Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pasta Recipe

The uni semester has inevitably started despite my constant complaints that the holidays are way too short! I know, I won't be saying that in the future when I'm working full time, but I'll worry about that when the time comes :)

Meanwhile, I've been struggling to squeeze in some time for baking and blogging (hence the less frequent posts) as my stash of ingredients in the fridge and pantry edge dangerously close to their expiry date. My freezer is pretty much at full capacity now, with things like leftover pasta sheets from this recipe to use........for some later time (when I can get around to it!).

I'd intended to follow a simple recipe for this chicken and mushroom pasta, but when I opened the fridge, I realised that someone else had gotten to the mushroom and chicken before me (much to my horror!). Luckily, it actually ended up making things easier as I just chucked the leftovers (of the stir fry) into the white sauce and I was done!

This is the second time I've made pasta with my pasta machine, and though it's a little time consuming, it's amazing fun! I think I got carried away with the rolling as the pasta was too bouncy, but it was tasty all the same :)

Creamy Chicken and Mushroom Pasta Recipe
Recipe adapted from Women's Weekly Pasta cookbook and here

For the pasta:
375g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
4 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 tsp salt
2Tbs extra virgin olive oil
Plain flour, extra, to dust

1. Place the flour on a clean work surface and make a well in the centre. Crack the eggs into the well and add the oil and salt.
2. Use your fingers to whisk the eggs and gradually bring in the flour from the sides. Continue stirring and kneading until flour is incorporated. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 10 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes to rest.
3. Attach a pasta machine to the side of a workbench and adjust the machine's rollers to the widest setting. Divide the dough into 4 portions and working with one portion, use the palm of your hands to flatten it into a rectangle. Dust the rollers with flour and roll the dough portion through. Dust again with flour and repeat on the same setting. Fold in the shorter sides of the dough to meet in the centre to form a smaller rectangle and feed through the machine again. Repeat this process 5-6 times or until smooth.
4. Reduce the width between the rollers by 1 and roll the dough through as before. Repeat the process, reducing the setting each time until the dough is 1-1.5mm thick (or to your desired thickness).
5. Spread the pasta sheet over a clean tea towels. When laying out the pasta sheets, they must not touch or overlap each other as the moist pasta will stick together. Repeat steps 3-4 with the remaining portions of dough. Set the pasta sheets aside for 10-15 minutes (depending on the temperature in your kitchen) or until dry enough not to stick together but pliable enough not to crack.
6. Cut the pasta either by hand or with attachment on machine (I used the fettucine attachment). Cook immediately in boiling water or store as loose nets.

For the Sauce
60g butter
1 dove garlic, crushed
75g button mushrooms, quartered
1 onion, sliced
25g (around 2 Tbsp) plain flour
1.5cups (375mL) milk
1/2 cup cheese, grated (I used cheddar)

1. In a large saucepan, add butter and cook with garlic. Add the mushrooms and onions and cook until softened. Add flour and cook until it starts to bubble and thicken. Gradually stir in milk and cook, stirring until sauce boils and thickens. Stir in the cheese until it melts.Serve over pasta.