Whole Wheat Pasta

A few years ago there weren’t many options for whole wheat pastas, and the ones that were available tasted VERY different from traditional pasta. Many people didn’t like them.

Well luckily, things have changed and there are tons of options for healthier pasta! Not all of these are “whole wheat,” some are “wheat blend,” or “flax,” or other grains, but boy do they taste good! Here are my top 5 healthier pasta options:

1.) Ronzoni Smart Taste – You could have fooled me with this one. This tastes the most like traditional pasta to me, and it’s loaded with fiber and calcium!

2.) Ronzoni Healthy Harvest – This has a slighlty nuttier taste to it than traditional pasta, but I love it! It’s loaded with more fiber and Omega-3′s, which I like since I don’t eat/like fish so I am probably never getting enough of them!

3.) Trader Joes Multigrain Pasta with Flax – This is a lot like the Healthy Harvest. It’s a bit chewier (is that a word?) and slightly nutty. Again with the fiber and Omega-3′s, it’s hard to go wrong!

4.) Fiber Wise Pasta – Wow, as the name implies, there is a lot of fiber in this! I loved it in my butternut squash mac & cheese, but haven’t had a chance to have it by itself yet. I would definately use it again in a casserole though! I have to find it in shells. I am strange, I like weird pasta shapes…bowties, spirals, and shells best. It’s hard to find healthier pastas in these shapes! (well spirals is pretty easy, but not the other 2!)

5.) Barilla Plus – I go through phases with this one, where I really like it, and where I think just “eh.” I would say it needs a flavorful sauce with it, otherwise the taste is a little blah. But again with the fiber and Omega-3′s, I can’t complain too much!

Now if only more restaurants would start offering these as a choice! The only place I can think of off the top of my head that has whole wheat pasta as a choice/substitute for traditional pasta is Macaroni Grill.

There is no excuse any more! So go out there and try some of these!

Advertisement