In our extremely busy lives, pasta and pasta sauces are one of the few kitchen staples that most cooks cannot live without. In 20 minutes, dinner is ready and on the table. But even pasta is becoming increasingly complex. There are so many different pasta sauces to choose from! What makes a natural pasta sauce? Is it worth passing up a mainstream brand for one? As far as taste and nutrition go, the answer is a resounding yes!
The Sauce
Any good tomato sauce is made from choice tomatoes, fresh herbs, and, depending on the recipe, fruity olive oil. The oil is used to sweat any aromatics, such as garlic or onion, which are used to enhance flavors. In a non-fat pasta sauce this step is omitted. Even with the oil, tomato sauces are naturally low-fat.
The main problem to avoid with bottled sauces is the extra sodium. Several mainstream brands contain 850 to 1200 milligrams of sodium (half a day’s worth.) Some of the upscale brands also have high levels. Read labels carefully. And remember, the nutritional information on the labels is written for a half cup serving. Typically, it takes one cup of sauce to adequately top 2 cups of pasta. In industry tests, many of the natural and organic pasta sauce companies are well ahead of the competition with the lowest sodium and fat levels. In my kitchen, I found these brands to be superior in taste as well.
Why buy organic? All the ordinary reasons to buy organic are multiplied when it comes to sauces. By definition, a sauce is a concentration of flavors and ingredients. If tomatoes have been sprayed with pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilizers these are also concentrated in the sauce. In any case, choosing organic does not severely limit your choices.
Sacramento-based Muir Glen offers 10 different organic tomato sauces. Sauces are low fat or fat free. Muir Glen’s sauces are thick, chunky and full of fresh tomato flavor. They are made with organic tomatoes packed in puree, not juice, and seasoned with organic herbs and spices. The Fat-Free Cabernet Marinara and Sun-Dried tomato sauces were particularly hearty and flavorful. The Fat-Free Italian Herb was delicious on pasta and as an impromptu pizza sauce.
Muir Glen also offers a full line of canned organic tomato products. They use enamel lined cans to avoid the tinny taste so often found in canned tomatoes. Muir Glen packs their tomatoes in juice and offers several varieties of diced, recipe ready, tomatoes. Once you start to cook with these tomatoes you will find it difficult to use any other brand.
Enrico’s pasta sauces have been all natural for the past 56 years. Founder John Ventre Jr. began bottling spaghetti sauce in 1938. He started his business in the basement of his grandfather’s restaurant, Enrico’s in Syracuse, New York. The sauce began as all-natural in the thirties and remains all natural today. Ventre has never believed in using fillers, additives or preservatives and uses only the best available ingredients.
Today, Enrico’s maintains those same high standards. The Organic Fat-Free pasta sauces are made with only the best certified organic tomatoes, herbs and spices. Steve Weinstein, Enrico’s Vice-President of Sales and Marketing says that “In fact, we turn away more tomatoes then we actually buy.”
Enrico’s markets a line of six Organic Fat Free pasta sauces. My favorites are the Bountiful Basil and Garlic Lovers. The Traditional and Traditional with No-Salt are terrific all purpose tomato sauces. I found them both popular with kids who love pasta with pasta sauce without sophisticated flavors.
The Pasghetti
What makes a good dried pasta? Pastas are judged on their flavor and texture. Commercial dried pasta is made with water and durum wheat, a high protein wheat. Ground durum wheat, also known as semolina, is preferred for dried pasta because it contributes to a firm, elastic dough that is sturdy enough to be shaped by machine. The better the wheat quality the more flavorful the pasta. Inferior pastas are gummy and bland. Good quality pasta is marked “100% pure durum wheat” or “pure semolina.”
There are several excellent organic dried pastas available in most supermarkets and natural food stores. Buying organic pasta not only means avoiding any pesticides or chemicals that may have been sprayed on the wheat. It also means that the flour is unbleached and unenriched, with no chemicals or bromates added.
San Diego-based Mrs. Leeper’s Pasta began in 1927 as a small egg noodle company. Today, owners Eddie and Michelle Muscat have expanded the organic pasta line to include, Eddies Spaghetti and Michelle’s Naturals. Mrs. Leeper’s line now includes several other wheat free/gluten free pasta made from rice and corn.
Michelle’s Naturals are available in 14 flavors. The pasta is dried and sold nested on recyclable trays. Although it’s dried, Michelle’s cooks up in two minutes and had a remarkable fresh pasta texture. The flavored pastas retain their flavors. The pasta is flavored with organic vegetable powders. This is a truly delicious pasta. Try it in a recipe that suggests using fresh pasta.
Eddie’s spaghetti is available in a fun 20” length (great for twirling practice) and a more demure 10” length. Other Eddie shapes include vegetable orzo, bowties, corkscrews, and radiatore. These are fun and tasty pastas. Eddies Spaghetti scores high over imported pastas in industry taste tests with its “excellent texture and clean wheat taste.”
