Spinach Pasta Dough

You should make spinach pasta dough at least once in your life. Why? The gorgeous color! 

Right after you pour the blended spinach and egg mixture on top of the flour, it looks like a pretty, fuzzy, vibrant green mold is growing on top of a white-sand beach. Seriously. I'm not crazy. I know that sounds like crazy-person talk, but look:

Spinach and egg mixture, pre-blending.

Then blended and poured on top of flour.

Gorgeous, moldy green sand dunes! I love it.

Spinach Pasta Dough
Makes about 1 pound

8 ounces fresh spinach
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more as needed and for redusting
1/2 teaspoon salt

Special equipment: Pasta maker and blender

-Steam spinach for 2 minutes until softened. Let cool and then squeeze out liquid with paper towels.
-Puree spinach in your blender (or food processor). Add eggs and yolk to spinach mixture and blend to combine.
-Combine spinach/egg mixture, all of the flour, and salt in your stand-up mixer bowl. Mix 30 to 45 seconds with flat beater on low speed. Then replace flat beater with dough hook and knead on level 2 for 2 minutes. Remove and then hand-knead for 2 more minutes. Cover and refrigerate dough for 1 hour.
-Divide dough into 6 to 8 pieces, about 1 centimeter thick. Flatten each piece and then feed through pasta roller attachment, refolding and feeding through 3 or 4 times at setting 2 until the dough is smooth and the width of the roller. Redust dough with flour as needed. Increase roller setting to 3, and continue refolding and feeding dough through the rollers 2 more times to flatten further. Repeat at settings 4 and 5.
-Replace pasta roller attachment with fettuccine or spaghetti attachment and feed your beautifully green pasta sheets through. Or use to make some sort of tasty ravioli. Or a green lasagna! Your call.

(Adapted from a recipe in the KitchenAid booklet and also one from Martha Stewart)