New Year’s resolutions are not a typical theme at our house. We tend to celebrate the holiday quietly, with rest and recuperation, looking ahead to the big thaw of spring. This is the time of year when we plan our gardens and take note of which crops flourished and which ones didn’t quite make the cut.
This year, though, I’ve decided to set a goal that feels right for the season. We love homemade food, and I enjoy pasta more than I’d like to admit. In 2026, I want to master the art of making pasta from scratch.
I wasn’t raised in a homemade household. As a busy single parent, my mother made sure dinner was always on the table, but it usually came from a box or a jar. Those foods still have a place in my kitchen, but over the years I’ve started finding and creating recipes that are nourishing, relatively simple to make from scratch, and don’t destroy the grocery budget.
Photo by Jess Delarosa
My goal for the coming year is to re-create some of our favorite restaurant meals at home, adding a little more variety to our rotation along the way. Somewhere in my family tree is one Italian ancestor, and I’d like to think they’d appreciate the effort. I’ve made several attempts already, none of them particularly edible, but my enthusiasm remains high.
I’ve watched countless YouTube videos and TikToks from expert Nanas, flipped through old recipe books, and even wandered down a few Reddit threads. I was certain I’d nail ravioli on my first try. It turns out it’s much harder than it looks. My daughter is perfectly content with canned Chef Boyardee, but I’d love to one day replace it with something a little more wholesome.
The basic recipe for most pasta calls for flour, salt, eggs, and sometimes a bit of water. Just a few simple ingredients, mixed together, rolled as thinly as possible, and cut into shape. How hard could it really be?
So far, I haven’t managed to get the dough quite thin enough. Each batch has leaned more toward thick, floury paste than delicate noodle, but if there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s persistence. With enough patience, practice, and a little elbow grease, I’m confident I’ll get there, one imperfect batch at a time.
As the year comes to a close, I think less about what went right and more about what we shared. The flour-covered counters, the eggshells in the sink, the dance parties during cleanup. Cooking from scratch taught my family that food isn’t just fuel. It’s creativity, connection, and joy. We may have botched the pasta, but we nailed the connection.
Photo by Jess Delarosa
Basic Egg Pasta Recipe
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1-2 tablespoons water (only if needed)
Instructions
On a clean counter or in a large bowl, mix the flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add eggs and olive oil. Gently whisk the eggs with a fork, slowly pulling in flour from the sides. Once a dough forms, knead for about 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
If it’s dry, add a little water.
If it’s sticky, dust it with flour.
Wrap the dough and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. (This part matters.)
Roll the dough as thinly as possible with a rolling pin. Cut into desired shapes. (Fettuccine strips are easiest.) Boil in well-salted water for 2-3 minutes until tender.
