Italian Pasta

Pasta has been an Italian tradition for hundreds of years. To passionate Italians, pasta is poetry. The Italian, Marco Polo, has been given credit for introducing pasta to Italy. However, there's evidence that the ancient Etruscans in Italy were eating pasta at least 1600 years before Marco Polo was born. Furthermore, the Chinese are known to have been eating a "noodle-like food" as early as 3000 BC. It is also believed that the Ancient Greeks, Romans and even Arabs had discovered the simple delights of pasta long before Marco Polo was around. In fact, Greek mythology suggests that the Greek God 'Vulcan' invented a device that made "strings of dough".

Whatever its origin, there is no doubt that even if pasta wasn't invented in Italy, it was certainly the Italians who perfected the art of pasta making.

Dried pasta became popular through the 14th and 15th Centuries, as it could be easily stored on ships setting out to explore the New World. Various types of pasta, including long hollow tubes, are mentioned in the 15th Century records of Italian and Dominican monasteries. By the 17th Century, pasta had become part of the daily diet throughout Italy because it was economical, readily available and versatile.

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 Authentically Produced

All of the pastas in our store are made by artisan pasta makers in Italy, using the traditions of their ancestors, which produces all natural pasta with superior flavor, texture, and yield.

Most of the pasta is made with two natural ingredients: stone ground flour from durum wheat, and pure spring water or eggs. The process of extruded the pasta through hand carved bronze dies and air drying, results in a dense, flavorful pasta that cooks perfectly at dente, and a texture that holds the sauces beautifully. 

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 Coming to America

Thomas Jefferson has been credited with bringing the first "macaroni" maker to America in 1789, but full advent of electricity in the 1900's made life a lot easier for the pasta industry. Machines took over the labor intensive chores like mixing the dough and cutting the shapes.

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The meaning of 'al dente'

'Al dente' is used to describe when pasta is cooked to perfection. 'Al dente' in Italian literally means "to the tooth". Pasta that is al dente should be slightly firm, but not hard.  It is sometimes described as a "slight resistance" when the pasta is bitten.

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Wondering what a specific shape of pasta looks like?  Find it here.  (Coming Soon!)