengths won't stick together but will still pass through the cutters without cracking. Crank the sheets of dough through the required cutting rollers.

Spread the cut lengths on a dry tea towel, or hand them over the backs of chairs or a broom handle until ready to cook. Pasta make entirely with all purpose flour doesn't dry well; it trends to crack as the moisture evaporates.

Making Filled Pasta

The thinly rolled sheets should be kept under a damp tea towel or pieces of plastic wrap and used quickly.

Have the filling ready before the pasta so you're ready to go as soon as the dough is made. There are three main ways of making filled shapes:

i) Using a Mold: these are trays pressed with the grooves and ridges of different shaped and sized ravioli, which usually come with their own little rolling pin to seal and cut the dough around the filling. They are useful when a uniformly sized and cut pasta is desired.

ii) Sheeted Filling: this is a successful way of making many ravioli quickly. cut tow sheets of dough, one slightly bigger than the other. On the smaller sheet place spoonfuls of filling at even intervals, then brush along the intended cutting lines with beaten egg. Position the larger sheet of pasta over the top neatly and run over the cutting lines with your finger to make sure that both sheets of pasta are touching together. Now cut the shapes out with a floured pastry wheel. The best one to use is a cutter-crimper that cuts and seals at the same time. A zigzag wheel is also effective.

iii) Folded by Hand: this method gives a well-sealed ravioli as each one is pressed together by hand. Working with one sheet of pasta at a time, cut out the shapes required (round for a half-moon ravioli; squares for triangles; rectangles for squares) and brush the borders with beaten egg. Place a spoonful of filling to one side of the center line of each. Fold the dough over the filling to match corresponding edges, press between the finger and then seal the cut edge with a pastry cutter. Place finished stuffed pasta on a tray or plate dusted with semolina or rice flour and store in the refrigerator before cooking.