This blog is not about how to make pasta. I will leave that to the experts. This is about why I loved this experience.
Last April, I had a trip to Italy planned to visit my daughter who was studying abroad. When the pandemic hit, the trip was cancelled. She was sent home after only six weeks into her experience. I was extremely dispirited as the grief of the pandemic began. I am sure many of you had similar experiences. Whether it was a cancelled trip, tickets to a show you have always wanted to attend, loss of a special event that you cannot get back or something else. While this pasta making class did not make up for the loss of my Italy trip, it WAS a new experience. Something else that I love! Taking this pasta making class gave me the small taste of Italy that I have been craving. Also, I have always wanted to learn to make pasta.
The cost of the class was fifty dollars per person and was an hour and a half long. When we arrived, they had the tables set up perfectly for each group. They did a phenomenal job social distancing in their large event room. We were able to chose where in the room we wanted to be. They had a large screen of the chef so that everyone could see. Our recipe was for pumpkin ricotta ravioli’s, and it was simple in ingredients. All of the prep work was done for us so that we could focus on the skill of pasta making. The wine maker and chef both had a microphone. They each gave the most uplifting speech about their business and love of cooking with wine. Then the class began. The time flew by and we all left with a box of homemade raviolis.
Making pasta was harder than I thought. Although it’s simple in theory, the key is to get the dough to the exact workable consistency. This involves a lot of elbow grease and know how. It was obvious looking around the room to see who was experienced and who was making pasta for the first time. It didn’t matter, though. The energy in the room was so positive. This experience brought community together in a way that I have not felt since the beginning of the pandemic. Everyone was there to learn, have fun, and help others. Smiles and laughter filled the room. It was as if we were removed from the world’s troubles for an hour and a half.
Learning to make pasta is something that I have always been interested in, but never made the time to pursue. I was so happy to finally have the time. It felt good to be creative and have fun. It was a small, but happy moment.