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	Upcoming Events Recent Events Calendar Regional Groups Calendar Archive About SIGS	A Toothsome Dilemma: Tasting Whole Wheat Pastas By Andrew Sigal Many believe whole wheat products to be healthier and more flavorful than their refined counterparts. For this Tasting SIG, candidates ranged from store brands to premium artisan products. Twelve tasters evaluated nine whole wheat penne rigate pastas (ridged quills). All were cooked according to package directions until al dente. Seven were 100% whole durum wheat; two had other ingredients. The pastas were tasted plain. Tasters voted for their top three choices. Tied for first place were O Organics, praised for its “smooth texture” and “solid whole wheat taste,” and Rustichella d'Abruzzo, with its “sweet taste” and “smooth texture.” The Rustichella was the largest of the pennes and the most expensive. Following the tasting, the group tucked into plates of pasta with tomato, pesto, and clam sauces, noting that the sauces masked most differences between them. Tasting Notes: (all 100% durum whole wheat only unless noted; all “imported” are from Italy) Tied for first place (6 “top choice” votes): O Organics (imported), 16 oz, $2.29 at Safeway. Good texture; distinct wheat flavor. Rustichella d'Abruzzo Integrale (imported), 17.5 oz, $5.50 at Pasta Shop. Excellent flavor, larger than others. Tied for second place (3 votes): Trader Joe's Organic, 16 oz, $1.39 at Trader Joe's. Well liked; some noted a “strong grain taste,” others likened to cardboard. Heartland, $1.75/13.25 oz at Nob Hill Foods. Mild flavor; grainy texture. Tied for third place (2 votes): 365 Organic, (imported), 16 oz / $1.49 at Whole Foods. Mild taste. Ronzoni Healthy Harvest All Natural Whole Grain Whole Wheat Blend Pasta (durum whole wheat, semolina, flaxseed meal, wheat fiber, vitamins), 13.25 oz, $2.66 at Safeway. Generated most disagreement—2 top choices, others disliked. No votes: Garden Time Organic, 12 oz, about $3 at Berkeley Bowl. Gummy texture, shallow ridges. Bionaturae Organic, 16 oz, about $3 at Berkeley Bowl. Pasty or gummy with an off taste. Golden Grain Mission Whole Grain (whole wheat, brown rice, oats, wheat gluten, cane juice, natural flavor, wheat bran), 12 oz, $2.39 at Safeway. “Odd” and “off putting.”	List of Recent Events June 2008 Honey Tasting SIG June 2008 Food Writing Book Club SIG June 2008 Digs Bistro June 2008 Sauvignon Blanc Showdown May 2008 A Visit to Careme 350 May 2008 Cooking Teachers SIG May 2008 San Mateo Members Meet May 2008 South Bay Members Connect April 2008 Wine SIG takes a Beaujolais Cruise April 2008 Demystifying the Food/Wine Dilemma March 2008 Pasta tasting March 2008 Cooking Teachers' SIG March 2008 Traveling Table to Ubuntu March 2008 Gelato Making February 2008 Best of Show Cabernet Sauvignons January 2008 AGM 2008 January 2008 Cooking SIG at Ramekins January 2008 Stirring the Pot: Future of Chinese Cuisine December 2007 Marmalade tasting November 2007 Wine SIG samples sparklers November 2007 United States of Arugula review November 2007 Decoding Molecular Gastronomy October 2007 Career Change Roundtable October 2007 B Star Bar September 2007 Barbary BBQ on Maiden Lane September 2007 Vanilla Tasting August 2007 Wine SIG tastes Rieslings June 2007 Wine SIG Rosé Tasting June 2007 Wines from Livermore June 2007 Tasting Sig Explores Fetas June 2007 Dinner at B Restaurant May 2007 An Evening with Jaques Pepin April 2007 Knockout Santa Cruz Wines March 2007 Feasting at Chef Chus February 2007 Annual General Meeting February 2007 Lessons from a Master Taster: Darrell Corti February 2007 East Bay Urban Wine Tour January 2007 Traveling Table: Radio Africa and Kitchen December 2006 Holiday Cookie Exchange November 2006 Southern Foodways Alliance October 2006 Stirring the Pot with Chuck Williams October 2006 Wine Sig Looks for Varietal Character August 2006 SFPFS Barbeque on the USS Hornet August 2006 Stirring the Pot: Building your Culinary Pedigree June 2006 Antony Bourdain at the Commonwealth Club May 2006 Expo West 2006 May 2006 Table Travelers visit Old Mandarin January 2006 The Annual General Meeting January 2006 Impressions of Fancy Food, the 31st annual trade show September 19, 2005 Stirring the Pot: The History, Dynamics, and Ethics of Luxury Dining June 22, 2005 Stirring the Pot with Nell Newman, Els Cooperrider and Guinness McFadden May 25, 2005 Brentwood Agricultural Land Trust Fundraising Dinner May 18. 2005 Philippe Stark and Michel Rolland at the SF W Hotel April 28, 2005 Roundtable: The Food and Culture of Burma February 15, 2005 Stirring the Pot with Harold McGee October 22, 2004 Food Fight! 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