Pasta: An Off-Season Lesson

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Finding more time on your hands these days? Well, before the chaos of the holiday season hits, I like to take the opportunity to learn something new. In this case, that would be pasta. From the experts at Il Villaggio Osteria, I’m learning and refining my pasta-making skills, and encouraging Dishing followers to give it a whirl as well!

Pasta making is a lost art in these parts. Maybe if you grew up with a Sicilian grandmother, you might be already well-versed in the technique. Most pastas are a simple mix of ingredients (flour, water, eggs, oil and salt), but it’s the process that causes most to shy away from the task. When its possible, steer toward the most high-quality of these otherwise simple ingredients: Italian flour, farm-fresh eggs, etc. Better eggs result in richer pasta.osteria pasta

Try the following recipe for Osteria’s pappardelle pasta. A great place to start for beginners, the method is generally simple and can be done without any special equipment (or a Sicilian grandmother).

osteria pastaWith numerous die cutting tools and a machine than can produce 390 shapes, the chefs at Osteria can turn out 25 pounds of pasta in 15 minutes. Think ravioli, fusilli, pappardelle, you name it! Hence the variety of pastas adorning their menu. But why go to all the trouble of homemade pasta? The answer: it’s lighter, richer and aligns with Osteria’s goal to make as much of its items from scratch as possible.

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Sam Simma

Raised in the land of casseroles and deep fried cheese curds, Sam Simma left rural Wisconsin for the mountains of Wyoming in summer 2012. Her appetite for adventure is the only thing that rivals her passion for food. She has always used writing to document and critique her travel and dining experiences. Her warmest memories among family and friends have been associated with the food that was at the center of the occasion. From staging cooking shows with siblings to perfecting turtle brownies with her dad, today Sam enjoys connecting people over food by hosting cookie decorating parties, wine pairing nights, and Midwest-inspired potlucks. A dessert fanatic, she has come to impress friends and family with key lime pies, Oreo bon bons, and Snickers ice cream cakes that are far simpler than they could ever imagine. Shhh! Don’t tell.