Over the last five years, my family and I have taken to celebrating Christmas in other countries, usually warmer ones. It's an arrangement that has suited us all perfectly. Just one small fly in the ointment - the need to buy presents that can be fitted into budget airline luggage. I was under the impression that all six family members were pretty adept at doing that. Until Christmas 2022, that is, when Jonathan had the inspired but ultimately flawed idea of giving me a pasta machine. Inspired, because my USP is producing family-size lasagnes. But flawed, because it weighed an absolute ton. After the big reveal on Christmas Day, I reluctantly had to hand back the pasta machine to Jonathan for transport back to the UK, on account of his more generous baggage allowance. It then languished in his garage for many weeks before finally arriving at my house. 'Looking forward to your lasagne with home made pasta Mum' said Jonathan, a greedy gleam in his eye. 'Looking forward to making it' I said gamely, whilst surreptitiously consigning the machine to the dark recesses of a cupboard.
Fast forward to Christmas Day 2024. The pasta machine had been gathering dust in the cupboard for two years. Not that I hadn't continued to make lasagnes during that time mind you. Just not home-made pasta lasagnes. Then I opened my Christmas present from sharp-thinking Lucy - and what do you know, she'd bought me a voucher for a pasta-making course in Brighton. I was well and truly skewered. 'You've got until next Christmas to produce that lasagne Mum' I was told in no uncertain terms.
In March Lucy and I presented ourselves at Brighton Cookery School, sleeves rolled-up, ready for some pasta action. We were assigned to a work station, which was carefully laid out with knives, rolling pins and ingredients. But where were the pasta machines? 'We don't use them on this beginners' course' said our teacher, Victor, gesturing vaguely towards a shelf where a dozen machines just like mine were stacked up like the leaning tower of Pisa. I can't lie, this news hit us hard. But that aside, we did learn how to make pasta dough from scratch, to cut strips of tagliatelle lovingly by hand and to shape and stuff ravioli. So a very fine start to my pasta-making task.
Then in September, the family headed up to the Isle of Skye for a week's holiday to celebrate my 70th birthday. This gave me the perfect opportunity to get stuck into some serious pasta-making, with no room for avoidance. The pasta machine was lovingly dusted down, shoe-horned into the boot of Jonathan and Liz's SUV and duly made its grand entrance at our Airbnb in the beautiful harbour community of Uig two days later.
The following Monday morning, on the dot of 9.30am, sous chef Michael and I rendezvoused in the sizeable kitchen. The pasta machine was clamped onto the work surface, special pasta flour and eggs were on standby, a pasta recipe was sourced courtesy of Jamie Oliver, and the task began. The initial process of blending flour and eggs into a kneed-able lump was a very messy one. But gradually the dough began to look more like, well, dough. Once our biceps could take it no longer - Jamie Oliver says after a few minutes it's easy to see why your average Italian grandmother has arms like Frank Bruno - we put it into the fridge to rest, after which the serious business of flattening the dough in the pasta machine began.
We divided the dough into four separate lumps and rolled each lump through the pasta machine no less than 16 to 17 times (yes, you read that right, 16 to 17 times), in accordance with Jamie's instructions, working through each of the settings from widest to narrowest. Not meaning to boast or anything but by the final roll, the pasta strips looked amazing - very smooth, elastic and super silky. We were pretty chuffed I can tell you. Pasta squisita!
Michael cut each of the strips meticulously into evenly-sized lasagne rectangles. Then it was over to me to create bolognese and bechamel sauces ready for the lasagne assembly line. No guesses for what was on the menu for supper that evening. Here's the finished dish, which I'm glad to say was given a large thumbs up by the family. And with Task 71 in the bag, the pasta machine was duly squeezed back into the SUV for transportation back to Sussex.
I can't believe what a satisfying activity pasta-making turned out to be - and a very sociable one too thanks to top-notch assistant Michael aiding and abetting me at every stage. Ravioli and tagliatelle-making are definitely up my sleeve next. Once the pasta machine is re-rescued from Jonathan's garage that is......
