3 Different ways to cook pasta

Pasta is more than just a stereotypical Italian food; it is a food that changed the world.  We don’t know specifically when it was first developed, but the first written registry of this food was left by an Arab explorer, Mohammed al-Idrisi, in the far-away year of 1154.  He noted that it was a Sicillian product.  By that time it was already a well-developed product.  It was already being exported, giving it perhaps even more ancient origins, and was undoubtedly located in the Mediterranean coast.

The most revolutionary aspect of pasta is the fact that it is dried, which allowed it to preserve its precious carbohydrates.  This made a huge change in the exploration and the economy of the region that developed it; military, work crews, and populations could count on a source of solid food for embarking on large voyages or for fighting times of hunger. All they had to do was rehydrate the pasta that had been so arduously prepared and stored in their pantries.

Pasta is made primarily with different varieties of wheat flour, although different types of grain flour can also be used.  Eggs and water are the other two indispensable ingredients in pasta.  Pasta is nutritious and has character and history.  It is a great carbohydrate preserve that helps our bodies have energy reserves.  It is generally enriched with folic acid, which is a variety of vitamin B that helps pregnant women prevent dietary deficiencies and defect in the fetus, improves nutrient absorption, and also contains iron, which is essential for building red blood cells.  Pasta’s nutritional value and taste will also vary according to the ingredients you use with it.  I hope you enjoy these three recipes found here, and remember, they taste even better when shared with family or friends:

Spiral (fusilli) pasta with asparagus

Ingredients

• 1 ½ c. spiral or fusilli pasta
• 10 fresh asparagus stalks
• ½ c. broccoli, cooked
• ¼ c. pistachios
• 12 cherry tomatoes
• 2 c. endive
• ½ c. panela or goat cheese
• 1 Tbsp. shallots, diced
• 4 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
• 2 tsp. honey
• 1 tsp. Herbes de Provence (herbs typical to Provence)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cook the pasta in salt water.  Look at package directions for more details.  Drain water from pasta after finished cooking.
2. Place asparagus and tomatoes in a baking dish.  Dress with 1 tsp. of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Bake at 200? C for 8 minutes.  It is best to preheat your oven.
3. Cut asparagus into 1 cm pieces, and split the tomatoes.
4. Mix honey, shallots, lemon juice, Herbes de Provences, and salt and pepper to taste, to create the dressing.
5. In a bowl, mix pasta with broccoli, endive, tomatoes, and asparagus.
6. Serve salad with cheese and pistachios.  Bathe in dressing as a final touch.

Linguine pasta with calamari and mussels

Ingredients

Calamari:

• 300 grams squid (calamari)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tbsp. parsley
• ½ Tbsp. red chili
• 2 Tbsp. white wine
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Soy oil

Pasta:

• ½ kilo linguine pasta
• ½ kilo mussels
• 5 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, mashed
• 50 mL white wine
• 1 lemon
• 1 tsp. parsley
• Salta and pepper to taste

Directions

Calamari:

1. Cut squid into rings.  Add salt and pepper, parsley, chili, garlic, and wine.  Mix well.
2. Preheat oil in a skillet.  When ready, fry calamari, cleaning excess oil with a paper towel.  Set aside.

Pasta:

1. Cook pasta al dente in salt water.  Look at pachage directions for more details.  Drain water once pasta has finished cooking.
2. Place olive oil and garlic in a skillet.  Add previously washed mussels along with white wine and parsley.  Cover skillet and cook until mussels open.  Set juice aside from cooking.
3. Mix pasta with mussels, and the sauce in the skillet. 
4. Serve, placing fried calamari atop pasta.

Spaghetti with meat sauce

Ingredients

• ½ kilo spaghetti
• ½ kilo hamburger meat
• 800 grams tomatoes, diced
• ½ onion, thinly diced
• 3 carrots, thinly diced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/3 c. tomato paste
• 1 Tbsp. cinnamon powder
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Cook pasta in salt water.  Look at instructions on package for more details.  Drain water from pasta once cooked.
2. In a skillet with oil, sauté onion and carrots.  Just before they soften up, add meat.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Cook ingredients well, stirring.
3. In a pot, mix tomatoes, tomato paste, cinnamon, oregano, sugar, ½ c. water, and salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat to low until sauce thickens, approx. 20 minutes.
4. Mix meat with sauce.
5. Dish out pasta and serve with a generous portion of sauce.  Sprinkle a bit of parmesan cheese on top. 

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