Razzle Dazzle with Real Noodles!

Like my mother would say, the secret to making good homemade noodles is having a rich broth to cook them in. That said, almost any attempt at homemade noodles will be tastier than prepackaged noodles. Don't be afraid to try. It's easier than you think! Your total preparation time will be about an hour and a half if you speed up the process by drying the noodles in an oven on low heat.

NOTE to the GF: I have made noodles with gluten-free all-purpose flour. I add another egg yolk to make up for the lack of gluten and I just add more GF flour as needed. The flavor and texture are right on target and the extra egg yolk makes a great color!   Gluten free recipes!!!

For a basic 4-serving batch, you need just the following:

     1 cup flour, plus extra for kneading

     2 eggs

     pinch of salt

     4 cups of a good, rich full-flavored broth, more if using meat

Place the flour into a small mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Add the pinch of salt. Add the fresh eggs and begin stirring briskly with a fork. Turn out onto a floured surface when the dough becomes stiff. Begin kneading a little more flour into the dough until you have a smooth ball, not too dry, not sticky wet. Put the dough back into the same bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and set in a warm spot for about a half hour. This will help the dough to even out and be pliable for rolling smoothly without tearing.

The noodles are cut into thin even strips.

After a half hour, sprinkle flour onto a cutting board and roll out the noodles to about 1/8" thickness. Cut into strips that are about 2" to 2 1/'2" wide. Then stack the strips on top of each other with one of the longest center strips on the bottom and the next longest on top. Using a sharp knife, cut 1/4" strips. When all the noodles have been cut, lay out in a single to dry. This can take a couple of hours or you can place in a warm oven for a half hour to speed the drying process.

Spreading out to dry, very important!

 Decide how  you like your noodles. The moister the noodle, the chewier it will be. Let this help determine how much to dry them. I like to dry them until they sound like little sticks.

Bring the broth to a boil. Check the seasoning, not too salty because the broth will reduce as the noodles cook. Stir noodles carefully into the boiling broth a few at a time. A little flour on the noodles will help thicken the broth, so no roux is needed. Turn the heat down, stirring frequently, to cook on medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes. It's that easy!!! Enjoy!