Pasta la vista, muchacha.
pastaMontreal, Toronto, Vancouver
(Nov.10.05)
We were all happy when the carbs-are-evil craze ended, but standing in front of the row of pasta in our pantry, we have to admit there wasn’t much to get excited about. Linguini is just so boring. Thankfully, a quick visit to the Atwater Market rekindled our carboliscious cravings. We’ve found the most quirky form of pasta in town—The Sombreroni, from Pastificio Marella.
As the name suggests, the pasta is shaped like little Mexican sombreros. They hail from the Puglia region of Italy, where the Sombreronis are made of durum wheat and natural colouring (like beets). This festive pasta not only looks great, but it’s a quality product that neither turns to mush nor tastes like cardboard.
Preparation is simple (even for the not-so-gifted in the kitchen). Dust off your pasta pot and boil some plain water (no salt, no oil). After cooking the Sombreronis and their flat-bottom lids for four minutes (not a second longer), stuff them with whatever you like. (Need inspiration? Try spinach and ricotta cheese). Once you’ve added a lid to each stuffed sombrero, arrange them in a baking dish, cover with sauce, and throw them in the oven for 20 minutes.
If your friends aren’t impressed, you need some new friends.
Sombreroni
Pastificio Marella
Available at:
Douceurs du Marché
Atwater Market (beside the fish store)
514-939-3902
PS: Pastificio Marella has also just launched a new line of Linguine au Cacao, made with 10% cocoa. It’s to die for served with chopped scallops and a coriander béchamel sauce. (Now that will impress anybody)