Imagine a nice, thick spaghetti strand that is square - yes square - well that's Spaghetti alla Chitarra, a traditional shape originating from Abruzzo. It is superb with "big" sauces like full-flavoured meat ragu or opulent creamy sauces, but has a refined side too as exemplified with a simple tomato and basil sauce.

Spaghetti alla Chitarra is so called because it is traditionally made with a device that resembles a guitar (chitarra in Italian). It has a rectangular beech wood frame with wire strings pulled across a few mm apart. The pasta dough is rolled into a sheet and placed across the stings. It is rolled again and cuts away into long strips which fall into the cavity below. The Abruzzo women would then caress the ends of the strings with a finger, just like playing a harp, to make sure all the pasta strips fall through.

Pastificio Granoro have their own bronze drawn version ofthis classic pasta with a rough surface, perfect for lapping up all kinds of sauces. Spaghetti alla chitarra should always be cooked al dente and it will reward you well for doing so. A guaranteed hit every time!

What makes Attilio Pasta so special?

The range is named after 99 year old Attilio Mastromauro (pictured below), founder of Pastificio Granoro and one of the leading lights of pasta production in Italy. The quality of his gourmet pasta is chiefly down to 4 key factors. The choice of durum wheat is critical. Only Italy's finest grain, with a very high protein and gluten content is used in Attilio's range to give a delicious tasting pasta which cooks to perfection every time.

It is then kneaded slowly and laboriously for a long time before being bronze drawn (trafilati al bronzo). This means the pasta dough passes through special dyes or moulds made of bronze, which gives the pasta a rough surface to attract and bind the sauce perfectly.

Finally the pasta is then dried "dolce" or very gently at low temperatures over a long period to preserve all its natural flavour and goodness.

When dry, Attilio's pasta has a lovely golden colour and unlike most other bronze drawn pasta which tend to fade when cooked, Attilio's actually intensifies to produce one of the most inviting pasta dishes we've experienced!

Spaghetti's big brother, Spaghettoni is a great pasta shape which combines perfectly with many sauces.

It is thicker than normal spaghetti and works particularly well paired with hearty, full-bodied sauces. We think it is one of the best pastas for big seafood sauces and many chefs appreciate spaghettoni with sautéed vegetables and pestos. See below for some suggestions.

If you try a quality spaghettoni, like this one from the Attilio range by Pastificio Granoro, you'll immediately notice its lovely texture and consistency. Each strand can clearly be distinguished and each bite is rewarded with an ever so slight crunch, like biting into a thin wedge of chocolate.

What makes Attilio Pasta so special?

The range is named after 99 year old Attilio Mastromauro (pictured below), founder of Pastificio Granoro and one of the leading lights of pasta production in Italy. The quality of his gourmet pasta is chiefly down to 4 key factors. The choice of durum wheat is critical. Only Italy's finest grain, with a very high protein and gluten content is used in Attilio's range to give a delicious tasting pasta which cooks to perfection every time.

It is then kneaded slowly and laboriously for a long time before being bronze drawn (trafilati al bronzo). This means the pasta dough passes through special dyes or moulds made of bronze, which gives the pasta a rough surface to attract and bind the sauce perfectly.

Finally the pasta is then dried "dolce" or very gently at low temperatures over a long period to preserve all its natural flavour and goodness.

When dry, Attilio's pasta has a lovely golden colour and unlike most other bronze drawn pasta which tend to fade when cooked, Attilio's actually intensifies to produce one of the most inviting pasta dishes we've experienced!

Winner of Gold at the Great Taste Awards! High quality artisan pasta from Naples.

Bucatini pasta is like thick, hollow spaghetti and is perfect for rich tomato or cream sauces also excellent with olive oil based sauces as well. Try it with spicy sausage, all'Amatriciana, with mushrooms, great with shrimps and anchovies and often used instead of Spaghetti in Carbonara.

THE GRANIA PASTA RANGE

Grania have called this range of gourmet pasta Le Gemme del Vesuvio or "Vesuvius Gems". In the Volcano's shadow, a group of artisan pasta makers apply their art every day to produce a pasta which looks and tastes fabulous. Only 3 ingredients are used. The finest durum wheat, the purest water and time. Lots of it.

At Grania, they have revived an ancient Neapolitan production process which involves drawing the pasta through bronze moulds to produce a rough surface which grabs the sauce and binds to it. The pasta is then dried very slowly at low temperatures to maintain all of its natural taste and goodness.

