Making Artisan Pasta: How to Make a World of Handmade Noodles, Stuffed Pasta, Dumplings, and More [Flexibound]

Aliza Green (Author), Steve Legato (Photographer), Cesare Casella (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2012

Learn how to use the best ingredients and simple, classic techniques to make fresh, homemade pasta in your own kitchen with Making Artisan Pasta. Calling for just the simplest ingredients and a handful of unique kitchen tools, making pasta at home has never been easier, more fun, or more delicious.

Inside, you'll find:

- Recipes for pasta doughs made completely from scratch, with such delicious ingredients as buckwheat and whole wheat flour, roasted red pepper, asparagus, and even squid ink and chocolate

- Fully illustrated step-by-step instructions for rolling, shaping, and stuffing dough for gnocchi, lasagna, cannelloni, pappardelle, tagliatelle, ravioli, and dozens of other styles of pasta

- Detailed instructions on how to make the ultimate in pasta: hand-stretched dough

- Chinese pot stickers, Polish pierogi, Turkish manti, and other delectable pastas from beyond its traditional Italian borders

- Artisan tips to help anyone, from novice to experienced, make unforgettable pasta

Through author and chef Aliza Green’s pasta expertise and encyclopedic knowledge of all things culinary, plus hundreds of gorgeous photos by acclaimed food photographer Steve Legato, you’ll never look at the supermarket pasta aisle the same way again.

Making Artisan Pasta is on Cooking Light's Top 100 Cookbooks of the Last 25 Years list for Best Technique and Equipment.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"James Beard Award winner Green teams up again with photographer Legato (after The Fishmonger’s Apprentice) to produce a beautifully photographed directory on how to make all types of pasta in your own kitchen, with just a few kitchen tools. And don’t think only of Italian—there are a few representative recipes from other countries, such as pot stickers, pierogi, and udon noodles. Recipes vary by shape, flour type, and flavoring. By following the easy, step-by-step instructions and hundreds of photographs, readers will be inspired to make their own delicious creations. The book contains many useful extras such as nutrition information, resources, and a glossary, but those who want to serve a homemade sauce along with their pasta fresca may need to consult another resource. VERDICT: This is a terrific choice for any library as it will be useful for both experts and novices alike. Mangia!"—Library Journal

About the Author

Aliza Green is an award-winning Philadelphia-based author, journalist, and influential chef whose books include The Butcher’s Apprentice and Making Artisan Pasta(Quarry Books, 2012),The Fishmonger’s Apprentice(Quarry Books, 2010), Starting with Ingredients: Baking (Running Press, 2008) and Starting with Ingredients (Running Press, 2006), four perennially popular Field Guides to food (Quirk, 2004-2007), Beans: More than 200 Delicious, Wholesome Recipes from Around the World (Running Press, 2004) and successful collaborations with renowned chefs Guillermo Pernot and Georges Perrier. 

A former food columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and Cooking Light Magazine, Green is known for her encyclopedic knowledge of every possible ingredient, its history, culture, and use in the kitchen and bakery and for her lively story-telling. Green also leads culinary tours—her next is scheduled for October 2013 to Puglia, Italy, which she calls “land of 1,000-year-old olive trees.” Green’s books have garnered high praise from critics, readers, and culinary professionals alike, including a James Beard award for “Best Single-Subject Cookbook” in 2001 for Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails with a Latino Twist (Running Press, 2001), which she co-authored with Chef Guillermo Pernot. For more information about Aliza’s books and tours or to send her a message, visit her website at http://www.alizagreen.com.

Steve Legato is a freelance photographer specializing in food, restaurant industry, cookbooks and advertising. His work has been featured in Art Culinaire, The New York Times, Food and Wine, Wine Spectator, Food Arts, GQ, Departures, Wine & Spirits, Travel & Leisure, Philadelphia Magazine, Delaware Today, New Jersey Monthly and Main Line Today. He resides just outside of Philadelphia, PA. Visit his website at http://www.stevelegato.com.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Flexibound: 176 pages
• Publisher: Quarry Books (January 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592537324
• ISBN-13: 978-1592537327
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 0.7 x 10.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,419 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Cooking by Ingredient > Pasta
  • #15 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Occasions

More About the Author

Aliza Green, the Philadelphia-based cookbook author, journalist and pioneering chef, is the author of twelve highly successful cookbooks including Making Artisan Pasta, a step-by-step full color guide to making a world of fresh pasta. The book was selected by Cooking Light Magazine as one of its Top 100 Cookbooks of the Last 25 Years--quite an honor in a field of thousands! It was also named by the Washington Post as one of its top holiday cookbooks.