Since 1923, Eden Foods has been making pasta. They have been offering organic pastas for the past 25 years and have recently begun creating lighter pastas by combining 50 percent whole grain with 50 percent sifted flour. Eden uses only organically grown American grain. There are 23 Eden Organic pastas available. The line includes the more familiar shapes plus a wide range of herb and vegetable flavors.
All this variety can lead to some creative pasta cooking. I made an adventurous macaroni and cheese with the Hot Pepper Elbows and the Sesame Rice Spirals were delicious in an Asian pasta salad. The Pesto Twists were perfect when tossed with fresh tomatoes and garlic.
The Frozen
You’ll find all natural Putney Pasta in the freezer case. Putney Pasta owners, Jonathan Altman and Carol Berry founded their company in 1983 in a renovated barn. The company now occupies a 41,000 square foot state-of-the-art plant in Chester, Vermont. Putney Pasta is sold nationwide and is served in some of the country’s finest hotels and restaurants.
The Putney Pasta retail line consists of 12 quick-frozen, filled pastas (three of them no-fat) and three sauces. All the products are made without preservatives, artificial colorings, or additives. The pastas are sold frozen because they are not pasteurized. The fresh pastas found in the refrigerated case are pasteurized. Pasteurization partially cooks the pasta and slightly alters its texture.
The pastas are excellent for a quick and easy meal. Filled pastas do not require complicated sauces. The simpler the better to complement the filling. Putney Pasta offers several creative flavor combinations. All are vegetarian. The no-fat and low-fat pastas do not compromise taste at all. The fillings are each matched to a flavored pasta. Black Bean and Habañero is encased in a red pepper pasta, Asparagus, Carrot and Dill in a spinach pasta and, my favorite, the Creamy Gorgonzola in a striped beet and spinach pasta.
Celentano’s Vegetarian Selects are a delicious organic, all-natural alternative to the usual frozen entrees we buy when we want a quick dinner. Celentano’s is a family run business committed to creating healthful entrees without compromising taste or nutrition. Celentano’s vice president Dominick Celentano, Jr. Says, “We have developed a line of frozen foods that meets the standards of the strictest buyer and satisfies our family’s criteria.”
Celentano’s began their business thirty years ago selling homemade ravioli and pizza out of their neighborhood store. The business quickly expanded to other shops and supermarkets. Celentano’s still produces its original recipes.
The Vegetarian Selects line consists of seven selections, four of them vegan. Tofu replaces cheeses in the vegan entrees. The texture and flavors are perfect. I especially liked the Lasagna Primavera and the Eggplant Rollettes. The entrees can be cooked in either a microwave or conventional oven. They are perfect for those nights when you are too exhausted to cook but you still want a healthy dinner.
Shapes and sizes
Pasta comes in a variety of shapes, widths and lengths. Each type of pasta is suited to a particular sauce. Thin and thick string shapes like spaghetti and linguini go well with hearty tomato sauces, butter and olive oil sauces and cream based sauces.
Shorter dried pastas like ziti and rigatoni, with their hollow tubes, are well suited to meat sauces. Any of the dried corkscrew pastas: rigatoni, fusilli, macaroni , and rotini are perfect for pasta salads. The salad dressing clings to their short chunky shapes. These shapes are also ideal for baked pasta dishes.
Stuffed pastas require subtle sauces that will not overwhelm the filling. Good accompanying sauces include tomato, reduced cream or melted butter, and herbs.
How much pasta to cook?
In general, allow 3 to 4 ounces of pasta per person as a main course. You need slightly larger amounts when using fresh pasta. I’ve found weighing the pasta, on a simple kitchen scale, to be the most accurate way to judge portions. Those round pasta measurers have never quite worked for me. In my prescale years, I eyeballed amounts and resisted the temptation to add more to the pot.
Equipment
All you need to cook pasta is a large saucepan or stockpot. Pasta needs plenty of boiling water surrounding it. Too little water and the pasta clumps together in an unsalvageable mess. A colander is also useful for draining the cooked pasta. Many stockpots are now sold with pasta inserts. If you are using an insert, move the pot as close to the sink as possible to avoid a trail of boiling water. Also, watch out for steam burns when removing the insert. Wear long oven mitts.
Cooking
Bring a large quantity of water, 4 quarts to one pound of pasta, to a rapid boil. Salting the water reduces the boiling point and flavors the pasta. In general, add 2 tablespoons of salt to every 4 quarts of water. Most of the salt is rinsed away but if you are avoiding salt you can substitute miso or leave it out altogether.
Bring the water to a boil, drop the pasta in all at once, stir, cover the pot until the water returns to the boil. Then uncover the pot and boil until the pasta is done. Dried pasta may take anywhere from 8 to 12 minutes. Fresh pasta cooks in 60 to 90 seconds. Check the package when trying a new pasta. These times are guidelines. The best test for doneness is tasting.
Drain cooked pasta immediately, shaking the colander to remove excess water. Pour pasta into a warm bowl. Sauce and serve immediately. If the pasta is to be baked or used in pasta salad, you can toss it lightly with oil so that it does not stick together as it cools.