This week we bring you the delicious and hearty results of a taste test we performed in our kitchen of Garofalo whole-wheat pasta which is produced in Gragnano, Italy.

The benefits of adding whole-wheat pasta to your normal diet are enormous; about three times more fiber, more vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients. Up until recently finding good tasting whole-wheat pasta has been a struggle at best. Most brands are bland or overwhelming in flavor, and in many cases the pasta turns out too gummy or sticky when cooked. More often than not, these factors contribute to a bad reputation for the sector as a whole.


       Click to ZoomResults In A Nutshell
Our first kitchen test was with the hearty Calamarata cut (undoubtedly deriving its name from the resemblance of calamari rings). We were concerned about overpowering the pasta with a sauce that was too heavy, so we went basic and created a light chicken stock infused with olive oil, grated Asiago DOP, salt and pepper, and topped with chicken and broccoli.

        Click to ZoomThe Garofalo 100% Durum Wheat Semolina pasta proved delicious both plain and with our favorite sauces. The texture of the pasta (when cooked about a minute more than the 16 minutes recommended) was perfectly al dente. We experienced none of the stickiness present in other brands, and in all honesty, if we didn't tell our taste panel that it was durum wheat they would have thought it was just another outstanding pasta. And finally, the pasta looked great before we cooked it, and made for a beautiful presentation once it was on the plate. Proving to us thus far, that Garofalo signature pasta is truly a premium product. Highly recommended.

About Garofalo Signature Pasta
Garofalo Signature is produced in Gragnano, Italy - the birthplace of Italian pasta. The entire line is created only from the finest durum wheat available by company CEO Massimo Menna. The Garofalo Signature line features 21 cuts of pasta, all made to strict quality standards to assure a premium result.

About Gragnano
Gragnano’s heritage as Italy’s birthplace of pasta dates back to at least the 1500s. As is the case with most artisan products from Italy, pasta produced in Gragnano is a confluence of history, craftsmanship, ingenuity and geography. Nestled in the foothills of the Monti Lattari, an extension of the Apennine Mountains, Gragnano has harnessed over time the area’s natural resources to create the perfect pasta. Before the arrival of heaters, pasta makers utilized a combination of a steady sea breeze and plentiful sunshine as a means to dry pasta. Via Roma, the wide principal street that cuts east-west, was designed to enable this breeze to flow unfettered. Natural springs provided untainted water for blending the dough and fast running streams powered the mills. In the 19th-century a railroad line was created that led directly to the port of Naples to facilitate export.

In 1815 the first shipment bound for the US left Gragnano passing through the Panama Canal en route to Italian immigrant customers on the West Coast. Even with today’s advances in pasta making technology, Gragnano still reigns as the home of Italian pasta in the modern era producing 10% of Italy’s national pasta production.