The Strategy
Blending smooth, colorful vegetable purees into your fresh pasta dough is a wonderful way to bring a rainbow of hues to the supper table. The key is squeezing as much water as you can from the cooked veggies before pureeing, so your dough doesn't turn out too sticky to roll. Working the flour and puree together by hand yields a smooth, elastic ball that rolls through a pasta machine like a dream.
Technique Summary
Incorporating dry vegetable purees into flour creates vibrant, naturally colored homemade pasta. Squeezing the vegetables thoroughly before blending is the secret to a perfectly rollable dough.
Chef’s Checkpoints
- Feel the cooked vegetable; it should be soft enough to mash completely between your fingertips.
- Look at the pureed vegetable; it should be smooth, thick, and free of any large lumps or visible water puddles.
- Feel the kneaded dough; it should be smooth, soft, and spring back slowly when you press it with a thumb.