Pasta Means Pasta!

Jul 20
3 min read

Since the kitchen is the heart of the home, I figured we should talk about pasta! And our kitchen for a few hours in Florence, Italy! We took a pasta making class in Florence in November 2025 and I have to say that this was one of the most fabulous things that we’ve ever done! We both wore bright, colorful, flowery aprons, given to us by our fabulous instructor Orietta. These were cute and charming to see the guys in. Well my guy anyways! Before we made the pasta, we started off making tiramisu, which of course I cannot remember how to make, but I still need to try this one too. And soon! BUT, we have made the pasta at home now and it is so easy and so fun! We bought a little pasta making contraption. The teacher told us you don’t have to buy the most expensive one, just buy the one that's middle of the road. And so that’s what I did! She also told us to use 00 flour! She said this is important!! Why? I cannot remember, but we got it. And we made it! And tonight we are making it again, which is why I decided to write this little blip on how to make pasta. Now, I am no chef and I can follow a recipe, but I’m not good at doing my own thing so don’t take this as Gospel. What I do know is that you use one cup of 00 flour to one egg and she said that this is one serving. So if you have two people, you use 2 cups of 00 flour and two eggs and so on. You literally shape the flour into a mound, scoop out a little hole in the middle for the egg, put the egg in there and then you just start mixing it up. Then you mix it all together with your floured hands. Once it's decently combined, you knead it by pushing it forward with the ball of your hand (hand in fist), then you kind of drag it back towards you...I can't really remember all of the details of this process, but it always just seems to work out! Next, form a little ball and let it rest for a few while you clean up and get the machine out! The way our countertops are in the kitchen, we actually have to open the drawer and screw the tightening mechanism on the pasta maker super tight, and then we can close the drawer! Our countertop edges have a wooden trim on them, so I think they are thicker than normal. Then, I usually lay out a few cutting boards to the left of the machine as a kind of runway for the noodles as they come out and a landing pad to lay the noodles out once they're done. Next, we flatten the ball into a square or rectangle shape and put it through the machine on setting 1. You put the dough through twice for each setting and move on to the next setting. I think we fold this in half the second time through each setting as the dough comes out of the machine. Then you gently pull it out, instead of letting it just drop. Once you get through all of the settings and are about to use the cutting side of the machine, you lightly flour the pieces and cut them in half before putting them into the pasta cutter side, and please don't cut your fingers off!! This is so your noodles aren't two feet long!!! We forgot this the first time - LOL! Anyways, it's actually super easy, kinda foolproof and a LOT of fun! It's so nice when you can eat your own home made pasta along with your own home made pasta sauce!! We're getting pretty good at this part too! So far our specialties are Cacio E Pepe, Pesto and Alfredo!

So, what did we learn in Italy? How to make pasta!! And how do you say pasta in Italian??? It's Pasta! Pasta is Pasta! And...it's super fun to make!

Pasta Means Pasta!

Ciao!

In Florence, Italy