It was there, on your first birthday. Mom churned up cheesy spaghetti and every child at your kiddie party beamed with delight, their faces smudged with yummy, red-sauced spaghetti.
And the seasons changed. A bowlful of piping-hot elbow macaroni soup soothed your tummy and your soul, as you came home drenched from rain, all worn out by the day’s work, deadlines and traffic. Ahh! Chicken macaroni soup always restores. So today, you rise again. And go to work. Connect. Deal. Fail a little. Win, overall. Tonight sounds inviting. Your lady whipped up some divine Lasagna for dinner!
What is life, without pasta?
Must be the reason why all of Italy was floored, when Marco Polo brought home ‘pasta’ from his China explorations. That today, Italy tops all countries of the world in eating, loving and creating pasta. There are now over 600 pasta shapes or kinds. How many have you tried? How do you rate on the pasta literacy scale?
Food is Culture. Pasta is Culture.
Italy, Tunisia, Venezuela. These are the top 3 Countries, in terms of pasta volume consumption. The United States is also very big on pasta love, and their top three favorite shapes are Spaghetti, Penne and Rotini or Twist– in that order. Asians naturally so love pasta (the Chinese invented it!).
In the Philippines, the boom in theme restaurants due to millennials’ love for good food and dining out has raised the bar for gourmet pasta appreciation. Today, a restaurant cannot thrive on spaghetti alone. For customers to return for a second or third visit, there must be lasagna, linguine, fettuccine, penne, and fusilli pasta on the menu. And of course, the staples. The good, all-time favourites- baked elbow macaroni and cheese, salad macaroni.
Daring is the New Black
The universality of pasta is immense. It chooses no color, no gender. Remember it was a man– Marco Polo– who brought pasta to Italy. It was a president– Thomas Jefferson– who introduced pasta to America in 1789. The children at home, the lady of the house, the man at the helm… oh everyone adores Pasta.
Tip for keeping a man Interested! Seduce with variety, innovation. Introduce new variants of pasta shapes or types, and new recipes! Have you tried Cannelloni lately? How about Squid Ink Spaghetti, the latest sensation in town? With its rich, briny flavour that tastes full-bodied and clean, squid ink spaghetti captivates even the finicky taste buds of men. If you want to play safe though, it is lasagna which wows all, whatever age, gender, color or social status. Especially now, that not only fine-dining restaurants but even fast-foods, caterers and home deliveries feature Lasagna as their banner offering. Lasagna is ideal for impressing!
“Life is a Combination of Magic and Pasta”
So says famous Italian film director and screenwriter Federico Fellini, whose works include the classic film “La Dolce Vita”. Perhaps Fellini recognized that each chapter, each milestone of our life, is made more memorable indeed… if celebrated through the many shapes and colors of pasta itself.
Ideal Gourmet Pasta Leads the Philippine Scene
It is Ideal Gourmet Pasta, the banner brand of Ideal Macaroni & Spaghetti Factory, Incorporated that nurtures the Filipinos’ growing love for gourmet pasta– a category that exacts precise standards of quality, craftsmanship and expertise. With over fifteen pasta variants to delight foodies with, Ideal Gourmet Pasta has become the Philippines’ preferred brand of gourmet pasta by food service establishments and consumers alike. It continues to push the envelope, by regularly introducing new shapes or new types. Just recently, Ideal Gourmet Pasta launched its Squid Ink Spaghetti, which was quickly picked by major food service establishments and featured as their “hot new item” on the menu. Consumers also frenziedly took to supermarket shelves to buy and experiment, and showcase their hot, new “black pasta” creations.
World Pasta Day Everyday
October 25 is World Pasta Day, the date on which we honor the many kinds and flavours and stories and memories we all have, of this marvellous food called “pasta”. It marked the many milestones and moments of our life. Pasta is so wonderful that even runners and athletes herald it as their “super-food”, for carb-loading. Did you know that the week before a race or marathon– runners take to pasta to fill their muscle glycogen storage tanks with the energy needed to fuel a long run? On the night before each race or marathon, athletes indulge in a so-called “pasta party”, or the “pre-race pasta supper”, to ensure them of strength and endurance for the race. No wonder the quip “Eat pasta, run Fasta” certainly makes so much sense.
So, what is your pasta supper tonight? For the love of it. Or for the might, or friends it gives… pasta is Ideal. Pasta is Life!
