This is a first in a new series I created called Healthy Alternatives.
You may have read or heard about the drawbacks to eating white foods be it white pasta, white bread, white rice etc. Essentially those types of products are stripped of their outer shell which holds fiber and valuable nutrition. Thus leaving your white food product potentially just a filler food. Some reasons to replace white pasta in your diet: it has a high glycemic index which essentially increases your blood sugar and eating lots of white pasta also increases your bad cholesterol.
Introducing our first Pasta Alternative: Quinoa Pasta! Both products are gluten-free.
There are currently two on the market that I am aware of, one of which I have had many times and it is my favorite pasta alternative.
Ancient Harvest Organic Quinoa Pasta
This pasta is a combo of organic non-gmo corn flour and organic quinoa flour. And what makes this product even more spectacular is that is cooks in 6-9 minutes!! All of the different varieties are pretty al dente when cooked. Be careful as with any pasta not to overcook. But if by pure accident you do, run the pasta in cold water and it will firm up a tad.
Linguini, Spaghetti, Shells, Rotelle, Elbows, and Garden Pagodas are the types of pasta available. A 2oz serving size has 4 grams of protein and provides 10% of daily thiamin needs, 6% of iron, 15% of riboflavin and 2% of calcium.
Where to Find :: Lucky for you, one of my fav gluten-free pastas is currently on sale at Whole Foods until 7.27.10. The linguini is on sale at a stunning price of 3 for $6.00 and the rest are 2 for $5.00. Smaller health food stores also have been starting to carry the line. You can also purchase it online from Amazon.com. A case of 12 costs $26.03 + free shipping.
Andean Dream Quinoa Pasta
I have yet to use this particular pasta so I can’t provide much commentary. I can tell you it is made my the same company that makes Quinoa cookies and it is fairly new to the market.
For people who are looking to avoid corn, this pasta is made from organic quinoa and rice flour. They make 3 types of pasta: Spaghetti, Fusilli, and Macaroni. A 2oz serving size has 6 grams of protein and provides 12% of daily iron needs and 6% of calcium. Let me know how it is!
Where to Find :: I’ve seen a few Whole Foods carrying this line and even some of my smaller health food stores. You can also purchase it online from Andean direct at $4.89.
