Macaroni and cheese, lasagna, spaghetti and Ramen noodles are all different forms of pasta. Where did pasta come from and how is it made? Let’s go online and learn some more!
1. Which US President (who was also a founding father) loved Macaroni and Cheese? Hint: He even served it in the Whitehouse!
At Monticello.org, you learn that Thomas Jefferson was interested in macaroni. He sketched out a design for a macaroni machine, and served macaroni and cheese to White House Visitors in 1802.
2. Who eats more pasta, people in Italy or the USA?
According to the National Pasta Association, the Italians rule on this issue. The average Italian eats 51 pounds of pasta per year, compared to 15 pounds for people in the United States.
3. How many pasta shapes are there?
More than 600. This leads to the question, can you tell a Tortellini from a Tortelloni? Try the quiz at Purpose Games, or the harder test at the Good Food Channel . At Fine Cooking.com you can learn which type of sauce works best with each type of noodle.
4. What year was the instant noodle (also called Ramen) invented? In which country?
At MIT’s Inventor of the Week site, at you can learn the rags to riches story of Momofuku Ando who invented a fast way to cook pasta. He called it
the Ramen Noodle, and he became very rich.
5. In which country was the world’s oldest noodle discovered? In what year?
According to the BBC News, the world’s oldest noodle came from China. It was discovered over 4000 years ago.
6. Here’s some fun things you can do with pasta:
For instructions on how to dye pasta with rubbing alcohol:
http://bit.ly/mmWbIh
To make pasta jewelry:
http://www.kid-craft-project.com/2009/08/pasta-jewelry/
Read “Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs” and then make some Spaghetti Art, following the instructions at Family Fun magazine. Try some of the New York Times pasta recipes. (Disclosure: Warren Buckleitner is a NYTimes.com technology contributor).
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