Page 20 of Christmas Wishes at Pudding Hall
Christa picked up and glass and raised it to him.
‘Thank you,’ she said and he caught her eye and he nodded at her and she nodded back. An agreement of sorts had been made, and he had never wanted to impress anyone more than this woman who had turned Pudding Hall upside down in an afternoon.
Homemade Fettucine
Ingredients
2 cups plain (all-purpose) flour
3 large eggs
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Method
Pour the flour on a clean and clear work surface and make a volcano shape. Break eggs, olive oil, and salt into the centre. Use a fork to break up the eggs while keeping the flour walls together, Be gentle. Then use your hands to coax the flour into a dough until it is a messy ball
Knead the dough. To start with, the dough will feel dry, but continue until it finally comes together around the 8-10 minute mark. Then it should be malleable and smooth. If the dough feels too dry at any point, wet your fingers and sprinkle it with a little water to bind. If it’s sticky, dust more flour onto the bench and then shape the dough into a ball. Wrap in plastic cling film and leave resting at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Dust two large baking sheets with flour while the dough is resting.
Once ready, cut the dough into four pieces and carefully flatten each into an oval disc. Run the first disc of dough through the pasta machine roller attachment three times on level 1 (the widest setting).
Place the dough piece flat and fold the two short ends in to meet in the centre, then fold the dough in half to form a rectangle.
Run the dough through the pasta roller in the following order:
Three times on level 2
Three times on level 3
One time each on levels 4, 5, and 6.
Lay the pasta sheet onto the floured baking sheet and sprinkle with flour before folding it in half. Sprinkle more flour on top of the second half. Every side should be floured so that your final pasta ribbons won’t stick together.
Run the pasta sheets through the pasta machine again, using the pasta cutting attachment.
Repeat steps 4-8 with the remaining dough
Cook the cut pasta in a pot of salted boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes.
Enjoy your fresh pasta with your favourite sauce or oil.
6
When the dishes were cleared from the table, which Adam and Paul had helped with, and the two dishwashers were on, Christa went up to her room and showered.
Her room was beautiful, she thought as she closed the curtains on the dark windy night.
She opened a cupboard and saw a small fridge and kettle with a selection of tea and a French press for coffee. A tin of shortbread was unopened and in the fridge was milk and some fruit.
Did Peggy do this? At Marc’s insistence? It seemed like a very personal touch in an impersonal house.
She took out the kettle and filled it in the bathroom, plugged it in and turned it on. A night-time cup of tea was exactly what she needed. Moving the heavy curtains back, she looked outside but it was so dark she was shocked. She had forgotten what the dark was after living in such a light-polluted city like London.
The weather report was still claiming snow was on its way, and according to news reports York would be looking at a very cold Christmas.
