Homemade Spinach Pasta with Spinach, Walnuts, and Herbs

 For those hesitant about making homemade pasta, let me say that it is so easy that I'm amazed pre-made pasta exists.

 This was my first non-ravioli pasta, and while the pieces were thick (since we don't have a pasta cutter, I cut them with a knife), it was the most delicious pasta dish I've ever had (and have you tried Asparagus Linguine with Almond Crisp?)

 The pasta itself takes 20 minutes including cooking time, and the last 10 minutes of the pasta cooking you can cook the spinach-walnut mixture.

 

I took the pasta recipe from Vegetarian Recipes for Everyone by Deborah Madison, and I got the sauce recipes from Turkey: More Than 100 Recipes With Tales From the Road by Leanne Kitchen. Kitchen includes a pasta recipe, but I wanted to try a flavored pasta.

"The Best Things in Life Are Free" preformed by the Ink Spots

Ingredients:

Pasta:

• 2 cups flour
• 2 extra large eggs
• 2 teaspoons olive oil or water if needed
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt 
• 2 cups of fresh spinach

Spinach/Arugula, Walnut and Herb:

• olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 bunch arugula or spinach, rinsed and coarsely chopped
• 1 bunch Italian parsley, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh dill, chopped
• 1 1/3 cups crumbled feta cheese

Direcitons:

Puree spinach and eggs. Mix with rest of ingredients. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin until the dough is 1/16 of an inch thin (the thinner the better). Cut out the dough into whatever type of pasta you desire (linguine is easiest). Bring a pot of water to boil and add pasta. Cook until pasta is al dente (8-10 minutes). 

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, deep frying pan or saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and walnuts and cook for 3 minutes, or until the garlic is fragrant. Add the arugula, parsley and dill and stir for 1-2 minutes, or until wilted. dd the cooked pasta and enough of the reserved cooking liquid to moisten the pasta. Add the feta and toss gently to combine. Divide the pasta among serving plates and serve immediately.