Saveur October/November 2017

To the wider world of worthy noodles, we salute you! And promise to slurp and celebrate each of you in good time. Here, we are focused on pasta, the great pride and cultural export of Italy, its manifold variations and traditions, and the people who manufacture, cook, and tinker with and think about the stuff. Every issue of saveur is a labor of love, but this one has been especially laborious and fueled by crazy love and an infinitude of carbs. Because we love pasta so much. And there is so much of it. And the topic is as overdone as canned spaghetti, and there’s nothing new under the Tuscan sun, and how do you find anything novel to say about the most beloved, common, and universally domesticated food type on the…

If I wanted a definitive account of the dish’s origins, I’d be disappointed, warned Piermassimo Cirio, the bespectacled, cheerful 48-yearold who manages the kitchen at Madonna della Neve, a restaurant in Piedmont’s white truffle– and wine-rich Langhe region. Pinkiefingertip- size agnolotti del plin (from “pinch” in the local dialect), filled with meat and vegetables and sealed with a simple squeeze of thumb and forefinger, are the restaurant’s signature, and while the pasta takes many forms, I never expected it to be drowned in vino. In 1952 Piermassimo’s parents, Renato and Francesca, purchased the restaurant, named for a small 16th-century chapel dedicated to “Our Lady of the Snow,” with which it shares a hilltop overlooking Val Bormida. Francesca, now 81, continues in the kitchen, and Renato, who grows wine grapes behind the…

In Asmara, Eritrea, bowling alleys are adorned with stained-glass windows. A former gas station, modeled after an airplane, is flanked with breathtaking 98-foot wings. Called “Piccola Roma” by Mussolini in the 1930s, Asmara stood as the bustling hub of colonized Italian East Africa, and by the start of World War II, Italians—lured by the promise of Mussolini’s burgeoning African empire—outnumbered Eritreans. The city was recently designated a UNESCO World Heritage site thanks largely to its Modernist appearance. Pizzerias, gelaterias, and pasta shops are still abundant here, and café culture runs deep throughout the city. Families of the Eritrean and Ethiopian diaspora, including my own, still celebrate major holidays with lasagne, which arrived in the country along with cappuccino and cycling. Similar to the Italian classic—though at times eschewing ricotta—pans of lasagne…

TUNISIA Tunisians consume the third greatest amount of pasta per capita in the world (26 pounds per person according to the Union of Organizations of Manufacturers of Pasta Products in 2014). Just 96 miles from Sicily, the country has adopted its own variations on pasta—which is generally referred to as makarouna— including sauces flavored with harissa and tabil, a spice blend of garlic, chile, caraway, and coriander. SOMALIA Colonized by Italy in the 1880s, Somalia has long been acquainted with the European power’s cuisine. Called baasto in Somali, pasta appeared in Somalia during the Italian occupation. Suugo suqaar is an adaptation of Bolognese with cubed meat and xawaash, an aromatic mix of cumin, coriander, black pepper, turmeric, cardamom, and other spices. Federation, a combination of rice and pasta, is usually served at takeout…

The north-central Italian town of Modena has produced Enzo Ferrari and Luciano Pavarotti, as well as some of the most iconic Ital ian foods, l ike balsamic vinegar, Bolognese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and the classic stuffed pasta, tortellini. When it comes to making tortellini, a Modenese tradition dating to the 16th century, there is no room for improvisation. The dough must be rolled out to a precise thickness, divided evenly, and worked quickly or it will dry and crack. Proper folding requires practice and exacting movements. You wouldn’t think of this as child’s play. But the kids of the Tortellante project do. With the help of a group of volunteers, mostly grandmothers, aunts, and family friends, these special-needs teenagers and young adults are mastering the art of tortellini. The experimental after-school program was launched…

In the beginning, there was pasta. Out of the void sprang a colossal tangle of it accompanied by two proportionately large, red-sauced meatballs. On its first day, soaring through nothingness, this supernatural spaghetti being resolved to split the water from the heavens. And after much flying and building stuff, it grew weary and created somewhere to rest: land and—why not?—a volcano that spat alcohol. Later, after the world’s first hangover, came seas, humans, and the rest of creation. And so, according to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, our world was formed. This is the creation myth first expounded in 2005 by physics student Bobby Henderson, who argued in an open letter to the Kansas Board of Education that his religion based on pasta was every bit as scientifically valid…