National Pasta Day
When I’m stuck on a topic I like to look through my photos or check the National Day Calendar. How perfect that today is National Pasta Day! There are may different pasta dishes and today I’m sharing a few of my special ones.
One of my favorites were when Rich would make up a huge pot of meatballs and let them simmer and sit in the refrigerator for 2 – 3 days. The sauce would soak into the meatballs and they were so delicious! Lia loved helping pop roll the meatballs and carefully put in the pan. Our favorite pasta was Penne or Rigatoni but I also love the spaghetti or linguine. I guess you could see we loved all pasta with meatballs and sometimes we used cut up chicken and sauce with our pasta.
Watching Lia eat her spaghetti was so much fun. Ever since she could feed herself she would wrap the spaghetti around her fork and suck it in. When she started cooking her own pasta, she would pull one piece out of the strainer and give it a try before dishing it up.
Another favorite dish is Pasta Fazool and my mother-in-law made the best! I never had her recipe because like me she didn’t use them, just add a little of this and a little of that. While it’s simmering on the stove it smells so good! It’s easy to make and you can get her Pasta Fazool Recipe here
Who doesn’t like mac and cheese! My favorite is using elbow pasta and mixing it with cheese and tuna before baking. But my secret ingredient is crushed up potato chips! Yes I save all the crumbs from the bottom of the chip bag, put them in a baggie and roll to make sure they are all crushed then sprinkle on top of the dish before baking. If you don’t have chips you can do the same thing with crackers. You can check out my Don’t Toss the Crumbs here!
Since today is National Pasta Day I had my meatballs already started the other day so by today my dinner will be ready! I have neighbors that are so caring and today is payback day! I make up pasta and meatball meals and surprise them with lunch. If they already have their meal planned this can go in the freezer for another day.
Is there some type of pasta on your plate today?
Pasta is my favorite dish! My kids want spaghetti tonight.
There are so many different ways to make pasta meals Jasmine, I think that’s way it’s such a great meal.
Hee hee
Growing up parents who’d survived the depression, we ate lots of potatoes, and maccaroni was ok, but my dad avoided rice and spaghetti, and my mom just didn’t make them!
We solved the first by going down to Stockton’s, where my mom and I ordered from the Asian menu, and my dad from the American!
When my kids were growing up, our standard was rice and lentils – and later they got ramen packages, but i just didn’t cook a lot of pasta (and we were whole grain oriented)
Now that we’re also gluten free, my daughter sometimes makes lasagna using gf noodles, and I sometimes get a box of angel hair (rice) or buckwheat noodles – and rice n lentils or potatoes are more my style!
How I remember the “old” days when things were scarce and my grandmother would make dinner out of hardly nothing Nadya. We had a big garden and how I remember the delicious potatoes, baking beans and sweet corn.
I love pasta!!! So I’m glad you’re celebrating it. I’m hungry, too, so every one of your pasta pictures called my name! Lia looks so cute eating her pasta. So Rich was Italian? Oh my gosh – did you learn everything there was to know about pasta from his mom? I hope you keep making his meatballs. <3
Me too Jeanine! Yes Rich was Italian but his mom made more chicken dishes and pasta fazool. Rich made his famous meatballs and they became a family favorite. He never told anyone his recipe so when I had to start making them I hoped they would be half as good as his. The kids agree that mine are “fairly” close to pop’s.
Your pasta and photos are so yummy, Martha. Lia makes it look so much fun eating noodles. Tuesday is our pasta day. We have spahgetti and meat sauce for supper every Tuesday.
I like the idea of having a special day for spaghetti Lily! Lia has loved sucking in the pasta since she was a tiny one! LOL
According to the motto “calories in photos don’t make you fat”, I really enjoyed your blog post. I love Italian cuisine! Lia, the pasta chef and gourmet looks lovely!
However, since the beginning of the year I have drastically reduced my carbohydrate intake in favor of my health. Pasta and pizza are now only eaten on very special occasions.
By the way, yesterday I was rewarded for my hard work with significantly improved lab results!
Congratulations on your improved lab results Tamara, does that mean you can have a tiny bit of pasta? I actually don’t eat it often and I hardly ever eat potatoes other than sweet potatoes. Did you know that zucchini noodles are lower in carbs than pasta?
Yum! I love pasta.
It’s one of my favorites Amanda!