Encyclopedia of Pasta

A recent NYT article claims that Amazon’s sales are “mostly from affluent urbanites who would rather click with their mouse than push around a cart”. I can attest to the truth in that statement; can think of few things more torturous than pushing around a cart, seeking what’s “best” in a sea of merchandise. No, thanks!

As far as I can tell, the only downside to online shopping is the greater likelihood of impulse buys, and, in my case, the impulses are few. A few days ago I went online to buy a baby gift for Luigi, my new nipote italiano, and I checked out with two gifts for him and 4 gifts for me: all from my wish list, and all fabulous books on Italian food, a subject dear to my heart. LOL. What can I say?

I first read about Oretta Zanini de Vita’s Encyclopedia of Pasta in an October NYT article. The publisher (University of California Press) describes it:

Spaghetti, gnocchi, tagliatellea, ravioli, vincisgrassi, strascinati—pasta in its myriad forms has been a staple of the Mediterranean diet longer than bread. This beautiful volume is the first book to provide a complete history of pasta in Italy, telling its long story via the extravagant variety of shapes it takes and the even greater abundance of names by which it is known. Food scholar Oretta Zanini De Vita traveled to every corner of her native Italy, recording oral histories, delving into long-forgotten family cookbooks, and searching obscure archives to produce this rich and uniquely personal compendium of historical and geographical information. For each entry she includes the primary ingredients, preparation techniques, variant names, and the locality where it is made and eaten. Along the way, Zanini De Vita debunks such culinary myths as Marco Polo’s supposed role in pasta’s story even as she serves up a feast of new information. Encyclopedia of Pasta, illustrated throughout with original drawings by Luciana Marini, will be the standard reference on one of the world’s favorite foods for many years to come, engaging and delighting both general readers and food professionals.

I love it already. Listed by type, A-Z, the author details ingredients, how it’s made, how it’s served, where it’s found, and any relevant historical/cultural remarks. For now I’m just reading through some of the shapes, thinking about how much fun I’ll have making some of those I haven’t yet tried. How about battolli from Liguria, flat noodles made with wheat and chestnut flours? How about sagne, a pasta of different shapes made with farro flour from Lazio and Abbruzzo? If I get through the 310 pastas described here, I’ll have something ‘new’ for years to come. Hurray!

Thank you, Oretta Zanini de Vita, for taking on this project and bringing it to the world. Can’t wait to get started!