Chef Luna’s Hands-On Italian Pasta Workshop in Las Vegas Jan. 18

Chef Luna led a hands-on Italian pasta workshop in the Las Vegas area on Jan. 18, giving home cooks practical, classroom-style time with dough. The short-format session focused on core skills - kneading, sheeting and cutting - so attendees could reproduce fresh pasta at home with confidence.

The workshop was part of a run of sessions presented under the Handmade Italian Pasta With Chef Luna banner through January. Organizers rotated local hospitality spaces for the series, with past and concurrent sessions taking place at neighborhood venues such as North 5th Brewing and Blue Ox Tavern. Classes were designed to be compact and practical, providing technique-focused instruction rather than long-form culinary certification.

Participants worked in small groups on the fundamentals: balancing hydration in the dough, developing gluten through kneading, rolling to even sheets, and shaping common formats like tagliatelle or hand-cut pappardelle. The emphasis on hands-on repetition and tactile feedback aimed to shorten the learning curve that home cooks face when moving from boxed pasta to fresh, hand-rolled noodles.

Community cooks benefited in two concrete ways. First, the short-format layout fit working schedules - sessions concentrated key techniques into a time-efficient format so cooks could immediately apply new skills at home. Second, using neighborhood breweries and taverns as hosts made the class accessible to residents across the valley and supported local small businesses that provided kitchen space and casual gathering points.

The workshop format also encouraged peer learning. Attendees exchanged troubleshooting tips on dough stickiness, sheet thickness, and sauce pairings while practicing the motions that determine a pasta’s texture and bite. For home cooks who favor seasonal and scratch cooking, mastering fresh pasta expands options for creating quick, from-scratch weeknight meals as well as more elaborate weekend plates.

The Jan. 18 session was one instance in a continuing set of January dates, giving people multiple chances to attend without committing to a long semester. That scheduling approach suits cooks who want a burst of focused instruction followed by home practice rather than ongoing class attendance.

For Las Vegas cooks looking to move past dried pasta, Chef Luna’s hands-on sessions offer a practical bridge: concentrated technique, immediate practice, and a route to fresher, more customizable pasta at home. Expect similar short-format workshops to reappear as local kitchens and event spaces continue to host skill-based classes for community cooks.