Last year, Giada De Laurentiis launched her first line of pasta with her food and lifestyle brand, Giadzy. Now, she’s taking it up a notch.
“I’ve had a really hard time finding great gluten-free pasta,” De Laurentiis tells EatingWell. “When we started working on our Giadzy Pasta line, I knew from the beginning that we had to have a gluten-free option.”
Today, the chef and Italian cuisine expert officially dropped a new collection of gluten-free versions of some of her favorite pasta shapes, available now on Giadzy.com. Featuring 5 unique shapes, the line features Taccole Corte, Mezzi Rigatoni, Casarecce, Stelline and Ziti Corti, all of which are free of gluten and $10.50 a box. The only ingredients in the gluten-free pasta are non-GMO corn flour, non-GMO rice flour and water.
“I’m so proud that we’ve made a totally clean gluten-free pasta with simple, natural Italian ingredients that tastes just as good as any traditional pasta out there,” De Laurentiis shares.
As for her favorite new pasta shape, De Laurentiis had a clear winner in mind.
“Hands down the gluten-free mezzi rigatoni,” she says. “The shape is much smaller and delicate than a traditional rigatoni and the ridges make it easy to catch the sauce.” As we’re in the midst of summer, the chef loves using this shape to make her Sheet Pan Baked Pasta alla Norma to use up her eggplant. “Spreading the pasta on the sheet pan ensures each bite has a bit of cheese and crunch. It’s divine!”
Giadzy Gluten-Free Mezzi Rigatoni Pasta
Any of these shapes will go well with a sauce packed with summer produce and fresh herbs, from our Homemade Tomato Sauce to our Classic Basil Pesto. As for sides, De Laurentiis notes that pasta is commonly used as a side in Italy (who knew?) but to use it as a main, she shared her favorite salad to pair it with.
“For something simple and light, I do greens like my Simple Italian Salad,” she explains. Hereasy, citrusy radicchio-arugula salad is similar to our own Simple Green Salad with Citronette. De Laurentiis says she also gravitates towards a vegetable crudo—we’re personally loving her very own Zucchini Burrata Crudo at the moment.
Before you go and buy Giadzy gluten-free pasta, there’s one more fact you should know about De Laurentiis. We asked what underrated ingredient she thinks more people should have on hand, and here was her pick.
“An herb blend. I made my own at home for years blending garlic, rosemary, thyme, fennel and sage—it’s great to have on hand for quick marinades or rubs,” De Laurentiis shares, noting that it was the inspiration for Giadzy to create their own Tuscan Grill Herbed Blend. “I go through it so quickly in the summer!”
Okay, we won’t hold you back any longer. Shop now!