Buckwheat Pasta

I had a dream that I was eating buckwheat pasta, so when I awoke, I had no choice but to make it. My initial attempt at buckwheat pasta was a little protein heavy. Since buckwheat lacks gluten, I compensated by using bread flour and vital wheat gluten in the dough. The result? One ball of rubber that needed about an hour to relax after it was formed.

After I researched the use of vital wheat gluten, I discovered my mistake. The recommended amount of vital wheat gluten that should be added to a cup of gluten-weak flour is 1 teaspoon per cup. Er, I added 1/4 a cup. Regardless, I did manage to turn the dough into pasta sheets. Really rubbery pasta sheets.

Since I feared that making fettuccine noodles would be a little too much like a eating rubber bands, I opted to cut my pasta into pretty triangles.

 

And to add another protein punch, I made a quick pasta dish out of tuna packed in olive oil, dried chili flakes, salted capers, arugula, and a generous squeeze of lemon juice. The result? Good, surprisingly good. The texture did have a bit too much chew, but due to all the protein (the pasta dough also has eggs), a small amount kept me full for hours. That never happens with regular pasta! I'll have to try making this again soon, this time being a little more stingy with the gluten additive.