Green's most recent book, The Butcher's Apprentice, (Quarry Books, 2012) contains fascinating interviews with meat experts, ranchers, farmers, chefs, producers, even a hunter and a humane slaughterhouse designer. Interspersed are clear, full-color step by step techniques for cutting and trimming various types and cuts of meat and poultry that even the novice will be confident enough to try.

Researching Making Artisan Pasta in Italy inspired Aliza Green to gather a small group of food lovers to explore the Southern Italian region of Puglia, which she calls, "land of 1,000-year-old olive trees", in a tour taking place October 2 to 9, 2013. The group will be visiting wineries, experiencing the region's best and most authentic restaurants, markets, and artisan food producers, exploring world cultural sites, and will join in two cooking classes. For details, visit www.alizagreen.com and click on the Puglia tour page. Don't delay, the tour is 3/4 sold out. Any questions or comments, please click on the Ask Aliza tab to send her a message.

Green's Field Guide to Meat: How to Identify, Select, and Prepare Virtually Every Meat, Poultry, and Game Cut (Quirk Books 2005) earned top praises from Food & Wine and Real Simple. Her Field Guide to Produce: How to Identify, Select, and Prepare Virtually Every Fruit and Vegetable at the Market (Quirk Books 2004), was highly regarded by the New York Times, Men's Health, and Shape. Her personal favorite is Field Guide to Herbs & Spices (Quirk Books 2006), which covers common but also rare and unusual spices from around the world. Field Guide to Seafood (Quirk Books 2007) is a complete guide to choosing fish and shellfish, whether you live in the US or abroad. The series of four food field guides is a must on the shelves of food writers, editors, and culinary students.

Her masterly Starting with Ingredients: Quintessential Recipes for the Way We Really Cook was published to outstanding reviews. With over 550 recipes and detailed, practical, information about the background, culture, history, and uses of 100 important ingredients, this book has been flying off the shelves in the United Stated and Canada. Starting with Ingredients: Baking does for baking what the first book did for general cooking in 60 chapters. Find uncommon international recipes, detailed ingredient information, and lots of useful tips.

¡Ceviche!: Seafood, Salads, and Cocktails With a Latino Twist (Running Press 2001), which Green co-authored with chef Guillermo Pernot, received a James Beard Award for "Best Single Subject Cookbook." Her book, The Bean Bible: A Legumaniac's Guide to Lentils, Peas, and Every Edible Bean on the Planet! (Running Press 2000), was described by Booklist as "a comprehensive guide to the world of beans and bean cookery belongs in every cookbook collection." When Running Press re-released it as as Beans: More than 200 Delicious, Wholesome Recipes from Around the World with new photographs and recipes, the book appeared in a New York Times feature on top cookbooks of the year.

The beautiful oversized book, Georges Perrier, Le Bec-Fin Recipes (Running Press 1997) features a collection of recipes from Philadelphia's landmark restaurant that Green co-wrote with highly regarded French chef.

Green has conducted numerous cooking classes, had many television appearances and radio interviews, and is a highly reputed television and print food stylist. As one of the pioneer chefs who helped make the city of Philadelphia a dining destination, Green began her career in the mid-1970's as Executive Chef at the renowned Ristorante DiLullo, where her culinary achievements landed the restaurant a prestigious four-star rating. In 1988, The Philadelphia Inquirer inducted Chef Green into its Culinary Hall of Fame, citing her as one of the ten most influential people in the city's food industry for her uncompromising efforts at working with local farmers.

