Welcome to the first week of my #LearningProject: Around the World Through Cooking! I started off with high hopes and a full heart by choosing Italy as my first stop. The plan? To make homemade pasta from scratch and pair it with an authentic carbonara sauce.
I followed the Kitchen Sanctuary recipe closely, which uses only 00 flour and eggs, a beautifully simple and traditional base. I measured everything out and added the eggs to the flour, expecting a soft dough to form. Instead, it remained dry and sandy.
. 
What I tried:
I mixed the dough with a stand mixer using the dough hook attachment.
I added 1 teaspoons every minute of mixing for 5 minutes with no real change
I added an egg yolk—still too dry.
Eventually, I added a whole extra egg, and finally, it started to clump.
Despite these additions, the dough continued to crumble when kneaded by hand and never developed that smooth, elastic texture I’d hoped for. I tried kneading for roughly 20 minutes, but it fell apart with each fold.
After nearly an hour of troubleshooting, and trying to fix my dough I gave up. I abandon the homemade noodles and I went with store-bought pasta to continue the meal. As disappointing as it was, it was a valuable learning experience.
This is what my dough looked like after almost a hour and half of failure.
With store-bought pasta boiling, I turned my attention to the sauce, and thank goodness I did. The carbonara sauce from RecipeTin Eats was straightforward, quick, and didn’t rely on cream like many Western adaptations do. I wanted to keep these dishes as authentic as I could.
Key ingredients for Carbonara
Bacon (I used a smoked pork bought from Butcher Boy Meats
Egg yolks
Eggs
Parmesan
Pasta water
Pepper
I started by frying the bacon until crisp, then removed the pan from the heat.
I then tossed in the egg and eggyolk with the grated parmesan cheese and whisked it all together
I added the cooked pasta straight into the bacon pan, let it cool just slightly, The residual heat cooked the eggs just enough to form a creamy, rich coating.
And then finally I plated my food
What I Learned
Even though the pasta failed, this week taught me:
Dough hydration is key. Next time, I’ll make a well in the flour and add eggs gradually by hand rather than by mixer.
Failure isn’t wasted. I learned a lot from what didn’t work, and still got to enjoy a great dinner.
Online recipes are gold, but not gospel. Following them exactly doesn’t always mean success, especially when your flour or environment differs.
I’ll revisit homemade noodles later this term or maybe after the project, but for now, I’m excited for my next culinary adventure.
Next week: Vietnamese Chả giò also known as fresh rolls