Homemade fresh fettuccine pasta is easier than you think! It’s far less complicated than bread dough.
I watched The Lady and the Tramp the other night. That famous spaghetti kiss scene always leaves me craving pasta!
Not just any pasta, fresh fettuccine pasta!
Lean into that craving a with this homemade pasta noodles tossed in creamy sauce with bacon and leeks.
Homemade Fresh Pasta
Making pasta from scratch is easier than you’d think. You need a handful of ingredients and a bit of time and patience.
Its far less complicated than bread dough! No yeast, no wondering if the dough will turn out.
It may be a little time-consuming the first time you make it, but it is definitely simple and oh so satisfying.
Key Ingredients
Only a handful of ingredients are needed to make homemade pasta dough:
- Semolina Flour
- All-Purpose Flour
- Salt
- Eggs
Semolina flour is coarsely ground durum wheat. Easily find this flour in the baking aisle of the supermarket. Recommended brands include: Bob’s Red Mill and King Arthur Baking Company.
- Durum wheat is harder and rougher than common wheat.
- Durum what has a high protein content ranging from 12-15%. It is bright yellow in color. Texture is a a bit coarser than all-purpose flour.
All-purpose flour is a blend of soft and hard wheat flours. It has a protein content ranging from 9- 12%. Highly recommend using King Arthur Baking Company all-purpose flour for best results.
Salt is the spice of life! For consistency, this recipe was made using Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt is less salty than Morton kosher salt and table salt.
- Reduce amount by half if you choose to use table salt.
Eggs are the glue that binds everything together! This recipes uses large eggs, which on average weights 2 ounces (55 grams).
Recommended Equipment and Tools
There are two ways to mix together the pasta dough: 1) by hand or 2) using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.
After the dough is prepared, you can using a rolling pin to flatten the dough. Then, slice into your desired thickness using a knife.
Alternatively, use an hand crank pasta roller to stretch, roll, and cut the dough.
Or, if you have a stand mixer, use a pasta roller attachment. There are several attachments to choose from. I have the simple flat roller. You may use the spaghetti cutter or fettuccine cutter to simplify the process.
Make Pasta Dough From Scratch
Place all the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let the machine do its magic and when you are done kneading the dough, it should look like the photo above.
Wrap the dough in plastic and let it rest at room temperature for about an hour. Then cut the dough into 8 roughly equal parts using a bench scraper, knife, or your hands.
You can roll the pasta out by hand or make life really easy and use a pasta roller attachment like this one.
You can also use one of those old school pasta machines that you crank by hand. Or if you are really fancy, stores like Sur la Table and Williams-Sonoma have those expensive pasta extruder machines.
Flatten the cut pieces of dough one at time and pass them through the roller at the widest setting a few times.
Slowly decrease the setting until you get the thickness of pasta you desire. On my KitchenAid pasta roller I started with #1 and stopped at #5.
I don’t have a fettuccine cutter attachment, so I cut the noodles by hand. Take the long flattened dough and fold it a couple of times. Be sure to sprinkle semolina flour or all-purpose flour before folding to ensure the dough doesn’t stick together.
Using a sharp chef’s knife, cut the pasta into your desired width. I cut mine a little bigger than 1/4 inch.
Unroll the cut pasta and let them dry slightly by hanging them, about 10-15 minutes.
I draped them over an empty mixing bowl. You can also use the back of a chair or a kitchen towel rack.
How to Cook Fresh Pasta (+ Storage & Leftovers)
And voilà! You have yourself fresh homemade pasta!
Use the fresh pasta immediately or freeze in a ziplock bag for future use (up to three months).
To cook the fresh pasta, fill a large sauce pot with water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, generously salt the water. I’ve been told to salt the water until it tastes like the ocean, but the amount of salt is up to you.
Gently drop in the fresh pasta into the boiling salted water. Stir the pasta once or twice during cooking to ensure the noodles aren’t sticking.
Fresh pasta cooks VERY QUICKLY! The noodles will be done in two to four minutes, depending on whether you want it al dente. Drain the pasta and immediately dress with sauce.
To cook frozen pasta, add an extra two minutes to cooking time.
Easy Cream Sauce with Bacon
The bacon and leek cream sauce is unbelievably easy to make! Here are some alternatives and substitutions for ingredients:
- Olive oil or any cooking oil of your choice
- Unsalted butter or salted butter (oil prevents the butter from burning)
- Bacon (this is a must! Only alternative is pancetta.)
- Leeks or green onions. If using green onions, use the white and light green parts.
