Creating cavatappi was a lesson in persistence. We started with our base jalapeno pasta recipe. We were using the Arcobaleno AEX 18 and a teflon cavatappi die. What was unique in making these tightly curled noodles is that the die and dough needed to warm up and hydrate longer than usual. We did not want to or need to add additional moisture. Rather, to enable the intricate shape to be consistently extruded we needed to extrude and rework 1/3 of the dough. In past experiences I attribute poor shaping to user error and often a shape that does not want to be made. In this case I knew we could make beautiful cavatappi. But had forgotten the process that had gotten me there. When Aki took over the noodle making she was looking at everything with fresh eyes. She was able to work through the inconsistencies, and when beautiful noodles finally appeared, she returned the first run to the machine to be re-extruded. Perhaps it was patience. Perhaps it was persistence. It was the culmination of the two guided by the the fact that she never considered the idea that the noodles wouldn't work. We learned a lesson in noodle making and life.
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