Green cites her childhood, which she spent traveling and living abroad, as the inspiration for her culinary pursuits. She has been reading about, writing about and preparing and perfecting food for most of her life. Today, Green spends her time writing food guides and cookbooks, consulting to restaurants and institutional food service providers, teaching, and leading culinary tours.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

144 of 146 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Roll up your sleeves and start making fantastic pasta January 6, 2012

By beckygardens TOP 50 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Flexibound|Amazon Verified Purchase

Length: 4:08 Mins

I have a lot of cookbooks, anymore it takes a pretty special cookbook to get my heart thumping and inspires me to immediately take it in the kitchen and get to cooking. Making Artisan Pasta is just such a book. I have other pasta books, such as the joy of pasta, and usually they are maybe 25% actual pasta recipes, and the rest is sauce or soup or casseroles using the pasta. There is nothing wrong with that, but Making Artisan Pasta is a book about the pasta, about what ingredients to use, how to use them, how to make the pasta, form the pasta, and tons and tons of ideas and tips on making amazing pasta.

The pictures are simply inspirational. From step by step photos of how to accomplish making the pasta, to beautiful and inspiring finished products. This book could be intimidating, working with dough and various ingredients and appliances and gadgets, making different shapes. But it's totally not, Aliza Green writes clear simple instructions that would make the most dough-frightened person feel enabled to make luscious pasta. Between her clear instructions and tips, and Steve Legato's amazingly clear instructional photos, this is a book to really give a person confidence and a can-do attitude.

There are some pastas that simply call for special gadgets to make them, it's the nature of the pasta, but if you don't want to spend a penny on new fun equipment there are still plenty of pasta recipes you can easily make. The author gives several techniques on how to make pasta. She gives three ways of mixing (hand, stand mixer, food processor) and different ways to roll out the pasta- rolling pin, sheeter (hand cranked pasta machine) and the extruders. Through out the entire book there are variations so if you want to make ravioli you can buy a really cool ravioli pan thing, or she shows you how to simply put the filling on the bottom sheet and put the second sheet over and cut out the dough.

The pasta I made was easy to work with and tasted delicious. I started simple, but can't wait to get into the variations like green pasta, or the one with the parsley leaves pressed in between the sheets.

The book covers basic pastas, stuffed pasta, dumplings, pot stickers, gnocchi, pastas I haven't even heard of but can't wait to try! This is honestly a book that has me excited to get in the kitchen and start making pasta.

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly What I Was Looking For January 7, 2012

By Sherri Dodsworth

Format:Flexibound|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have recently gotten into making homemade pasta and was looking for a book to provide me with a variety of recipes, techniques and education on various types of pasta and this slim volume totally delivered on that request. It is also filled with gorgeous color photos on evey page illustrating step-by-step instructions for producing perfect pasta every time. This is not a source book for sauce recipes - this focuses solely on making the pasta itself. I like its focus on simple, inexpensive hand tools rather than expensive gadgetry, and its in-depth info on various aspects of the simple ingredients used to create great pasta at home. I highly recommend this book.

http://www.amazon.com/Making-Artisan-Pasta-Handmade-Dumplings/dp/1592537324/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1325997788&sr=1-1

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Maybe not so much for beginners December 19, 2012

By Kristi G., mom of Sage VINE™ VOICE

Format:Flexibound|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have recently acquired a pasta machine. I was just wanting to make simple pasta and looking for recipes. This book is maybe more for someone looking to make really, really fancy pasta or maybe sell pasta. it had a purist sort of bent to it. It went into wooden dies and hand shaping pasta, and it did have some recipes just for the pasta itself. It has lots of pictures.
One thing that raised my eyebrow a bit was the discussion on eggs. The author goes into a detailed discussion of eggs but I was left feeling like maybe she really didn't know much about them in spite of the fact she wrote a lot about them. For instance, we have free range chickens, and the best eggs are the ones right out from under the chicken, but the author says eggs aren't good for 2 days after they are laid. I suppose my family would just disagree. Also, she leaves out a very important tip about fresh eggs, that the easiest way to tell if one is bad is just to float it in water. Good eggs don't ever float. The best sink quick.
This book would be great for you if you are looking for sources to buy wooden or high end pasta shapers and plates.
If, however, you're an every day cook that has a pasta maker and could care less if your plates are bronze vrs plastic, there might be better beginner books out there. I'm going to try to find another one that's more appropriate for a beginner like me.