Spinach Pasta with Tomatoes and Basil

This is the perfect dish to showcase those glorious end of summer tomatoes and basil from the farmer’s market! The homemade spinach egg pasta is a delicious and satisfying pasta for this dish, but dried pasta from the store can easily substitute if you’re short on time (consider angel hair pasta, if so; chill in ice water after cooking to have a refreshing, cool dish).

Ingredients

• 100 g fresh spinach
• 3 large eggs
• 400 g all-purpose flour (about 3 1/3 cup flour, unpacked and leveled)
• 3-4 large fresh tomatoes
• 1 bunch fresh basil (about 25 large leaves)
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1.5 tbsp basalmic vinegar
• 4 oz goat cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Seed tomatoes and roughly dice.
2. Roughly chop basil into narrow strips.
3. Combine tomatoes and basil in a bowl and toss with olive oil and basalmic vinegar. Lightly season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover bowl and let rest at room temperature.
4. Blanch spinach in boiling water for 1 minute. Immediately transfer to ice water to cool.
5. Squeeze out excess water and finely dice blanched spinach.
6. Whisk eggs and diced spinach until fully combined.
7. Add egg-flour mixture to flour and gradually mix together until a thick paste forms.
8. Knead dough by hand until it is soft and uniform. If it is too sticky, add a tablespoon of flour and knead until not sticky. If it is too firm, add a teaspoon of water at a time until it is soft.
9. Place dough in a clean bowl and cover bowl with a slightly damp towel. Let rest at room temp for 60 minutes.
10. Using a pasta machine or a rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/8 inch (3 mm) thickness. Cut into long strips ¼ inch (6 mm) wide.
11. Cook pasta in boiling salted water for ~ 2 minutes or until al dente
12. Remove pasta from water with tongs and place into tomato-basil mixture. Toss pasta to thoroughly mix, then adjust seasoning to taste.
13. Serve with crumbled goat cheese on top of pasta.