All You Need to Make This Healthy Homemade Pasta Is Flour, Salt, and Leafy Greens
This recipe offers a minimalist approach to homemade pasta, utilizing only flour, salt, and leafy greens. It guides you through blending greens into a vibrant dough, kneading to perfection, and shaping fresh pasta. The result is a healthy, wholesome, and customizable base for countless culinary creations, embodying simplicity and fresh flavors.
Equipment
- 1 Kitchen Scale For precise ingredient measurement, crucial for dough consistency.
- 1 Food Processor or High-Speed Blender To finely purée leafy greens into a smooth paste.
- 1 Large Mixing Bowl For initial combining of ingredients and kneading if not on a surface.
- 1 Pasta Machine or Rolling Pin Essential for rolling dough to uniform thinness and cutting shapes.
- 1 Large Pot For boiling the fresh pasta efficiently.
Ingredients
Main
- 100 grams leafy greens like spinach or kale
- 200 grams flour plus extra (all-purpose or King Arthur’s Pasta Flour blend are my preferred choices)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash and thoroughly dry the leafy greens. If using tougher greens like kale, briefly blanch in boiling water, then shock in ice water and squeeze out all excess liquid.
- In a food processor, blend the prepared greens until they form a very fine, smooth purée.
- On a clean work surface, mound the flour and make a well in the center. Add a pinch of salt to the flour.
- Pour the green purée into the well. Using a fork or your hands, gradually incorporate the flour from the sides into the liquid until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes until it becomes smooth, elastic, and uniform in color. Adjust with a tiny bit more flour if too sticky, or a few drops of water/green purée if too dry.
- Wrap the kneaded dough tightly in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or up to 1 hour. This helps the gluten relax.
- Divide the dough into smaller, manageable portions. Lightly dust your work surface and dough with flour.
- Using a pasta machine (or a rolling pin), roll each portion through progressively thinner settings until your desired pasta thickness is achieved.
- Cut the rolled pasta sheets into your preferred shapes (e.g., fettuccine, tagliatelle) using the pasta machine's cutter attachment or a sharp knife. Dust lightly with flour to prevent sticking.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the fresh pasta and cook for 1-3 minutes, or until al dente. Drain immediately and serve with your favorite sauce.
Notes
1. Hydration is paramount: Different greens and flours absorb moisture differently. Adjust flour or a tiny bit of water/green purée until the dough is firm, elastic, and not sticky. It should feel like an earlobe. 2. Kneading is key: Don't skimp on kneading; it develops the gluten, giving the pasta its chew. 3. Rest the dough: This allows the gluten to relax, making the dough much easier to roll thinly without snapping back. 4. Cooking fresh pasta: It cooks much faster than dried pasta, typically 1-3 minutes. Taste frequently for al dente perfection. 5. Blanching greens: For tougher greens like kale, blanching them briefly and squeezing out excess water before blending will ensure a smoother purée and more vibrant color.