Tubular pastas, that is.
I went into the sandwich shop, and they had a supper special – meatball or eggplant with ziti.
This is what I’m looking for.
I looked in the case and I could see the meatballs and the eggplant…
and a big tray of penne.
This is what I see – can you see that they’re not quite the same?
And then I was confused – where’s the ziti? It turns out it was right THERE, even though it was penne and not really ziti .
Am I getting too picky in my old age? Is there a difference between the two?
Back to the books…
.
Pasta by Design by George L. Legendre, 2011.
and
Geometry of Pasta Caz Hildebrand & Jacob Kenedy, 2010
Penne:
Dimensions:
Length: 2.12 in.
Width: 0.4 in
Wall thickness: 1mm
Synonyms – mostacciolo (little mustaches); mostaccioloi rigati; penne a candela, penne di natale/natalini; penne di ziti/zitoni, pennoni
They are hollow cylinders with the ends cut at an angle (like a quill pen)…..
“Penne should not be confused with Italian ziti, but they often are. In the States, a popular dish of baked pasta referred to as “baked ziti” is in fact made from either the much shorter penne …or American ziti – tubular pasta like smooth rigatoni.p.194 Geometry of Pasta.
According to Past By Design :“A versatile pasta, penne rigate (grooved quills) come from Campania, in southern Italy, and belong to the pasta corta (short pasta) family.” p. 124.
Penne in Geometry of Pasta
Ziti
Dimensions
Length: 2 in.
Width: 0.4 in
Wall thickness: 1.25 mm
Similar form: ziti candelati
“Intrinsically Neapolitan, ziti cannot be separated from marriages. The word in fact means “the betrothed” or “the bridegroom”, and ziti are invariably served as the first course of a wedding lunch.” p. 282 Geometry of Pasta
“A pasta reserved for banquets and special occasions, ziti (‘grooms’ or ‘brides’ in Italian dialect) originate from Sicily. Tradition has it that they should be broken by hand before being tossed into boiling water.”)p. 196.Pasta By Design
and since we’ve going down the Tubes…..
Rigatoni
Dimensions:
Length:1.8 in.
Width: 0.6 in.
Wall thickness: 1mm
(PBD – “Members of the pasta corta (short pasta) branch, and originally from southern Italy,….p. 148.)
Rigatoni from the Geometry of Pasta
By the way – the PENNE was delizio!
