12 best pasta cookbooks

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Learn how to make traditional pasta dishes, just like the nonne

Franco and Alessandra's Corzetti with Fresh Marjoram Dressing

Meet Nonne Maria

Maria and her husband are farmers, growing a mixture of vines and wheat. Learn how to make her Raschiatelli with Red Peppers

Meet Nonne Giuseppa

Now 97 years old, Giuseppa won our hearts the instant she opened the front door to the home she has lived in all her life.

Meet Noone Rosa

Rosa makes 'Straw' and 'Hay' Tagliatelle with Peas

Meet Nonne Lucia

Eighty-nine year old Lucia has worked at her family's bakery for over 60 years. She shares her recipes for Raschiatelli with Salami and Horseradish.

Make pasta by hand

Spinach and Ricotta Gnudi

Roll Raschiatelli

Maccheroni with Seafood

Heart-warming photographs of Italy throughout

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THE PLEASURES OF PASTA

Making pasta from scratch is like alchemy or magic. Pasta is something from practically nothing, nothing but flour and water, possibly eggs. The humblest of ingredients are transformed into the most glorious of foods.

Making pasta and noodles using your pasta machine is fun, fast, and easy. It’s a great outlet for your creativity, and it’s incredibly satisfying both literally and figuratively—because the results are so tasty! It delights the kid in you who still loves to sink his or her fingers into playdough. It stimulates your artistic side, for each piece of pasta is an edible little sculpture. It appeals to your crafty DIY desires to create something to take pride in using your own hands. And of course, it brings out your inner chef who loves to wow friends and family with a delicious feast. What I’m saying is making pasta is a joy. The only thing that’s better than making pasta is eating it!

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

This is like a choose your own adventure book . . .

1. Pick a pasta machine. Do you want to use your sheeter? Do you have an extruder? Do you feel like making cavatelli? Then skip directly to that chapter.
2. Pick a pasta dough for that machine.
3. Pick a pasta shape. If it’s a stuffed shape, pick a filling.
4. Pick a sauce. I make recommendations for pasta shapes and sauces, but feel free to mix and match as you like.
5. Cook, eat, and repeat!

Fettuccine with Corn and Smoked Salmon

Sweet corn is a delicious contrast to the salty richness of smoked salmon. Feel free to use more or less jalapeños to suit your taste, substitute Fresno chiles, or even use strips of roasted New Mexico green chiles in season.

Chocolate Egg Fettuccine with Roasted Strawberries, Crème Fraîche, and Balsamico

If you just can’t get enough pasta for dinner, perhaps you need some for dessert? This delicious dish is actually only lightly sweetened, so it’s sure to delight both sweet and savory fans at the same time. Make it during the summer when strawberries are ripe and juicy and red all the way through to the core.

Corzetti with Pesto, Potatoes, and Green Beans

It may seem odd to pair pasta and potatoes together, but in this classic Ligurian dish, the starch of the potatoes gives the sauce an extra creaminess.

The recipe’s quite easy to throw together because all of the ingredients are boiled together right in the same pot. The only trick is getting the timing right so that everything’s done at the same moment. Just test for doneness often and use your best judgment on when the potatoes and green beans seem to be about 3 or 4 minutes away from being done to add the pasta.

Zaru Soba

This Japanese dish of chilled soba with an umami-rich dipping sauce is welcome on a hot day.

Kombu, or dried kelp; the sweetened cooking wine known as mirin; katsuobushi, which is also called bonito flakes; and nori seaweed are all available at Asian markets and in the international section of most well-stocked grocers.

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Pasta tutorials

Get step-by-step instructions for mixing pasta dough by hand and with a machine, rolling out and shaping dough, and storing or cooking the finished results.

The science of pasta

Learn the alchemy of flour, water, and eggs, the role of oil and salt, and the importance of kneading and resting.

Essential equipment

Find a helpful list of key tools for making and shaping pasta, plus a few equipment upgrades that will help you take your creations to the next level.

