We thought it might be fun to make pasta from scratch for Valentines' Day lunch. We've all watched the Italian mamas do it before, and it looks simple enough right? Moreover, they do it a few times a day, for each meal. How difficult can it be? It turned out to be a good workout for my forearms, and the hubby had to take over kneading halfway through. We kneaded until the dough was smooth, let it rest, cranked up the pasta maker, and made gorgeous, silky pasta. It's amazing what a few eggs and a couple of cups of flour can make.
I cooked the noodles in salted, boiling water for one and a half minutes, tossed the golden strands in olive oil, sauteed red chili and golden flakes of aromatic garlic, and garnished with fresh basil from the garden. My favourite lunch! We were surprised by how tasty the pasta was on its own, but the fragrant ingredients highlighted the flavour of the noodles even more.
For Chubbs, we planned to bring him on a playground-spree. I packed him a picnic snack of the pasta we made, tossed with chopped cherry tomatoes, parmesan and super yummy olive oil. Complete with a carton of milk and some baby mandarins, we were set for our afternoon of non-stop playground fun. First up, was a quiet playground at Hooper Road, where Chubbs ran around with Fuzzy while I fed the baby girl. Next, we brought him to a very special place, where Fuzzy and I used to hang out. Both times, we had the playgrounds to ourselves and had a blast!
