Pasta Makers?
#7
  Re: (...)
Anyone have any advice on buying a pasta maker? I used to make homemade lasagne noodles years ago - thru a manual pasta maker - made great pasta, but took so long. I LOVE fresh pasta, esp. homemade lasagne sheets. I want to try doing this again, but this time, with the best (yet still affordable) equipment I can get. I do not have a KitchenAid mixer, but if I should wait and get a pasta maker when I can get one, then I will. But other there other really good options?
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#8
  Re: Pasta Makers? by carolekv (Anyone have any advi...)
There are pasta machines that do it all - mix and extrude whatever shape you want. I bought one about 15 years ago and used it a lot, till I got so tired of cleaning the darn thing. So now, I just do by hand and a crank extruder/kneading attachments.
Retired and having fun writing cookbooks, tasting wine and sharing recipes with all my friends.
www.achefsjourney.com
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#9
  Re: Re: Pasta Makers? by cjs (There are pasta mach...)
Oh my Carol, I wish you had the KA mixer. I went all out this xmas and got the KA AND the pasta roller/cutter AND the grinder. (There have been some really good deals. I think right now you can get a free attachment with the purchase of a mixer.) I love it all!

That said, I know a lot of people, like Jean, who use a hand crank with no problems. And the ones I've seen mentioned are very affordable and easy to use.
Daphne
Keep your mind wide open.
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#10
  Re: Re: Pasta Makers? by Gourmet_Mom (Oh my Carol, I wish ...)
I wish you had a KA also. Your question sent me on a search at www.fantes.com and found that pasta rollers are anything but cheap if you want to buy all the attachments to go with it.

You can buy the basic roller for $59 to $69, but then there are many different attachments for cutting the pasta. If you really don't want to buy the KA, that's the way I would go and just pick one or two attachments for now.

I can tell you that many years ago, I used an extruder attachment with my Oster Kitchen Center and did not have good luck with it. The dough had to be very dry or it stuck together when it was extruding. I now use the pasta attachment on my KA with great success and once you get the hang of it, it goes pretty fast.

Best of luck, there is nothing like homemade pasta!

Maryann
Maryann

"Drink your tea slowly and reverently..."
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#11
  Re: Re: Pasta Makers? by Mare749 (I wish you had a KA ...)
I have heard the Altas found at the website mentioned above to have good reviews from several faithful users on another forum. That was the one I was going to get if I couldn't come up with the funds for my KA. Also mentioned in the discussion was a product called Imperia which got good reviews as well. Happy shopping!

On another note, 3 times in the past 6 months, I made pasta with just a spoon, my hands, and a rolling pin with pretty "darn" good results for a REAL all day scratch Italian lasagna recipe. (It was a great meal each time, if I do say so myself.) It just took a little more elbow grease...LOL!

BTW, I haven't made the same recipe with my KA yet. I'll let you know the difference.
Daphne
Keep your mind wide open.
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#12
  Re: Pasta Makers? by carolekv (Anyone have any advi...)
A good marble roller and regular rollers, cookie cutters, and lots of different pastry tools and garnishing tools will do the job of all the fancy cutters and crank style (KA is just an electric crank after all) and nothing beats good old flour, eggs, water and good old hands for mixing.

You'd be surprised how many tools you already own that can be used in many different applications if you just think outside the box as they say...
"Ponder well on this point: the pleasant hours of our life are all connected, by a more or less tangible link, with some memory of the table."-Charles Pierre Monselet, French author(1825-1888)
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