Pasta Dough

PASTA DOUGH:

1 1/2 cup Semolina Flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

2 TBls water

2 Tbls olive oil

Combine semolina and salt.  Add beaten eggs, water and oil in the center of the flour.  Slowly blend until it makes a stiff dough.  Knead 10 minutes or until the dough is elastic.  Wrap dough in plastic wrap and rest for 20 minutes.  When ready, on a lightly floured surface, roll our dough using a pasta machine to the number #6. and assemble raviolis. 

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Lemon Pasta Dough

Lemon Pasta Dough

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 egg
Zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a food processor combine the flour, egg, zest, juice, oil, and salt. Process until dough forms. Depending on the flour, you made need to add a bit of water or more flour. Dump onto a floured work surface and knead until smooth, about 3-5 minutes. Wrap in plastic and let rest on the counter for 10-15 minutes.

 If you look real close you can see the lemon zest in the dough.

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Homemade Udon Noodles

Homemade Udon Noodles

3 cups plus 1 TBLS flour unbleached all purpose

1 Tbls salt

1 cup water

put the flour and salt in a food processor, pulse a few times to blend.  

Add the water thru the top slowly until it makes course pellets.

Dump the flour mixture on a clean counter and knead dough for approximately 8 minutes until it becomes softer and smoother. 

Make it into a ball and wrap it in plastic wrap and let it rest for 1 hour. 

Take it out of the plastic wrap. Put it into a large plastic zip lock bag (I didn't have a large bag, so I cut the dough into 1/4th and put it into small zip lock bags.

This is when you use your feet ( REMEMBER IT IS IN A PLASTIC ZIP LOCK BAG AND YOU HAVE CLEAN SOCKS ON) to press out the dough flat, then fold the dough in half and step on it again until flat. Do this a couple of times until it becomes smooth. This gives you the texture and chewiness of the noodle. 

Roll the dough into a ball, place in zip lock bag and let rest for 1 hour.

Take the dough out of the bag, use a noodle press, pasta machine or roll it out flat and cut it by hand to make the noodles. 

Boil for around 3 minutes, drain hot water and put noodles in cold water to stop the cooking. Then use your noodles however you like. You can make this with the noodles if you would like: 

Pan Fried Udon Noodles with Beef, Broccoli and Shiitakes 

Here is a video on how to make Udon noodles:

making udon noodles 

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Asian Salmon

Asian Salmon

2 TBLS sesame oil

1 Lbs salmon

salt and pepper

1 TBLS honey
1 TBLS soy sauce

TO COOK SALMON: 

1) Preheat broiler. Heat large skillet on high heat. Season salmon on non-skin side with salt & pepper, generously. Add oil to the hot skillet: the oil should sizzle. Add salmon to the skillet non-skin side down (skin side up) and sear for 4 minutes, moving the fish around the skillet to make sure oil coats the surface of the fish and that the fish is not sticking to the pan while searing.

2) After these 4 minutes, turn the fish over to the skin side and sear for another 3 minutes on high heat. After searing on the skin side, you can actually remove salmon skin easily at this point and discard, if you don’t like to eat it.

3) Mix honey and soy sauce together, heating it a little bit in microwave or on stove top to soften the honey. Brush top of salmon with the honey-soy sauce. Place salmon under the broiler for 3 minutes, watching carefully not to burn salmon. Brush with more sauce midway through broiling, if desired. Broil for a total of 3 minutes until the top of salmon becomes a little charred.

4) At this point, salmon is ready to be served. Or, you can keep salmon covered until you’re ready to serve. If your salmon is a little bit undercooked in the middle, then keeping it covered for several minutes before serving will also allow the salmon to continue cooking and it will be perfectly done and not dry when you’re ready to serve!

PRINTABLE RECIPE

Focaccia Bread in One Hour

Why not make your own bread? Because it is cheaper and it can be really easy.  Check out this Focaccia Bread you can make in an hour.  I like to use Focaccia bread for sandwiches.  My kids love their sandwiches with this bread!! Make it, you will be surprised.   

I found this recipe online at: 

http://www.crunchycreamysweet.com

Focaccia Bread in One Hour

1. For the dough
2. 3/4 c warm water
3. 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
4. 1 1/2 tsp yeast (I used Red Star Active Dry Yeast)
5. 2 Tbsp olive or canola oil
6. 2 c all-purpose flour ( divided )
7. 1/2 tsp salt
for the parmesan butter brush:
8. 3 Tbsp unsalted or salted butter, melted
9. 1 Tbsp grated parmesan
10. 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1. Place water and sugar in a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer. Stir until sugar dissolves.
2. Sprinkle yeast over the water and stir few times. Let sit until foamy ( about 5 minutes).
3. Turn the mixer on low speed and add 1 cup of flour and salt. Mix until combined.
4. Add oil and mix well.
5. Gradually add as much of the remaining cup of flour as you can ( it can be only 3/4 of it) and mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
6. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 220 degrees F and when it's ready turn it off. Keep the door closed.
7. Grease the skillet.
8. Place dough onto a floured surface (use the remaining flour from the second cup) and fold the dough few times until you feel it's smooth and not sticky anymore. Shape into a ball.
9. Roll out the dough into a size of your skillet.
10. Place in skillet. Stretch up the sides. Cover with a kitchen towel and place in the oven for 20 minutes.
11. Take the skillet out of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Make indentations in the dough with your fingers.
12. Mix melted butter, parmesan and seasoning in a small bowl. Brush the dough with half the butter.
13. Place skillet with dough in the preheated oven and bake 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Brush with remaining butter. Let cool until safe to the touch and slice. Serve.

PRINTABLE RECIPE

 After I rolled it out and placed it in my oiled 10 inch cast iron pan

 This is after I had it in the warm oven for 20 mins

 I poked it

Brushed it with butter and italian seasoning and sprinkled parmesan cheese on it. 

 Baked this for 20 minutes

This was so good and just like the kind you buy in the stores and spend a lot of money on them.