The Italian cuisine is rich and varied in all its aspects, but pasta has been its pride and glory through much of its history. With the migration of the Italians throughout the world, their pasta too migrated with them and found its way into all life styles, as a worldwide comfort food and an universal favorite. The origins of pasta are as tangled as its numerous kinds and it is difficult to pin point a single source as its origin. There is some validity however, in the belief that the Ancient Greeks and Romans had discovered some form of flattened dough in the shape of a broad noodle called in Greek 'laganon.' It  was however not boiled as we boil lasagna noodles, but roasted on hot stones or in ovens, kind of being  similar to what we now know as pizza !

It is commonly known that pasta is a type of food made from the flour of various grains, water, and sometimes eggs, which is mixed, kneaded and formed into various shapes, and boiled before consumption. While the name comes from Italy, pasta is very popular all over the world. The English word pasta generally refers to noodles and other food products made from a flour and water paste, often including egg and salt. Pasta also refers to dishes in which pasta products are the primary ingredient, served with sauce or seasonings. As recently as 1918 the English word "paste" was used instead of the Italian pasta. Today the word 'pasta' is reserved for Italian style noodles in English speaking countries, while the word 'noodle' has a more general meaning. Pasta was developed independently in a number of places around the globe and they can be created even where there are no ovens or fuel to support them.

Dried Italian style pasta is made from durum wheat semolina, which gives it a light yellow color and a slightly chewy texture when properly prepared. Certain American pastas are produced from a mixture of Farina and Semolina. Such pastas often have a different texture and flavor and are typically used in casseroles or other dishes. Pastas come in many different shapes and sizes. There are simple string-shaped pasta like spaghetti and vermicelli, ribbon-shaped ones like fettuccine and linguine, short tubes like elbow macaroni and penne, large sheets like lasagna, tiny grains like couscous and orzo, and hollow pasta stuffed with filling, like ravioli, manicotti, and tortellini. A main accompaniment of all pastas, of varying shapes and sizes are the sauces that we relish them with. In fact, the concept of pasta is incomplete with the array of delicious sauces that give it a boost. Common pasta sauces in northern Italy include pesto, a mix of pounded basil, pine nuts, and garlic with grated varieties of cheeses and olive oil and bolognese, a rich and slowly simmered sauce made of finely chopped beef or veal. In central Italy, simple tomato sauce and amatriciana, a red tomato or wine based sauce, usually including onion and bacon strips is made while in Southern Italy, spicy tomato, garlic, and olive oil based sauces, which is often accompanied with fresh vegetables or seafood. Varieties include puttanesca made  with tomatoes, olives and capers, spaghetti alla norma made with tomatoes and eggplant and pasta con le sarde consisting of fresh sardines, pine nuts, fennel and olive oil. Pasta sauces unknown in Italy but popular abroad include Alfredo, a white cream sauce and a meatballs and tomato sauce.

So, don't wait anymore and get all your Italian connections rolling. Whip up some fancy shaped pastas and some delicious flavored sauces as their toppings. Give a taste of authentic Italian cuisine to all your friends and family and loved ones and see them smacking their lips in anticipation of a truly 'italiano' treat.

Sean Carter writes on holidays, 
Pasta Day
 and world events. He also writes on family, relationships, Christmas, religion, love and friendship. He is a writer with special
interest in ecard industry and writes for  123greetings.com

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