Pasta

500 grams plain flour
5 eggs
2 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon salt

I combined all ingredients in my Kenwood mixer using the dough hook.
Split into roughly 4 equal sized balls.
Flatten each ball into a disk shape using a rolling pin if desired.
Cover with cling wrap and place in fridge for 1/2 hour.

Dust work surface and pasta machine with flour.
Roll out each disk as follows:

Set the pasta machine at its widest setting
Roll the lump of pasta dough through it.
Lightly dust the pasta with flour if it sticks at all.
Click the machine down a setting and roll the pasta dough through again.
Fold the pasta in half
Click the machine back up to the widest setting and roll the dough through again.
Repeat this process five or six times.

It might seem like you're getting nowhere, but in fact you're working the dough, and once you've folded it and fed it through the rollers a few times, you'll feel the difference. It'll be smooth as silk and this means you're making good pasta!

Now it's time to roll the dough out properly
Work it through all the settings on the machine, from the widest down to around the narrowest.
Lightly dust both sides of the pasta with a little flour every time you run it through.
When you've got down to the narrowest setting you want to use, to give yourself a tidy sheet of pasta, fold the pasta in half lengthways, then in half again, then in half again once more you've got a square-ish piece of dough.
Turn it 90 degrees and feed it through the machine at the widest setting.
As you roll it down through the settings for the last time, you should end up with a lovely rectangular silky sheet of dough with straight sides
If dough is a little cracked at the edges, fold it in half just once, click the machine back two settings and feed it through again. That should sort things out. You'll need to know when to stop. If you're making pasta like lasagna or spaghetti you'll need to roll the pasta down to between the thickness of a beer mat and a playing card; if you're making a stuffed pasta like ravioli or tortellini, you'll need to roll it down slightly thinner or to the point where you can clearly see your hand or lines of newsprint through it.
Once you've rolled your pasta the way you want it, you need to shape or cut it straight away. Pasta dries much quicker than you think, so whatever recipe you're doing, don't leave it more than a minute or two before cutting or shaping it. You can lay over a damp clean tea towel which will stop it from drying.

Cake - As used with Snickerdoodle Train Birthday Cake

1 1/4 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup sour cream

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Heat oven 325F

Grease pan

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

In a medium bowl combine melted butter, sour cream, eggs, vanilla and almond extract, mix until well blended.

Add sour cream mixture to flour mixture and blend on low speed, scraping sides of bowl when necessary.

Beat on medium speed for 1 minute.

Spoon batter into pan/pans.

Tap firmly on counter top to remove air bubbles.

Spread batter out to edges, so batter is lower in the centre.

Bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Cool for 10 mins in pan before inverting onto cooling rack to completely cool.

NOTE : I did not use the almond extract