Let’s talk about pasta before we play with soup this week. Most days you will find me making numerous pasta dishes for my three guys. Pasta is not simply a staple in our home, it’s a way of life.
I may be a diehard southern girl down to my roots, but I also grew up highly influenced by my Irish-Italian grandmother from Connecticut. She happens to be the lovely lady who passed along the ginger gene as well. There are only three quirky redheads in our family who inherited the McGraw complexion. Everyone else inherited the Greco-Civitelli olive skin and dark hair. I adore my ginger locks, but during the summer, I long for my mother’s lovely Italian pigment.
Now the love of Italian cuisine did not come from my family alone, surferboy and his family are part Italian as well. I bet you guys didn’t know I have an Italian last name? Even those of you who actually know what my last name is. Let’s just say that it’s unusual and is never pronounced correctly. Don’t you love how I tease you guys? Who knows, maybe I will drop our last name on here one day.
Pasta, pasta, pasta in all of its lovely shapes, sizes and flavors fills more than half of my pantry to the brim. If we didn’t go through it all in record time, DS would have to build me a larger pantry. Our favorite pasta to stock is whole grain. What can I tell you guys, I married a California health nut, and he has rubbed off on me the past sixteen years. When it comes to eating whole grains in general, DS reformed me years ago. Therefore reviewing a variety of Barilla® Whole Grain Pastas was easy as well as delicious.
We love the added flavor whole grain adds to our pasta dishes. I know some of you have already hopped on the bandwagon and switched over to whole grain pastas, but if you haven’t tried any yet here are a few good reasons why you should consider giving Barilla® Whole Grain a try:
- Made with 51% whole wheat.
- An all-natural and excellent source of fiber, delivering three times the fiber of regular pasta.
- There is a taste guarantee – if you don’t love it, you get a free box of Barilla® blue box pasta. Gotta love it!
- It tastes great! That’s my personal opinion.
I didn’t realize that Barilla® Whole Grain Pastas were made with 51% whole wheat until I did this review. As a mom, it thrills me to know that the monkeys are eating healthy and getting more fiber in their diet when I make them a bowl of their favorite Alfredo. That they are ingesting more than carbs and cheese is a big plus in my book. Their whole grain pasta also pairs perfectly with our Spinach Mushroom Pesto, making it the ultimate super food meal for us.
Still not sure? Why not visit TryBarillaWholeGrain.com and check out the Dinner Kit for recipes and other tools that make it easy to put healthy and extraordinary meals on the table for your family?
Oh, and be sure to check out the Sweepstakes/Giveaway below for a $100 Amazon.com card they are offering you guys! I’m kind of jealous; I would be going cookbook crazy on Amazon with that.
I can’t wait to share a little more of our blended Southern-Italian heritage with ya’ll through some of the healthy dishes we came up with this past week using Barilla® Whole Grain Pasta. Monkey Two happens to be the sous chef in the family, as well the number one critic with all of our Italian dishes so he will have plenty to add. Don’t worry I still fry things like potato salad on occasion, just not everyday.
Have fun trying some new healthy whole grain pasta dishes. Don’t forget to share your favorites, we are always looking for some nummy new pasta dishes to try.
Love and hugs,
Shari-Tickled Red
See the rules below to be eligible to win a $100 Amazon.com card from Barilla®. To be entered for a chance to win, leave a comment letting me know what you love about Barilla® Whole Grain.
SWEEPSTAKES/GIVEAWAY RULES No duplicate comments. You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods: a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post b) Tweet about this promotion @BarillaUS with the following unique term in your message, #BarillaWG, and link to your Tweet in a comment on this post c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to your post in a comment on this post d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry. This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected. The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 2/21/12-3/30/12.
Be sure to visit the Barilla® Whole Grain round-up page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!
{ 123 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve used Barilla and love it! My girls are big buttered noodle lovers and can’t tell the difference when I use whole grain pasta. I especially love it in baked pasta dishes. I make my homemade roasted tomato sauce with it, too. Puree a few other roasted veggies into the sauce and you’ve got a really healthy meal! LOVE!!
Love your article! Mama Jo would be so proud of you. Wish we lived closer so I could come by and sample. Love you!
I keep my family healthy by eating lots of fruits and veggies. I love the GREAT TASTE of Barilla Whole Grain!
tweet–https://twitter.com/#!/mami2jcn/status/171983932357746688
i keep my family healthy by cooking great, wholesome and healthy meals!~
https://twitter.com/#!/aes529/status/172000828121554944
my daughter loves it because it’s healthy but tastes yummy at the same time. You wouldn’t think it was so good for you.
tweet
https://twitter.com/#!/MeandBells/status/172017744999497728
I try to buy only healthy snacks that way my kids aren’t tempted to eat unhealthy sugar foods and snacks.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/1amypugmire/status/172027582798249986
I keep my family healthy by using wholesome ingredients in cooking. What I love about Barilla is that it’s tasty and healthy
https://twitter.com/#!/ElenaIstomina/status/172035720603639808
Up here in the Frozen North (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada), Barilla can be hard to find but it is so worth it, I totally stock up when I can. I love how it never sticks. But although we eat fairly healthy most of the time (thanks Barilla!) exercise was not always on my “to do” list until recently. I wanted my kids to be more social and more active, so I bought a family membership to a new Leisure and Fitness Facility that opened up close to our home. Now the kids are meeting other kids at swimming, my oldest daughter and I do Yoga twice a week together and my 2 year old is even taking baby Yoga and gymnastics. Its much more fun to keep healthy when you are doing it with friends and family! With 6 kids, I gotta keep em busy somehow or they may take over!