It keeps its shape and consistency perfectly when cooking and the "al dente" moment is very forgiving in case you just miss it!

The pasta has a lovely golden yellow colour and is just another reason they call them Vesuvius Gems!

From: Naples, Campania, Italy

Testimony to the quality of Grania pasta range: Bucatini Pasta  - Winner of Gold at the Great Taste Award - The "Oscars" of gourmet food in the UK!

This is a superior quality "00" flour from Puglia.

"00" flour is ground exclusively from the central part of the grain and is pure white and very fine. It is ideal for the most delicate jobs where you need something nice and light, such as pastries, brioche, delicate cakes, desserts, besciamel, foccacia, soft bread and fresh pasta.

Use also in a mix of other flours (e.g. with Semolina, 0 flour or Manitoba) to bring extra lightness to your pizza base or bread.

Confused about all the different types of Italian flour? Read our mini-guide here.

High quality semolina flour (Semola di grano duro) from Puglia.

Semolina flour is the classic hard wheat (durum) flour for making dry pasta or blending with other flours for a huge array of uses (see below for some examples). Just add water and off you go!

Good semolina flour is not so easy to find outside Italy and this is a great opportunity to get a superior quality Semolina at an unbeatable price!

What is Semolina Flour?

As opposed to the soft wheat flours (grano tenero) 0 or 00, Semolina flour or semola di grano duro is obtained from hard wheat flour (durum wheat). It is ground from the central part of the grain to produce a course flour with a golden yellow colour. Semolina flour is most commonly used for making classic dry pasta, however it has many other uses too.

Why choose this Semolina flour?

Granoro have specifically selected the wheat grain which possesses certain quality criteria; the grain size has been calibrated to ensure optimal absorption of water, more even blending and easier kneeding of the dough. It has also been selected for its intense golden colour formed by carotene present in the central part of the grain (great antioxidants) and it also has a very high protein level.

What can I use Semolina flour for?

It is perfect for making pasta, cous cous and gnocchi. Its course grind makes it ideal for soups, semolina pudding and porridge. It is often mixed together with other flours (00 or 0 usually) to prepare fresh pasta, bread, cakes and focaccia. It adds a lovely hint of gold and a slightly rough and rustic texture to bread crust or pizza base. It is also the perfect flour to spread when kneading to prevent the dough from sticking.

Spaghetti No. 14. This is the most popular spaghetti size used in restaurants all over Italy. It's the perfect thickness for all the classic spaghetti dishes.

USE: Spaghetti is the most common pasta type and lends itself to many types of sauces, especially olive oil based so each strand gets a nice coating.

The Granoro Pasta Range

Premium quality durum wheat and innovative production methods make the Granoro pasta range an excellent choice for everyday use. It is produced using special processes which maintain the natural quality and goodness of the wheat and really bring out all its flavour. The pasta cooks to perfection every time and effortlessly binds sauces to give deliciously balanced and full flavoured pasta dishes.

Cooking time: 6 minutes

Best way to cook pasta? Here's our guide on how to avoid Pasta Disasters!

From the Montebello Organic Farm in Umbria. Spelt Penne Rigate as recommended by Nigella! http://www.nigella.com/books/nigellissima_stockists

This organic Penne Rigate ("grooved" quills) pasta is made from high quality organic and ecological spelt (Farro or Emmer wheat).

Penne Rigate is one of the most popular and versatile pasta shapes in Italy. It captures and binds the sauce within its ridges and so can be used with virtually any tomato and cream based sauces, with meat ragus, vegetables and cheese. It is also popular for baked pasta dishes and widely used in pasta salads too!

Spelt is one of the world's oldest cultivated crops and has countless dietary benefits. It is packed with vitamins and nutrients and very easily digested providing a great source of energy for young and old alike. Spelt is, with good reason, rapidly growing in popularity as an alternative to grain, pasta and rice.

From: Isola del Piano, Umbria, Italy 

Classic green lasagna (Lasagne Verdi) made from quality durum wheat and spinach. The lasagna sheets are specially rolled to give them a rough surfave which really captures and holds the sauce and then they are slowly dried to conserve all their flavour and nutritional properties. Quality pasta like this is strong and resistant and will cook perfectly al dente every time.

The classic lasagna dish is the rich and creamy Lasagna Verdi alla Bolognese,  but there are literally thousands of recipes you can try. This green spinach lasagna is a firm favourite for vegetarian lasagna but you can use it for any dish that calls for standard durum wheat lasagna. See below for a few suggestions.

