Wheaties -- The Pasta of Champions.

I used to have a real hard-on for whole wheat pasta; I didn't like the way it tasted or its grainy texture -- mind you, I was also 300lbs, so the obvious health benefits were inconsequential to me at the time. I have since reconciled my differences with pastas of the whole wheat variety, and oddly enough, I find that I've grown to love its nuanced taste and grainy texture (and of course the health benefits!).

When working with whole wheat pasta:

-- Add about a teaspoon of honey along with a heavy pinch of salt to the cooking water. Honey is a natural sweetener and has a way of adding some pep to the pasta.

-- Keep the sauce simple; make the pasta the star. There's no need to mask the pasta's wheatie goodness with a heavy red sauce -- stick to a light olive oil based sauce for best results.

My favorite way to prepare whole wheat spaghetti is to toss a tangle with olive oil, garlic, parsley, some caramelize onions and fennel.

© 2009 c. c. villani @ "mission: insatiable" - http://missioninsatiable.com