Celebrate World Pasta Day 2009 With A Family Meal

The National Pasta Association and the International Pasta Organization will present "World Pasta Day 2009," a conference of the world's leading pasta manufacturers to present the latest nutritional and scientific research on pasta to the industry at large. Since 1995, World Pasta Day has been an international celebration of pasta -- a food consumed all over the world in varying cuisines. World Pasta Day 2009's focus will be "Pasta Meals on Every Family Table."

Chef Lorenzo Boni gave us a quick lesson on different types of pasta and which pasta is good with which sauce. He'll also show us later this morning how to make his favorite dish Barilla Cellentani with Artichokes.

Hearty Long Shapes: Fettuccine, Linguine
- Fettuccine can withstand extremely robust sauces
- Linguine works well with traditional pesto

Round Long Shapes: Angel Hair, Spaghetti, Thick Spaghetti
- Spaghetti works with carbonara, simple tomato, chunky sauces

Tube Shapes: Penne, Rigatoni, Ziti, Mastaccioli
- Angel hair is thin and delicate works with broths, soups, simple sauces

Spiral & Twist Shapes: Rotini, Cellentani, Gemelli
- Embraces both refined and simple sauces

Whole Grain Pasta
- Pairs with aromatic herbs & cheeses, seasonal vegetables, oil-based sauces

For more information on World Pasta Day 2009 please visit www.worldpastaday.org.

Barilla Cellentani with Artichokes
Ingredients
BARILLA Cellentani - 1 box
Extra virgin olive oil - 2 tablespoons \
Garlic, chopped - 2 cloves
Artichoke hearts - 5 each
Vine tomatoes - 1 lb
Salt - ½ teaspoon
Freshly ground black pepper - ½ teaspoon
Italian parsley, chopped - 2 tablespoons
Romano cheese, grated - ¼ cup

Directions
1. BRING a large pot of water to a boil.
2. CUT the artichokes in dices, season with little olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast artichokes in 3. the oven until slightly brown, about 10-15 minutes.
4. HEAT olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add garlic and sauté until golden yellow in color. Add peeled and diced tomatoes along with roasted artichokes and season with salt and pepper.
5. SIMMER for 5 minutes or until artichokes and tomatoes are cooked through.
6. Meanwhile, COOK Cellentani according to the package directions. Drain and add hot pasta to the sauce.
7. Mix well. STIR in parsley and grated Romano cheese.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 to 6