Thoughts on Pasta

Let’s face it. When most of the world thinks about Italian food, we think about pasta, right? While it’s true that many popular Italian dishes are pasta dishes, pasta in Italy is actually served as one of the first courses of a meal, rather than the main course, and in a much smaller portion than it is typically served in the United States. This could help to explain why pasta has gotten such a bad name among those that are anti-carbohydrate. While pasta is rich in carbohydrates, they are complex carbohydrates, which are actually better for you than the simple sugar type of carbohydrates you really want to avoid. The key, as with most diet plans, is simply moderation. Too much of anything can be a bad thing!

There are literally hundreds of shapes and sizes of pasta, and probably twice as many names for them. The intricate designs of pasta shapes actually do serve a purpose other than just looking pretty: the shapes allow different sauces to stick better. Pasta is basically a mixture of flour, water, and egg, although there are many different variations in recipes and many include different spices and seasonings. Fresh pasta is cooked immediately after it is made, but the pasta that you buy in your typical grocery store has been dried completely before it was packaged, which greatly enhances the shelf-life.

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Pasta is an extremely versatile food. The taste of the pasta itself is such that it lends itself to being combined with a wide array of other foods. Because it comes in so many forms, it can be used in an incredible variety of different recipes, resulting in vastly different flavors and tastes. It is also highly convenient due to its ease of cooking – it simply requires boiling and flavoring. If you’re in a pinch trying to think of a side dish to go with just about any meal, it’s quite easy to boil a small amount of almost any type of pasta noodle and simply add some butter and some garlic salt or other seasoning of your choice. Instantly you have a delicious side dish and you appear as though you spent hours thinking of a perfect menu!

Look for more great pasta tips coming with the release of The Italian Kitchen, coming soon!