I serve my family lots of grains and vegetables! I love Barilla pastas because they help me serve whole grains in a yummy way.
like the little bit of nutty ness it give pasta dishes
i love the nutty flavor
I try to incorporate lots of fruits and veggies!
I tweeted about the giveaway
https://twitter.com/#!/NOLAKitchenCats/status/172068850328809472
I try to sneak in as many fruits and veggies in place of less healthy alternatives wherever possible (i even sneak zucchini into my brownies!)
Whole grain Barilla pasta makes pasta salads much more interesting!
I love that it makes an easy meal and it’s healthy.
I love the nutty flavor.
Barilla is our favorite pasta…I have to admit my family is finicky about whole wheat pasta, which is a bummer.
I like that it doesn’t taste like cardboard, like other whole-wheat pasta varieties do! Barilla is delicious.
anytime i can substitute whole grain for white pasta is amazing! barilla definitely does that for me.
tweeted! https://twitter.com/#!/kaori_ikeda01/status/172206040232890368
Mandatory Entry: i love that i can feed it to my kids for extra nutrition!
Thanks for the chance!
Email: anashct1 [at] yahoo [dot] com
Tweeted:
https://twitter.com/#!/anashct3/status/172295016922882048
Thanks for the chance to win!
email: anashct1 [at] yahoo [dot] com
Love Barilla, great way to get a whole grain into small kids! Plus it tastes awesome.
i love that something so healthy can taste great too
tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/karinaroselee/status/172393063132561408
I love Barilla Whole Grain pasta – excellent taste and texture.
I like the fact that such a healthy pasta can taste so good.
I love your pasta creations! They all look so yummy. I love Barilla Whole Grain Pasta because it’s so healthy and easy to prepare! It’s also a way of life in my family. :) Can’t wait to hear more about your Southern-Italian heritage!
I love that Barilla Whole Grain pasta has great flavor and texture, and I love even more that it is healthier for my family!
I love that it is a great source of fiber!
family74014 at gmail dot com
I love that it’s so healthy!
I love Barilla whole grain products because they taste great, are good for you, and my kids love it. Our favorite is the spaghetti.
I love that I can eat one of my favorite foods without having to feel guilty about it!!!!
thanks for a chance to win!
And, have a GREAT day!
kmassmanATgmailDOTcom
I love that it boosts the protein and fiber in my dishes.
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/birchbox/status/172903460654690304
I love pasta so this is so much better for you all the way around.
marybug2 @ yahoo . com
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/marybug2/status/173442522146803714
marybug2 @ yahoo . com
I love that it has 3 time the amount of fiber of other pastas and made with whole wheat and you can’t tell the difference in taste
i love that it has more fiber!
https://twitter.com/#!/DesMoinesDealin/status/173464360772059137
I love that it doesn’t taste “healthy” especially to the kids!
Tweet:
https://twitter.com/#!/bvbabybv/status/173520246295113729
I like that it has lots of fiber, all natural and tasty!
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/disneyfan40/status/173522047102754816
Correct tweet. Thx :)
https://twitter.com/#!/disneyfan40/status/173533105397829632
i haven’t tried it yet, but i love pasta and whole grain is great b/c it’s a healthier option
i like that its an excellent source of fiber and that it tastes great too!
i tweeted here;
https://twitter.com/#!/bellows22/status/173984313904349186
i like that its an excellent source of fiber and it tastes great too!
so sorry my original tweet didn’t show up at first and I posted again
I like it’s whole grain and also taste great. Kids love it as well.
tcarolinep at gmail dot com
https://twitter.com/#!/tcarolinep/status/174285321293414400
I love all the awesome fiber!
i love the taste and that it fills you up–and that it’s a great healthy dish for the kids :)
I love Barilla Whole Grain because I can enjoy pasta without going off my diet, and it is delicious.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/#!/kellydsaver/status/175572453236555777
i love that it is more nutritious than plain white pasta
https://twitter.com/#!/raggammuffin/status/175606079227576322
i love that my family enjoys it
thepryfamily@gmail.com
https://twitter.com/#!/thepryfamily/status/176798934105202690
thepryfamily@gmail.com
I love that its healthier than regular pasta and tastes good too.
chainmail (at)iwon dot com
I tweeted about this https://twitter.com/#!/The_Sunshyn/status/177210758617235456
chainmail (at)iwon dot com
I love that it’s high in fiber and tastes great.
https://twitter.com/#!/susan1215/status/177577014595813376
i like that it still tastes good
I love that Barilla Whole Grain pasta is available at so many stores, unlike some other products that I have to wonder about being there or not.