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FROM THE BOOK:

Busiati (also known as busiate) are a traditional hand-shaped pasta from the Sicilian town of Trapani. Like other shapes commonly found in Southern Italy, such as Fusilli Avellinisi (page 68), this one is made using a knitting needle. Busiati are usually longer than fusilli. I learned how to make busiati in the Sicilian town of San Vito Lo Capo, where a local old lady taught me the art of rolling busiati by hand. The name of this pasta comes from the word buso, which is the name of a wooden stick from a plant that grows in abundance locally. The buso is what was traditionally used to shape busiati instead of the knitting needle.

To make the pasta

1. Dust the baking sheets with durum wheat flour.

2. Break the dough into about 2-inch balls and roll them into ½-inch-thick ropes using your fingertips.

3. Cut these ropes into 5-inch-long pieces.

4. Keep the cut ropes horizontal and place the middle part of the knitting needle at a 45-degree angle on the right end of the piece of dough and press it slightly with the palm of your hand, so that the knitting needle sticks to the dough.

5. Roll the knitting needle away from you at an angle with your hands, until the dough gets fully wrapped around the needle.

6. Gently roll it back and forth with your hand to make the pasta longer and thinner.

7. Carefully slide the pasta off of the knitting needle with your hand, while preserving the shape.

8. Put the shaped pasta on the prepared baking sheets.

9. Repeat the above steps until you have no dough left.

To cook the pasta

1. Set a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil (see page 40). Cook the pasta in the boiling water for 6 to 8 minutes, or until al dente. To test this, remove a piece of pasta from the pot and take a bite. It should be cooked but still slightly firm in the center.

2. When the pasta is ready, drain it through a colander and shake out the excess water.

3. Serve immediately with the sauce of your choice.

Serving Suggestion

Busiati are traditionally served with Pesto alla Trapanese (page 185) or with a simple Tomato and Basil Sauce (page 182). Both sauces are a staple in the area of Trapani, where busiati were created. Treat your taste buds to a complete Sicilian experience by serving busiati with slices of fried eggplant and grated Pecorino Romano on the top.

Tip

When shaping busiati, make sure to lightly dust the ropes of dough with durum wheat flour before rolling them. If the dough sticks to the knitting needle, you will not be able to slide out the busiato without ruining its shape.

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Forget Your Pasta Machine

A sfoglia, the heart of this book, is a sheet of pasta rolled by hand. Some people form it with a pasta machine. If you follow Evan Funke on Instagram already know his feelings on that...

Being a sfoglino, or pasta maker, in Bologna is a position of honor, deeply rooted in the city’s cultural history, traditions, and lore. For hundreds of years, bolognese pasta makers have practiced their daily ritual of rolling pasta by hand in laboratori (workshops) and homes all over the city. Sfoglini are the very foundation of bolognese cuisine.

The recipes in this book include traditional, centuries-old pasta forms such as Tagliatelle and Lasagna, as well as some creative ones, such as the Smeraldine. In accordance with the customs of Bologna, pasta shapes are paired with specific sauces. Buon appetito!

CESTINI AGLI ASPARAGI

This filled pasta unites a favorite spring vegetable with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Each spring, they appear together across the Italian peninsula in a variety of ways, including in pastas and risottos. The asparagus and salty cheese contrast beautifully.

MINESTRA DI VERURDA CON SORPRESINE

Bologna’s cold winter months are dominated by hardy vegetables, such as bitter leafy greens and sweet heads of cabbage. What is nice about this soup is that it’s warming and filling without being heavy.

GARGANELLI CON RAGÙ DI AGNELLO

This braised lamb ragù is an Easter specialty in Emilia-Romagna, marrying the Christian symbolism of the sacrificial lamb with the natural rhythms of nature. In Bologna, suckling lambs are slaughtered in spring just as peas come into season. The tender meat is simmered with herbs and sweet seasonal peas, resulting in a soulful sauce with deep flavor.

STRICHETTI ALLA ROMAGNOLA

Romagna is the often-overlooked neighbor to the east of Emilia. While it is home to beach resorts, such as Rimini and Riccione, its cuisine is definitely overshadowed by the globally revered food of Bologna, Modena, and Parma. That said, the dishes of Romagna are simple, satisfying, and easy to prepare, and this pasta is no exception.

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Arancini (Sicilian Rice Balls)

Pizza with Burrata Cheese and Fresh Tomatoes

Tiramisu