Huffington Magazine Issue 46 | Page 70

Exit E KNOW the convenience of packaged food has changed the way we live our lives, in many ways for the better. Sometimes we’re in a such a rush to get dinner on the table that we need a 10-minute meal. But at the same time, too many of us think of food as something that comes from a box or a can, unaware of what it actually takes to make some of the most basic foods. When it comes to something as simple as the ingredients in pasta (the answer being nothing more than flour and water — and sometimes eggs), many are left scratching their heads, not sure how to start. We’re advocating that you take advantage of those days where there is time to make dinner to really make a meal from scratch. It’ll remind you of how fun cooking can be. The best place to start with this slow-down cooking is to make fresh, homemade pasta. The thought of making pasta from scratch may seem like too complicated a task to broach, but it takes two ingredients and a pasta machine — it couldn’t get any simpler. And with homemade pasta, you barely need to worry about a sauce because EAT THIS HUFFINGTON 04.28.13 CULTURA/BRETT STEVENS/GETTY IMAGES W Too many of us think of food as something that comes from a box or a can, unaware of what it actually takes to make some of the most basic foods.” the pasta itself is the star of the show. It takes only minutes to cook when done, and if you make a big batch you can freeze it and have 10-minute dinners ready to go for those busy nights. From start to finish, making fresh pasta won’t take longer than an hour. It takes 10 minutes to make the dough, 30 minutes to let it rest (time you can take to prepare the rest of dinner) and 20 minutes to roll it out. Once all that’s done, dinner can be on the table in less than five minutes, since it only takes four minutes to boil freshly-made pasta. Here’s how it’s done: