I will share a secret with you; I absolutely love pasta. Actually, this might not really be such a big secret. The evidence: I think the Atkins diet is a travesty. My best-loved restaurants are Italian. At any given time my pantry contains pastas of various shapes and sizes, and in the past I used to keep jars and jars of pasta sauce on hand. I enjoyed everything from roasted garlic to arrabiata to kalamata olive and onion, my selection knew no bounds. Now, I only keep fresh or frozen stocks of my favorite homemade sauce based on an absolutely mouthwatering family recipe. Really, you would want to eat this sauce with a spoon, it is that good. In any case, this love of pasta goodness had me eating the stuff at least 2-3 times a week for a while.
Over time, my proficiency in the kitchen expanded, as did my tastebuds. I allowed more time for cooking at home, and created a larger variety of more exotic dishes. Consequently, my nights of pedestrian carbohydrate consumption dwindled drastically and I began to appreciate the finer aspects of quality Italian food. Around this time, I traveled to Italy where I feasted on freshly prepared pasta. Ah… a culinary revelation! Although I am not an Italian grandmother, I obviously needed to attempt to prepare this deliciousness at home. I sensed a pasta maker in my future…