Easy and quick to use, it doesn't require any pre-cooking, so just pop it in the oven and it's ready to go!

Kids love it too (don't tell them about the spinach though!).

Black Squid Ink Spaghetti as recommended by Nigella! http://www.nigella.com/books/nigellissima_stockists

This special pasta is made from finest durum wheat with squid and cuttle fish ink added to give it the fascinating black appearance and a hint of flavour too.

Perfect with all kinds of seafood pasta dishes or simply with olive oil, garlic, onions and chillies garnished with basil and pecorino cheese.

Delicious and original!

THE GRANIA PASTA RANGE

Grania have called this range of gourmet pasta Le Gemme del Vesuvio or "Vesuvius Gems". In the Volcano's shadow, a group of artisan pasta makers apply their art every day to produce a pasta which looks and tastes fabulous. Only 3 ingredients are used. The finest durum wheat, the purest water and time. Lots of it.

At Grania, they have revived an ancient Neapolitan production process which involves drawing the pasta through bronze moulds to produce a rough surface which grabs the sauce and binds to it. The pasta is then dried very slowly at low temperatures to maintain all of its natural taste and goodness.

It keeps its shape and consistency perfectly when cooking and the "al dente" moment is very forgiving in case you just miss it!

From: Naples, Campania, Italy

Grania's Bucatini pasta has won Gold Medal at the Great Taste Awards. Widely considered the "Oscars" of artisan food in the UK, this bears testimony to the quality of this fine pasta range.

This organic spelt Fusilli is a versatile pasta and combines perfectly with many tomato and cream sauces, tuna, as a basis for a pasta salads and is great in a casserole or baked in the oven.

Spelt is one of the world's oldest cultivated crops and has countless dietary benefits. It is packed with vitamins and nutrients and very easily digested providing a great source of energy for young and old alike. Has a delicious slightly nutty taste.

THE MONTEBELLO ORGANIC PASTA RANGE

Produced from top quality organically grown spelt. It is dried slowly at low temperatures to keep all its nutrients and goodness and encompasses the philosophy which underpins the Montebello range: genuine flavour, vitality and simplicity in all ingredients used.

From: Isola del Piano, Umbria, Italy

Artisan spaghetti from Puglia specially produced for the Dedicato line (see below for details) of products by Pastificio Granoro.

The Dedicato Range by Pastificio Atillio Mastromauro - Granoro

Puglia is a region of astonishing beauty and diversity but it also enjoys another distinction which perhaps isn't so well known in the UK; its outstanding farm produce.

The remarkable quality of vegetables, olives, cereals and legumes from Puglia is the tangible end result of an extraordinary terroir and centuries of farming tradition. The Dedicato Range of products celebrates the best Puglia has to offer - genuine products that are healthy and delicious. It also aims to help maintain sustainable farming in the area.

STRAIGHT FROM THE FARM

All the produce is cultivated in limited quantities on small farms in the region using traditional methods, then expertly transformed into the final product by a small group of local artisan companies. No supermarkets or large distributers are involved in what is an intimate process of bringing the consumer much closer to the producer.

The range includes pasta from select durum wheat varieties; wonderful cherry tomatoes and olive oil from Castel del Monte; Lentils and chickpeas from Altamura and the Alta Murgia National Park. They are all ancient varieties once commonly produced in the area until large-scale farming and industrial production meant the laborious working methods and small yields were no longer sustainable. Now thanks to projects like the Dedicato line, they are now making a comeback.

All the products carry a double seal of quality as they undergo regular and scrupulous quality checks by 2 independent bodies. They also have guaranteed traceable provenance.

Dedicato Pasta

A great pasta is defined first and foremost by the quality of durum wheat and secondly by how the wheat is transformed.

THE WHEAT: There are over 130 durum wheat varieties cultivated today in Puglia. Researchers for Granoro identified and blended 6 ancient varieties most suited to quality pasta production.

These varieties are particularly high in protein (up to 15%) which provides strength during cooking and the perfect firmness when eaten and a wonderful flavour of fresh bread with a hint of nut.

THE PROCESS: The pasta is drawn through traditional bronze dyes to create a rough texture which helps capture and bind the sauce. It is then very slowly dried to lock in all the taste and goodness.

The result is a masterpiece of pasta production; a lovely golden yellow colour with a porous, rough texture and marvellous taste!