Fresh pasta will keep well-wrapped in the fridge for a day or two, but it is best cooked as soon as it is cut.
250g (1¾ cups) Italian ‘00’ flour
1 medium egg
4 medium egg yolks
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch of salt
Put the flour in a mound on a clean surface (preferably marble) and make a well in the middle. Put the whole egg, egg yolks, 1 tbsp cold water, the olive oil and salt into the well.
Using your fingertips, mix all the ingredients in the well together, then gradually draw the flour into the centre, little by little.
When the dough is almost completely amalgamated, knead it 4 or 5 times with the heel of your hand, then roll it into a ball, wrap in cling film (plastic wrap), and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Divide the pasta dough in half; re-wrap one portion. Roll the other portion through a pasta machine, starting on the widest setting. Continue to roll it through the machine repeatedly, narrowing the setting by one notch each time until the sheet of dough is 1.5 mm (1/20in) thick. Roll it through once more to prevent shrinkage when you cut it.
Fit the appropriate cutter on the machine and cut the dough into linguine, spaghetti or tagliatelle.
Lay the strands on a sheet of greaseproof paper or lightly floured parchment to aerate them and prevent tangling.
To cook the pasta, bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil with a few drops of olive oil added. Add the freshly cut pasta and cook for about 1½– 2 minutes, until it is al dente (tender, but firm to the bite). The precise cooking time is determined by the width and thickness of the pasta strands.