Thank you.
won2xx at gmail dot com
http://twitter.com/#!/won2x/status/177885013369569280
I love all the extra fiber! I use it to make filling vegetarian lunches since my husband whines when I make whole grain pasta for dinner.
wolverina401 at gmail dot com
Tweet
https://twitter.com/#!/didyouyarnthat/status/178083578150785025
I love the fact that it delivers three times the fiber of regular pasta and still tastes delicious!
https://twitter.com/#!/praisetruth/status/178242045142507520
I love how healthy it is. It’s a great way to add whole grains to our diet. I love your recipe also.
I have to admit that I prefer white pasta, but we’ve made the switch and I love that Barilla is a really great source of fiber for our family’s diet….especially for my sons who eat a lot of the wrong foods when left to their own devices.
I love that it is easy find in most stores and it is tasty.
i love the health benefits- and it tastes good too!
https://twitter.com/#!/mermont84/status/179522220018778113
I love the taste
https://twitter.com/#!/HappyTina0115/status/179580963221811201
Love them sweeps.
I love the taste and how versatile it is.
I like it’s whole grain and also taste great plus is all natural
purple_lover_04 at msn dot com
https://twitter.com/#!/purplelover04/status/180898037818851328
I love Barilla’s Whole Grain Pasta because it provides more fiber, it is nutritious and delicious. I have been buying the Barilla’s regular pasta for many years and switched to this whole grain once I tried and love it’s texture.
ctong2[at]gmail[dot]com
I tweeted about this giveaway: https://twitter.com/#!/ctong2/status/180946574250229760
ctong2[at]gmail[dot]com
Pasta that is good for you AND tastes good! Ya can’t go wrong! I won some of this pasta and have gone thru most of it! Yummy!
I love that Barilla Whole Grain has way more fiber than regular pasta!
tweeted: https://twitter.com/#!/jfong1130/status/181961935883993088
I love the variety of noodles and quick cook time. Thanks for the review and giveaway.
songyueyu at gmail
tweet: https://twitter.com/#!/syytta/status/183435219490185216
songyueyu at gmail
We love that it is healthier for us, and the flavor. sweepmorey at gmail dot com
tweeted https://twitter.com/#!/mommysdizzy/status/183623448986255360
I love that it’s healthy and still tastes great!
tweeted: https://twitter.com/#!/KerryBishop/status/183737744231628802
Barilla Whole Grain was better then I thought it would be, and my family loves it too.
Tweet https://twitter.com/#!/lindabr1001/status/183925217721192448
I love that it’s high in fiber!
Tweeted:
https://twitter.com/#!/calidreamin87/status/183976569864339456
We already use this pasta-love the flavor thanks
I love that it’s made with 51% whole wheat and tastes great.
I love that its a very well known name brand offering whole grains to the masses. I am a huge proponent of eating whole foods, especially whole grains and have noticed that lots of people have a negative opinion of “health foods.” With the Barilla name comes a guarantee that its going to taste great and hopefully that will get more people to try it and see that eating healthy tastes great!
I tweeted here: https://twitter.com/#!/MsTofuFairy/status/184652538279247872
I love that it’s 51% whole grain. My family loves the taste
https://twitter.com/#!/cmouse01/status/185187214865600513
I use Barilla but haven’t tried the whole grain yet. Guess it’s time to get on that train.
I love how many different ways you can cook pasta! Yum! That’s what I’m in the process of preparing at the moment.
As for Barilla Whole Grain, I look forward to adding this to my diet. It’s so much more nutritionally valuable than your regular pastas!
2nd entry tweet https://twitter.com/#!/kytah00/status/185507575318581248
I haven’t tried it yet, but I like other Barilla products so I’d be happy to try it!
I lover that it’s healthier
https://twitter.com/#!/LAMusing/status/185577365437558784
My favorite pastas are from Barilla and I’m so glad they found a way to provide a whole wheat version that tastes just as good as the originals.
Tweet – https://twitter.com/#!/willitara/status/185749978126368768
I like that it tastes good.
Thanks for the contest.
Blogged:
http://slehan.blogspot.com/2012/03/win-100-amazon-gc-from-barilla-blogher.html
I like that it contains three times more fiber than regular pasta.
runningmatey at hotmail dot com
https://twitter.com/#!/LuckyDuckyToo/status/185854856903401472
Here is what I love about Barilla Whole Grain:
1) Healthy
2) Delicious (doesn’t taste healthy)
3) Affordable
4) Did I mention delicious?
Link to my tweet:
https://twitter.com/#!/mrs_puddle/status/185904113937162241
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