According to
The Encyclopedia of Pasta by Oretta Zanini de Vita, there are over 1,300 types of pasta in Italy. The Italians have given some serious consideration to this subject.
Pastini (the plural of
pastina) are just one of the families of pasta shapes. The most familiar are the strand pastas, long, thin noodles like linguini, fettuccine and, of course, spaghetti.
Paste corti, or short pastas, like fusilli (corkscrews), penne (literally "quills") and orecchiete ("little ears") make up another large category. Ravioli and tortellini are in the group of pastas called
paste ripieni, or filled pastas. Tubular pastas, like rigatoni, sometimes are smooth but often are ridged or "rigate".
Now we come to
pastini. These are the varieties of tiny pastas (it translates as "little pastas") typically used in soups. Orzo, stelline ("stars") and alphabet letters are familiar
pastini. Their small size makes them a perfect addition to brothy soups, like the yummy Chicken with Orzo & Vegetables we make here at Pastini. You've probably also seen orzo made into pasta salads, often with olives, sun-dried tomato, fresh basil and feta cheese. In Italy, since
pastini are easy to eat, they are often made for children, with just a little butter and perhaps a sprinkle of parmesan.
Why did we name ourselves Pastini? When we opened our first restaurant back in 2001, we wanted to dedicate ourselves to all the various shapes and types of pastas, to be an emporium of the noble noodle. And the name "Pastini" just seemed to capture what we wanted to do. We hope you agree.
