Ok, my last post was a bit Ray Mears and probably there were a few expletives from anyone finding themselves crawling around the undergrowth looking for a dock-leaf to tend those nettle stings.
Well, Liam from three doors down came round today, they'd been having a spring clean of their kitchen cupboards and found a bag of rye flour with a handful left in.
What to do with remnants of flour?? I think you've guessed at the title, all across the land mass of Europe and Asia for hundreds of years different cultures have been storing and eating their grains in the form of pasta , be it noodles, pappardelle or vareniki.
I had to think on my feet here, Rye flour is very absorbant to moisture and has high soluble fibre so doesnt crisp up in the same way as wheat. So I added a good tablespoon of fine maize meal to the handful of Liam's Rye flour, maize meal is really cheap, I got 1Kg for less than a pound sterling and its great for thickening things, making 'Jonny Cakes', making tortillas and anything wheat free you can imagine (even cake!!). Maize has xanthen in it which loves water so it balances the water holding properties of Rye. So heres the recipe for wheat free spiralli.
1.Take a good handful of Rye flour and a good tablespoon of fine maize meal (thats the big spoon!)and mix together.
2. Add water slowely and mix until you get a firm dough. No need to give it time to rest, get stuck in straight away this isnt a pastry class!!
3. Pinch off a bit at a time and roll into thin worms on a wooden board, no thicker than knitting needle and trim to 2 inches in lengths, or the length of your thumb.
4. Now here's the bit where you might need to grab a seat, grab a friend or a willing partner, put on the radio and get twisting. Take your pasta worm and wrap around a lightly floured chopstick or similiar to create your spiral shap, and slide off onto a suitable baking tray or flat surface for drying. I've seen Italians use pieces of clean cardboard for drying pasta on so why not?
The spiralling process takes a bit of practice and time, but with good company and some good conversation its a rich experience. My partner Jane was a wonderful pasta team member, she does have pasta making experience so whilst I did the pinching and rolling she did the twisting, and I think in our conversation we put the worlds to right along the way.
5. Ok, hopefully you've carpeted your front room with sheets of drying pasta now. I left mine 24 hours to dry as the weather has been damp and unsettled, but on a good sunny day you could have this made in the morning and dried and ready for your tea.
The drying process helps the pasta keep its shape whilst cooking so if its looking a bit damp leave it a bit longer, a good tip is to give the drying tray a shake and a good sound and movement of the pasta should reassure you if its ready or not.
6. This is the best bit. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, when its on a rolling boil drop in your pasta. I start counting here, my golden rule is 3 mins. After 3 minutes drain, toss with oil, seasoning or add to a sauce and enjoy.
Pass us the nettle pesto....!!
No comments:
Post a Comment