- Heavy cream or half & half
- Grana Padano cheese or parmesan cheese
Leeks taste like a cross between onions and green onions. When cooked, it gives a very mellow onion flavor. In a pinch, use the white and light green parts of green onions (also called scallions).
This pasta dish takes the best parts of a Carbonara sauce without having to deal with the eggs.
The bacon and leeks are both bold enough to stand out in the creamy sauce. Fresh fettuccine with bacon and leeks is a great dish to transition into spring.
Best thing about making your own pasta- you can make the noodles as long as you want so you can share a bowl with your significant other and totally recreate that spaghetti kiss scene!
Easy Pasta Recipes
- Spaghetti Carbonara
- Roasted Tomato Pasta
- Brown Butter Spaghetti with Roasted Butternut Squash
- Cheesy Baked Pasta
Fresh Fettuccine with Bacon and Leeks
Ingredients
Homemade Fettuccine: (makes 2 pounds)
- 2 cups semolina flour, (360 g)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, (260 g)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 large eggs, , room temperature, lightly whisked
Bacon and Leek Cream Sauce:
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
- 3 slices thick cut bacon,, cut into 1/2-inch wide strips
- 1 large leek, , halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise, use only white and light greens parts, about 1 cup total
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup reserved pasta water
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped, optional
- 1 pound fresh pasta dough (half of recipe)
- 1 cup Grana Padano cheese, finely grated
Instructions
Homemade Fettuccine:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together all-purpose four, semolina, and salt. Attach dough hook to stand mixer. On low speed, slowly add whisked eggs a little bit at a time. Once all eggs have been incorporated, increase speed to medium and knead until dough is a smooth, cohesive mass. Knead/mix for about 5-6 minutes. If dough is too tough or dry, add 1/2 Tbsp of water at a time until smooth. (I used 1 ½Tbsp)
- Keep dough in mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit and rest at room temperature for one hour.
- Transfer dough to lightly floured surface and divide dough into 8 equal parts. Working with one piece at a time, flatten dough into a rectangle. Lightly dust the dough and the pasta roller mixer attachment (or pasta machine).
- With the roller on the widest setting, pass the pasta through the machine’s rollers a couple times. Begin to adjust the pasta machine setting to be thinner, passing the dough through once or twice at each setting. Keep the machine running at low-medium or medium speed.
- *If rolling the pasta by hand: flatten dough into rectangle with your hands. Place dough on lightly floured work surface, begin rolling dough with a floured rolling-pin. Be sure to constantly move the dough by lifting it to make sure it is not sticking to the surface. Continue to roll and thin out dough to your desired thickness.
- Once the pasta is at your desired thickness ( I took mine down to the 5th setting), cut into your desired shapes. I cut 1/4” inch wide strips to make the fettuccine. You can cut by hand or use a pasta attachment cutter. Once you have cut the pasta, drape over a clean large sauce pot or the back of a chair to dry the pasta for 5-10 minutes before cooking.
- To cook the pasta, fill a large sauce pot with water. Bring to a boil. Salt water according to your preferences.
- Gently drop in pasta into the boiling water. Stir the pasta only once or twice. Do not over the pot. Let the pasta come back to a rolling boil. Cook for 2-4 minutes until pasta is al dente, or firm to the bite.
- Before you drain the pasta, reserve 1 cup of pasta water. Drain pasta. Transfer pasta to clean large bowl. Dress with sauce right away.
Bacon and Leek Cream Sauce:
- In a 10-inch skillet, heat olive oil and butter. Over medium heat, add bacon and cook until fat is rendered. Add sliced leeks, salt and pepper. Cook until leeks have softened and lightly browned.
- Add cream, thyme, and 1/4 cup reserved pasta water. Whisk together. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let simmer until thickened. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Add in cooked pasta and grated cheese. Toss until sauce is evenly distributed. Serve warm and garnish with grated cheese and thyme leaves, as desired.
Notes
- Use the fresh pasta immediately or freeze in a ziplock bag for future use (up to three months).
- To cook frozen pasta, add an extra two minutes to cooking time.
- Leeks taste like a cross between onions and green onions. When cooked, it gives a very mellow onion flavor. In a pinch, use the white and light green parts of green onions (also called scallions).
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
i made this last weekend — it was AMAZING! and overall pretty easy. thanks for the delicious recipe!
That’s great to hear, Brooke! You are very welcome and thank you for trying out the recipe! :)
Oh yum, your pasta looks so delicious!