I have to admit that this turned out to be the most difficult assignment thus far. I actually had to throw out my first attempt at the udon noodles. They just would not come together. I tried adding more water, but didn’t want to end up with a sticky mess either. I thought that if I let it rest it would come together, but after 10 minutes of kneading and 30 minutes of rest, I finally gave up and started over. In the end, I had to add 1/4 of a cup more of water than the instructions called for in my second attempt. The kneading was exhausting, but in the end, the noodles came out and the final dish was really tasty.

If I were to make udon noodles again, I might roll them out thinner as I had chosen to go on the thicker side; but everyone else thought they were a nice thickness and the texture was a really nice change from other pastas.

I am almost out of excuses on making the manicotti. Almost!