Celebrate World Pasta Day

In case you didn’t know, today is World Pasta Day!

Linguini. Fettuccini. Rotini. Macaroni. Spaghetti. All of those yummy carb comfort foods ending in a vowel – it’s time to indulge!

Toddlers and eating. Not always a good, consistent combination. But what’s a guaranteed way to ensure a toddler eats? Pasta!

I love pasta not only for my own selfish, tasty motives but also because it saves me time. It saves me from worrying about whether or not my daughter is eating healthy, balanced meals and it saves me from dirtying up tons of unnecessary dishes in order to create a delicious meal for my family. Pasta is such a great dish because I can hide veggies and experiment with new flavors without drawing any suspicion. For a 3 year old, pasta is always a safe, sure thing.

Time limitations aren’t just an issue for me, check out some of the results from a recent Barilla survey,

Pasta provides the perfect meal solution for time-limited households:

• Pasta is recognized by parents and non-parents as a tasty (88%) and easy (87%) meal option and one that can be prepared using on-hand ingredients from a pantry (82%).
• Other benefits of pasta that help alleviate chaotic schedules include that it is versatile (52%), a quick go-to meal (51%) and allows for multitasking while it’s cooking (44%).

In honor of World Pasta Day, I received a generous supply of pasta and accessories, as well as a sneak peek of “The Modern Family Pasta Cookbook” courtesy of the kind folks at Barilla. There were so many delicious sounding pasta options in the cookbook but in the end I selected a dish based on a few different factors. I wanted a meatless option since I try to do Meatless Mondays and I wanted something that would save me time and money. But maybe most importantly, I wanted to take a gamble with flavors that I knew Cakes would enjoy in a presentation she hadn’t experienced before.

So, the pasta I ended up preparing was the Lemon Spaghetti. And while it sounds simple, this flavorful dish had a sophisticated flair because of all the fresh ingredients. I served the dish with some a side of green beans tossed with lemon juice and walnuts and a slice of fresh garlic bread. Next time I make this, I may try adding some fresh asparagus to the dish itself to ensure all the green beans disappear from Cakes’ plate. The other great thing about the Lemon Spaghetti is that aside from the fresh Parmesan cheese, these are all ingredients I regularly have on hand and will now be part of recipe arsenal for quick, weeknight dishes.

I encourage everyone to help Barilla donate to Feeding America and receive a download of the cookbook and a free coupon (while supplies last) by visiting the “Share a Hug” Tab on the Barilla Facebook page. This tab will be live for today only so I encourage you to check it out while you can!

“I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Barilla. I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank-you for participating.”