al dente pasta at whole foods, chicago
A Warm Welcome at Whole Foods Evanston
I know, I know. People say it all the time. It’s not often that the owner of a company is still as enthusiastic and committed and willing to spend time sampling as I am, almost 30 years after starting Al Dente Pasta Company. What can I say? That’s the kind of company we are. With that said, here is my demo schedule in Chicago for the month.
May 7th. Sauganash store at 6020 N.Cicero. 5-8 for Ladies Night.
May 9th Naperville 11-3 (my sister-in-law, Jan will be doing this one)
May 22nd. Grand Opening of the new Lincoln Park/Kingsbury store. 11-3
May 23rd. Northbrook Chicago 840 Willow Road. 11-3
Al Dente Pasta Paired up with Whole Pantry Bruscetta Topping
I’m guessing on these measurements, but necessity was the mother of this invention. I had in my fridge some leftover pasta, about 1/2 bag and about 1/4 jar of the Whole Pantry Bruscetta Topping. Here’s what I did.
Serves 2 as main dish, 4 as side dish
1/4 jar Whole Pantry Sundried Tomato and Olive Bruscetta Topping
1/2 bag Al Dente Whole Wheat Fettuccine (would be delicious with any Al Dente Flavor)
4 oz. Cream Cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
3/4 cup water
salt and pepper to taste.
Heat up the water and Bruschetta topping in a medium size pot. Stir in Cream Cheese until smooth and creamy. Add cooked pasta. Sprinkle with Parmesan and season with Salt and Pepper. (add any other leftovers, vegetables, chicken, seafood, nuts, etc.)
An Official Al Dente Pasta Joke:
I’ve meant to share this joke since October, when I did my first Chicago Whole Foods demo at the Canal Street Store. As told to me by a charming customer, Graham C. Grady, which he luckily wrote on a paper plate so I could remember it forever. Thanks Graham.
“What do you call a linguine noodle that is trying to pass itself off as a fettuccine noodle?”
“An ‘impasta!”
al dente® pasta canoodler 
great picture!
my birthday on monday may 4th was celebrated in ann arbor, downtown at gratzi restaurant with my dear friends michael anderson (ann arbor) and karen copeland (queens, new york). wonderful company. lovely sparkling wine. delicious dinner.
as is the case, I couldn’t finish my main course, after an appetizer of mustard-coated salmon en bruchette.
now it’s wednesay and it’s dinner time. what I do most nights is open the fridge to see what’s available for an al dente pasta dish. voila! the leftover tuna awaits! so, here’s what I concocted:
in a large saute pan I sauteed pancetta with fresh organic locally-grown scallions I purchased after work at the food coop. I dropped in a dollop of butter, then a swig of olive oil and some s&p for taste. I let it all saute away in each other’s juices, while the pasta water was thinking about coming to a boil. I seized that moment to go outside into my garden where I cut some chive (the plants are at least 7 years old and gloriously they return every year) and italian parsley. back inside, I dropped in some frozen organic peas from my freezer. poured in some white wine and half a cup of organic chicken stock. I covered the saute pan and went about cutting up the leftover tuna from my birthday dinner. the pasta water was ready, perfect timing…and in went the al dente fettuccine! after the peas were unfrozen, I added the tuna and some capers, some more wine…and let it simmer. three minutes later, my meal was ready to be mixed into my favorite pasta bowl (made by my potter friend phil wilson in grand rapids).
pour some pasta in the bowl. mix in some precious french olive oil. add the pancetta/tuna saute. more pasta. mix it up. add fresh parmesan and top it off with cuttings of the garden herbs. oy vey! another lovely dinner at home with my dog lucy…on her birthday!
Happy Birth Year, Vick. Wishing you everything wonderful, including delicious pasta dishes. You certainly have the knack for the “What do I Have in My Fridge” concept of creating a pasta dinner out of a few ingredients that are in your fridge, pantry and/or garden. Keep your creations coming.
This receipe is delicious! I wouldn’t think that pasta can be that tasty! Thank you for posting that.
I am so glad you like it. If you come into the new Lincoln Park Whole Foods on Friday, stop by and say hi.