Pasta in All Its Wonderful Forms
One of the first things people think about when you mention the word Italian is pasta, and regardless of what shape the noodle is it is still considered pasta. Pasta has been around for thousands of years, and it is still a big debate today as to its actual origins. Some feel that pasta originated from Asia, while others are sure that it is a Mediterranean dish. Regardless of where it is originally from, you can bet that there is someone to appreciate it in a fantastic recipe. There are many shapes of the noodle known as pasta, and most of these shapes were around long before we were. Toolmakers forged dies for the making of specialty pasta shapes a great many years ago, and these shapes are still being used regularly.
For The Love Of Pasta
Pasta is not something that is an acquired taste much like artichoke or olives, and you will find many people actually trying to incorporate pasta into everyday meals for family and friends whenever possible. This is because it is easy to work with, and easy to cook. The pasta is tasty and mixes well with many other foods such as: fish, beef, and lamb. You cannot go to a restaurant today, without finding one or more dishes on the menu that contain one or more forms of pasta. Depending on where you are will determine what type of pasta you will be using, if you are living in Italy. In Rome more often than not, you will find cooks and townspeople alike dining on round tubular shaped pastas like Penne. Italians in the southern regions of Italy often enjoyed and still do enjoy longer spaghetti like noodles usually in the form of linguini or angel hair pasta.
Every Conceivable Shape
If you are looking for interesting shaped pasta to use for a dish to spice things up, then you are going to have to really work for the decision. There are many shapes in the pasta world and each one seems to have a specific use or determination. If you are looking to make larger pasta with the use of cheeses and meats, the large shells or tubes are most often used. For fine sauces penne or rigatoni is used, while white sauces are usually the partner of choice with linguini or Farfalle. Whatever the choice of pasta, you can be sure that the dish will be a delight and you will get rave reviews from family and friends alike.
Pasta A Staple, Pasta A Lifestyle
Pasta is not only a staple in Italy, is seems to be a lifestyle as well. There are so many dishes that incorporate pasta in them, that you could easily fill an encyclopedia series on just recipes alone. One of the most interesting aspects of pasta however, is that no matter what pasta you are going to use with the dish you can be pretty much sure that the pasta will taste the same as any other pasta style available.
