Peppercorn Cream Sauce with Homemade Fettuccine

Peppercorn cream sauce and homemade fettuccine is the bomb. I really don't need to advertise it anymore because you know I'm right. Not usually something Matt and I tackle on a weeknight, but it was for my brother's birthday dinner so we went all out. Stay tuned for the recipes for Sweet and Spicy Glazed BBQ Salmon and Balsamic Roasted Green Beans shown in picture. Matt made steak with this and I think the peppercorn cream sauce would go nice over steak too.

Notice how the picture is actually nice? That's because Matt took it. :)

Homemade Fettuccine

Thanks to my BFF and her Nonna for teaching me how to make homemade pasta!
Yields 4 side dish portions of pasta or 2 main dish portions.

Gear You'll Need:

• Pasta maker with the fettuccine slicer attachment.
• Wire mesh strainer/sift.
• Medium sized bowl.
• Small sized bowl.

Ingredients:

1 cup semolina
1 cup Farina Tipo "00"flour
2 eggs, whisked
3/8 cup water
extra flour

Instructions:

1. Put your wire mesh strainer over a medium sized mixing bowl, and sift the semolina and 00 flour into the bowl. Combine.

2. In a separate small bowl, whisk your 2 eggs with 3/8 cup of water. That's an awkward measurement, I know. This recipe is half of the normal size so to cut 3/4 cup of water in half I just eyeball it and put slightly less than 3/4 cup water in the measuring cup.

3. Pour the egg and water mixture through the strainer into the dry mixture. Push through all the slimy bits of egg.

4. Combine with a spoon.

5. Start kneading the dough with your hands while it's still in the bowl. Pour your dough ball onto a floured surface and kneed 8 times or so until the dough is well combined. The dough should not be sticky to the touch. If it is, add more flour. If its crumbly, add a bit more water. The consistency of the dough should be elastic, dense and not sticky all at the same time.

6. Place dough back into the mixing bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rest for ½ hour.

7. In the meantime, set up your pasta machine and set out a bowl with flour in it for dredging the pasta through. I don’t know if dredging is the right word. But you get it, right?

8. Flour a big plate or cookie tray to place the pasta nests on.

9. When the half hour is up, form the pasta dough into a fat log, and slice a 1.5” chunk off. Cover your fat dough log with a slightly damp towel.

10. Coat the piece of dough in flour bowl. Set your pasta maker to the largest setting for the flat rollers. Mine is 7. Pass through setting 7, then fold in half, then pass through again. Repeat until 6 folds and passes have been completed. Then pass through the second largest, mine is 6. Do this twice without folding. Then pass it twice through 5 without folding and then finally once through 4 without folding.

11. Then pass your thin strip of dough through the fettuccine slicer rollers. As the pasta comes out, gently grab the end with your hand.

12. With the pasta dangling from your hand, dip in the flour bowl.

13. Now wrap the pasta around your hand, and dropping onto your floured plate to make little pasta nests. Sprinkle each nest with flour to keep from sticking.

14. Repeat steps 10 through 13 until you’ve used up your entire dough log. You should be able to make about 6 nests with this recipe.

15. About 10 minutes before you are ready to serve dinner, put a large pot of salted water on high, and once it’s at a mad boil, take each pasta nest and gently unravel it into the water. Mix it all up making sure the noodles don’t stick. Then boil for 3-5 minutes until al dente.

16. Then drain the water and drizzle some olive oil on the pasta to prevent sticking. 

OR you could skip the above 16 steps and make store bought pasta and move onto the easy part: the peppercorn cream sauce!

Peppercorn Cream Sauce

Makes 1/2L of sauce - enough for 4 side portions or 2 meal size portions.
Prep time: 10 minutes. Cook time: 30 minutes. Total time: 40 minutes.

Ingredients

1/2 L of whipping cream, tempered
1 tbsp butter
2 large handfuls of Parmesan cheese, grated
2 tbsp whole black peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 shallots, fine diced
1/2 tsp oregano
salt to taste
fresh cracked pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Make sure your whipping cream is tempered. Meaning it should be room temperature. If you forget to leave it on the counter like Matt and I do, you can just put it in the microwave for a minute. FUN FACT: If you do not temper your cream your sauce will most likely curdle. It is still edible, we know from experience, but it will surely ruin date night. And Christmas.

2. Crush your garlic and fine dice your shallots. Heat a small sauce pan over medium heat.

3. With a mortar and pestle, crush up your whole peppercorns a bit.

4. Melt your butter in the pan, add your shallots. Cook for 5 minutes,  then add your garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add the peppercorns from the mortar.

5. Turn down the heat to medium low. Let it chillax for a minute to reduce in temperature.

6. Add your tempered cream and stir.

7. Watch the cream carefully and stir every couple minutes to prevent burning at the bottom. The cream should be gently simmering ever so slightly. Keep this lazily simmering for 20 minutes.

8. Once 20 minutes has passed, add your Parmesan cheese to the sauce, a little at a time, whisking as you go.

9. Gently simmer for another 10 minutes, whisking ever couple of minutes.

10. Add your oregano and season to taste with fresh cracked pepper and salt.

11. Serve over fettuccine or steak or both!!