If I’ve made one thing clear in our Food Finds and Food Fight series, it’s that I like pasta. And really, who doesn’t? I’m also quite conscientious of the pasta I do eat, and I’m always on the look for one that has quality ingredients (especially whole grains) and for those that aren’t too terrible on the nutrition label.
So, I found a pasta this past weekend and have been quite anxious to share it with you. It’s Pappardelle’s Pasta. I was wandering around the Farmer’s Market when I spotted a booth full of pasta- every shape, color and size you could imagine. Of course I raced over there. I was struck by the fact that out of the dozens of noodles on display, only one was a “regular” wheat pasta. There was such an intriguing variety of flavors that I had the hardest time narrowing down on the one to take home. There are dozens of flavors, and these caught my eye: Four Peppercorn, Lemon Basil, Orange Szechuan, Porcini Muschroom, Spanish Saffron, Sweet Potato and Yellow Bell Pepper. After much deliberation, I ended up with two- Lime Cilantro Linguine and Dark Chocolate Linguine.
I was nervous to research the nutritional values because I’ve learned anything that looks that good cannot possibly be good for you. However, I was pleasantly surprised. We’re pretty good sticklers to serving size, so the 2oz. serving of Lime Cilantro Linguine at dinner yielded:
Calories: 160
Fat: 0g
Sodium 95mg
Carbs: 31g
Fiber: 2g
Sugar: 0g
Protein: 6g
WW Points: 2.8
I’m not making this up! Papardelle’s Pasta is committed to making an artisinal pasta- it is all handmade by trained craftsman at their home in Denver. They use only pure durum semolina flour- none of that bleached, all-purpose flour you’ll find on the grocery store shelves. They do not use any preservatives or unnatural flavors. The entire process from finding growers for the flour, herbs and vegetables, to the slow drying of the handmade pasta is all handled with the highest level of care and attention. All of this to make a better pasta.
We had the Lime Cilantro Linguine with grilled shrimp and it was one of the best plates of pasta I’ve ever had in my life. The flavors were so bright and the pasta cooked to a perfect al dente stage. I just tossed it with a little olive oil and roasted red peppers.
We saved the Dark Chocolate Linguine pasta for dessert the next night and all I can say is pure heaven. With some fresh raspberries and just a sprinkle of powdered sugar- it was a decadent dessert that I’m going to try not to become too accustomed to. The nutritional values aren’t too scary or far off from the previous listing, and are as follows. It’s also one of only a handful of Pappardelle’s pastas that has any sugar in it.
Calories: 170
Fat: .5g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 100 mg
Carbs: 33g
Fiber: 2g
Sugar: 6g
Protein: 8g
WW Points: 3
You’ll only find this pasta in two places – on their Web site and at the Farmer’s Market. They have a generous directory of Farmer’s Markets in the U.S. where you can find the product. One pound of pasta (which serves about 8 people) will cost $7.50.