Cozy Homemade Pastina Soup for Cold Weather
When the cold weather approaches, our family loves making a cozy homemade recipe you should try—pastina soup. Pastina, literally little pasta, refers to the small pasta shapes used in Italy to add substance to soups and stews. These minuscule pieces of dough cook in no time and are quick and easy to make. You can even prepare pastina in advance and keep it in the freezer for a last-minute addition to any dish. Watch as the Local Aromas Foodie Sisters show you how to make authentic pastina.
Versatile and Easy-to-Make Pastina
Pastina can be made from a simple egg pasta dough, the same as you would use for larger pasta shapes. When making any type of pasta, it’s worth keeping leftover dough and cutting it into smaller pieces to use as pastina. Once made, you can use pastina to bulk up any dish with enough liquid for it to cook. Try adding it to a simple meat broth, minestrone, or bean stew for a hearty, satisfying meal perfect for cold winter nights.
In the video, Valeria and Benedetta prepare two different kinds of pastina: grattata, where the dough is left to dry out a little before being grated into tiny pieces, and maltagliati, where the dough is rolled out and roughly cut into shapes of your choosing. You can also experiment and form the pasta into any shape you prefer, then add it to your dish for 2-3 minutes at the end of cooking.
Pastina Recipe
Ingredients (for 1-2 people)
- 100g (3.5 oz) all-purpose flour
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Prepare the Dough: Place the flour into a bowl and create a well in the center. Break the egg into the well and use a fork to gradually incorporate the flour into the egg. When the mixture forms a dough, tip it onto a floured work surface and knead with your hands until smooth and stretchy, about 10 minutes. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest for 15-30 minutes.
- Make Pastina Grattata: Remove the plastic wrap and let the dough air-dry slightly to make it easier to grate. Choose the size you wish to grate and rub it on the grater to create tiny pasta pieces.
- Make Maltagliati: Do not air-dry the dough. Instead, roll it through a pasta machine to create a thin sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut out your desired shapes.
- Cook or Store the Pastina: Cook the pastina immediately in a soup or broth. Alternatively, spread it out over a work surface to dry slightly before transferring it to a container for freezing. When needed, cook the pastina directly from frozen.
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