Home made pasta and Sheffield cheese

By Viktoria Garbett

I started making pasta from scratch to get my children involved in the cooking and encourage them to eat healthily. 

The basic pasta dough recipe can be coloured and flavoured which is a great way to get kids interested and as for shaping, the options are endless.

Basic pasta dough

Ingredients (per person)

• 100g 00 flour / strong bread flour

• 1 medium free range egg

• 1 tbsp water (if needed) 

Method

· Get a wooden or silicone board ready, clean and dry it

· Measure your flour and make it into a well

· Break the egg into the middle of the flour well

· Mix (with your hands) for 4-5 minutes until it becomes silky and no longer sticks to your hands

· Add a splash of water if the dough feels too dry. If you are using large eggs, you will not need any water.

· Wrap in cling film so the dough is completely covered (otherwise it will dry out)

· Refrigerate for 30minutes

· The dough is good for up to 3 days if kept in the fridge. Note that if you use colours the colour can change with time e.g. get a bit darker.

· If you are using beetroot powder / turmeric / cacao powder / paprika to colour the dough, simply add a teaspoon of this to the other ingredients. Best to mix this with the flour before adding the egg. 

Little Mesters Mushroom Sauce

This is named after the soft Sheffield made cheese that I like to use in this recipe. If you can’t get hold of it any mild, soft cheese will do 

Serves 4

Ingredients

· 200 grams chestnut mushroom

· 100 grams wild mushroom

· 100 ml single cream

· 50 ml white wine (optional)

· 40 grams butter

· 2 tablespoons olive oil

· 2-3 larger shallots /1 large red onion

· 2 cloves of garlic

· Handful of fresh thyme / 1 tablespoon of dried thyme

· 1 Little Mester Cheese

· Salt

· Pepper (ideally mixed peppercorns)

Method

· Melt the butter while you chop the vegetables

· Fry the mushroom, onions, garlic until soften in a large saucepan

· Add the thyme

· Add the wine and cook for 2-3 minutes

· Slowly add the single cream, cook this for a further 2-3 minutes

· Add the Little Mester

· Season with salt and a generous amount of ground mixed peppers.

By Viktoria Garbett

I use these recipes as a way to introduce healthy nuts like walnuts into by children’s diets.

Here are two variations – one with poppy seeds and one with ground walnuts.

Poppy Pasta (serves 4)

Ingredients

· 400 grams dried or 500 grams fresh pasta

· 200 grams ground poppy seed

· 150 grams icing sugar

· 50 grams unsalted butter

· Pinch of salt

Method

· Cook the pasta in salty boiling water

· Melt the butter in a large saucepan

· Add a pinch of salt

· Add the poppy seed, toast this for a couple of minutes

· Gradually add the icing sugar, but leave a few spoonful for the end

· Add the cooked pasta to the poppyseed mix

· Sprinkle with the rest of the icing sugar 

Walnut Pasta (serves 4)

Ingredients

· 400 grams dried or 500 grams fresh pasta

· 200 grams ground walnuts

· 150 grams icing sugar

· 50 grams unsalted butter

· Pinch of salt

· Apricot jam (optional) 

Method

· Cook the pasta in salty boiling water.

· Melt the butter in a large saucepan

· Add a pinch of salt

· Add the ground walnuts, toast this for a couple of minutes

· Gradually add the icing sugar, but leave a few spoonful for the end

· Add the cooked pasta to the walnuts mix

· Sprinkle with the rest of the icing sugar

· Also nice with some apricot jam.