A basic pasta dough recipe that you can make without a pasta machine or eggs. Easily customizable!

Ingredients: 1 2/3 cup all purpose flour
about 2/3 cup of water
1/2 to 3/4 tsp salt
and if you're making filled pasta, you may want to add 1 tsp oil.

Step 1: Combine Ingredients and Mix

-In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt, then add the water.

I wanted to flavour this pasta, so I added some thai curry paste to the water before mixing the ingredients together.
You can add anything you like. A couple of teaspoons of tomato paste will give you reddish pasta, pureed spinach will give you green pasta etc.
Go nuts! Just remember to adjust your liquid measurement as you add other ingredients.

-Stir the mixture with a fork until it starts to form a ball. Then you can use your hands to combine the dough. If it's too dry, add more water (very little at a time) or if it's too wet, add a touch more.

Step 2: I Knead You, Baby.

Turn on the Radio and relax.

Turn the dough ball out onto a well-floured cutting board. Flour your hands as well.

You'll need to knead the dough for about 10 minutes, or until it becomes smooth and pliable.

If the ball or board are too wet, dust them with flour. You should be able to work with the ball without having it stick to anything. You may have to add flour periodically through the kneading process.

To knead, push the dough away from you with the heel of your hand. Then fold it over on itself, turn it and repeat.

Step 3: Take a Break

Let the dough rest, covered in plastic wrap for about 10 minutes.

Step 4: Divide, Roll, and Cut the Dough

After you've rested your dough, divide it into eighths. Take one of the eighths to work on, and put the others aside, covered so that they don't dry out.
Flour your surface again, and flour your dough segment.
Using a rolling pin, roll the pasta out, rolling from the middle to the outside.
Then turn your pasta strip and repeat. Lift the pasta off the board as you turn it to ensure it's not sticking, and add more flour if you need it.

When the dough is as thin as you can comfortably get it (mine was between 2 and 4 mm thick) you're ready to cut noodles.
*Note: you can let your dough air-dry at this point for a few minutes. It will make it easier to cut . But don't let it dry out :)

I cut fettucine style noodles, which are just strips about 3/4 inch thick.

Flour your rolled noodle well all over. Then loosely roll it up.
Then, with a sharp knife, make cuts along the roll.

Unroll the noodles and you have your pasta!

Step 5: Drying Out and Storing.

If you're going to use your noodles right away, lightly flour them so that they don't stick together, and put them on a plate.
Boil some water, cook them until they float, and serve with your favourite sauce.
Some recipes recommend you dry your noodles for a few minutes before storing them. I dried mine on a baking rack, but my italian nonna used to lay clean tea towels on the back of kitchen chairs and dry her noodles that way.
If you want to refrigerate them, flour them and put them in resealable containers. Use within 3-5 days.

If you'd like to freeze them, flour them,roll them into nests and put them in a freezer safe container, or lay them on a baking sheet and cover and freeze.

Num!