Ever since our giant San Marzano tomato plants started setting fruit that finally started to ripen last week (after much anticipation), I have been planning on making a fresh tomato sauce with home-made pasta to celebrate the start of our tomato harvest.  Last week we harvested our first round of San Marzanos and I had a pretty clear Friday on the calendar, so I set out to make my delicious home-made pasta lunch.

I looked to the one and only Lidia Bastianich for my pasta recipe.  I grew up watching her show on public television with my Dad, so naturally I’m a huge Lidia fan and consult her recipes frequently when I need some Italian inspiration.  I made this recipe by hand using the well method because I really like making pasta this way, but she has a super simple alternative method that involves making pasta dough in the food processor as well!  Both methods are linked here in the recipe. 

I spent about 2 hours working on my pasta, rolling the dough out and cutting it into ribbons using my machine.  It’s not a fast process but I found it very therapeutic, constantly rolling, flouring, and eventually making pretty home-made noodles.  I do think the home-made pasta is worth the effort compared to the store-bought box stuff, and I would definitely recommend this if you need a nice food project for the weekend or evening in quarantine. 

Pictures from my pasta making adventure are above, and I’ll link the recipe from Lidia that I used below so you can make home-made pasta too!

Link: Lidia Bastianich Home-Made Pasta Recipe

Link: My Simple Summer Tomato Sauce

• Make both together for a fantastic meal!