Keeping Pasta Interesting

I’m sure my youngest would eat pasta every day, three times a day, if I’d let her.  She loves her noodles.  I, on the other hand, find that pasta once a week is more than enough and my oldest daughter pretty much agrees with me. 

The same old spaghetti or elbow macaroni can become mundane in short order so I like to keep things interesting with different sauces and meats.  But the best tip I have for making your pasta dishes special has to be using different types of pastas.

I don’t make my own pasta and I don’t have any desire too.  I love the convenience in purchasing already made dry pasta and I really appreciate the many varieties my stores have to offer.  Plus they go on sale – a lot!  I find sales for 10 packages for $10 quite often and then I stock up. 

Whenever pasta goes on sale I stock up on the special pastas aside from the regular elbow and spaghetti noodles.  These are the types I am always on the lookout for: 

·         Penne

·         Bowtie or Farfalle

·         Wagon wheels

·         Rotini and Tri-color Rotini

·         Shells – in all sizes

·         Rigatoni – in all sizes

·         Lasagna

·         Fettucine & Linguine

·         Whole wheat pastas – in any variety 

I especially love to use wagon wheel pasta in place of elbow in macaroni & cheese.  Shells are great in baked pasta dishes, pasta salads and soups.  Linguine is a nice change to regular spaghetti noodles.  I love to use fettucine instead of egg noodles whenever I make creamy chicken and noodles, just break them in half. 

Another thrifty tip is to purchase the small packages of pasta in the Hispanic foods aisle.  They usually run 3/$1 at regular price and there is more pasta in those packages than you might think.  One package of fideo makes an entire 2 quart casserole of sopa seca.  The little shells are the perfect amount to add to minestrone soup.  Melon seed pasta is perfect to use in place of orzo at a fraction of the price.  Consider giving them a try. 

I’d love to hear some of your tips regarding pasta!