An Ode to Homemade Noodles | Spaghetti Primavera

Guest Blogger: Madigan Naylor
copyright 2012 Art of Living, PrimaMedia, Inc.

Why does everyone make such a ‘big deal’  about homemade pasta? What is the difference, and why does everyone prefer homemade  over store-bought? Whenever I go to someone’s house for a dinner party and the hostess mentions that she made the pasta herself, everyone always “oohs” and “ahhs” over that fact that she made it fresh herself instead of just buying it in the grocery store, dried and boxed up. So why does everyone make a big deal out of this? I prefer my pasta to be cooked to a certain level of al dente, and I can achieve this by cooking dry pasta just the way I like it. When I ask people why they like fresh pasta better, they say it’s like fresh fish versus canned fish. There’s a very noticeable difference. There’s nothing wrong with the dried pasta, but the fresh pasta brings entirely new sensations to your taste buds! Once you’ve made fresh pasta, you most likely never go back to the store-bought noodles.

Making homemade is a bit time-consuming and the equipment is expensive. It is doable, however.  Luckily for us  cutting and rolling machines are available in many gourmet stores that make it  a whole lot easier. The end product is so different from the dried store bought. I feel like the sauce is absorbed more in the dishes with the fresh pasta, which enhances the flavors of the dish as well. When you eat fresh pasta, you can taste the hours that went  into making it, and it is well worth it. Obviously fresh food products are always healthier and more refreshing than dried ingredients. Same goes with herbs–– fresh basil is much tastier and complements the ingredients and enriches its overall of the dish.
While dried pasta sold at the supermarket can always be cooked into a wonderful dish or meal, fresh pasta makes the meal an experience!. Next time you have some time to plan ahead, I would strongly recommend the homemade pasta–– it really can make a huge difference!
Spaghetti Primavera
(from The Basic Art of Pasta copyright 2012 Art of Living, PrimaMedia,Inc/Maria Liberati)

1  lb of spaghetti-fresh or dried

3 fresh red, ripe plum tomatoes
2 tblsps of freshly grated parmigiana cheese
1 handful of basil
A handful of parsley
A clove of garlic
2 tblsps of extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
Cook pasta till al dente. While pasta is cooking prepare the sauce. Chop the tomatoes, basil, garlic and parsley. Drain pasta and place pasta in a serving bowl. Place on top chopped tomatoes, parsley, basil and garlic. Toss this.
In a frying pan place in 2 tblsps olive oil. Warm till oil begins to bubble. Then pour over spaghetti. Cover spaghetti bowl and leave covered for 1 minute. Mix and serve. Sprinkle freshly ground parmigiana on top of each individual serving.

June 18th-See you at Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse in Philadelphia at my event as part of the Celebrity Chefs Dinners. For more info email us at  events@marialiberati.com