Trofie

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large wooden board or wooden work surface
• •Bench scraper for dividing dough
• •Sheet pans for drying shaped pasta
• •Plastic wrap for resting dough

Instructions

1. 1

   Combine the flours

   Pour the semolina and tipo 00 flour onto a wooden board or into a large bowl. Mix them together with your fingers, then form a mound with a well in the center. The combination of flours gives trofie their characteristic bite. Pure semolina would be too coarse to shape properly; pure 00 would lack the texture that holds pesto.

   Some Ligurian cooks add a tablespoon of chestnut flour for a faintly sweet, earthy flavor. This is traditional in certain villages but not essential. Try it once you have mastered the basic dough.
2. 2

   Make the dough

   Dissolve the salt in the warm water. Pour about three-quarters of the water into the well. Using a fork, gradually draw flour from the inner walls into the liquid, working in circles. When the mixture becomes too thick for the fork, use your hands. Add remaining water gradually, only as much as the flour will absorb. The dough should come together into a rough mass that is firm, not sticky.

3. 3

   Knead until smooth

   Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes. Push the heel of your hand into the dough, fold it over, rotate a quarter turn, repeat. The dough should transform from shaggy and rough to smooth and elastic. When you press it with a finger, it should spring back slowly. This is a stiffer dough than egg pasta. Your arms may tire. This is correct.

   If the dough cracks as you knead, it is too dry. Wet your hands with water and continue. If it sticks persistently to the board, it is too wet. Add a dusting of semolina and knead it in.
4. 4

   Rest the dough

   Wrap the dough tightly in plastic and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. This relaxes the gluten you have developed through kneading and makes the dough easier to shape. Do not skip this step. Unrested dough will spring back as you try to roll it and fight you the entire time.

5. 5

   Divide the dough

   Unwrap the rested dough and cut it into four equal pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping the others covered. Roll each piece into a rope about half an inch thick. Cut the rope into small pieces, roughly the size of a chickpea. These will become individual trofie.

6. 6

   Shape the trofie

   Here is where the work begins. Take one small piece of dough and place it on an unfloured section of the board. Using the heel of your palm, press down and drag the dough toward you in one smooth motion. The pressure and drag will roll the dough into a tapered spiral, thicker in the middle and pointed at both ends. The trofie should be about two inches long with a distinctive twist running its length.

   The motion is press, drag, release. Do not roll back and forth like you are making a snake from clay. One firm stroke. The twist comes from the friction between dough and board. Too much flour on the board prevents the twist from forming.
7. 7

   Continue shaping

   Repeat with each piece of dough. Transfer finished trofie to a semolina-dusted sheet pan, arranging them in a single layer. They should not touch or they will stick together. This is meditative work. Your first attempts will be imperfect. By the time you finish the batch, your hands will know what to do. One pound of trofie takes about 30 minutes to shape once you find your rhythm.

   Ligurian grandmothers shape trofie while talking, not looking. The motion becomes automatic. Do not expect this your first time. Do expect it by your third.
8. 8

   Dry or cook immediately

   Trofie can be cooked immediately or dried for later use. For immediate cooking, bring abundant salted water to a vigorous boil and cook the fresh pasta for 3 to 4 minutes, until tender but with pleasant resistance. For dried trofie, let them sit uncovered at room temperature for 24 hours, turning occasionally. They will keep in an airtight container for several weeks. Dried trofie take 8 to 10 minutes to cook.

Chef Tips

• •The board must have friction. A smooth marble or stainless surface will not work. Use wood. If your wooden board is too slick from years of oiling, use the back of a sheet pan instead.
• •Traditional trofie are small, no more than two inches. Resist the temptation to make them larger for speed. Larger trofie do not cook evenly and the proportions with sauce become wrong.
• •The heel of your palm does the shaping, not your fingers. Place the dough piece at the base of your palm where it meets the wrist. Press and drag in one motion. Fingers are for picking up the next piece.
• •Serve trofie only with pesto Genovese, or with pesto, potatoes, and green beans in the Ligurian tradition. This shape exists for pesto. Other sauces miss the point.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be made and rested up to 24 hours ahead, wrapped tightly in plastic and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before shaping.
• •Shaped trofie can be dried at room temperature for 24 hours, then stored in an airtight container for up to one month.
• •Fresh trofie can be frozen on a sheet pan, then transferred to freezer bags. Cook directly from frozen, adding one minute to the cooking time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 140g)