I need me some PASTA!

Dreamfield pasta claims to be lower carb and lower calorie than regular pasta, with 130 calories per serving according to their estimates (which is different from the box). It tastes like regular pasta to me, but I'm not sure about the calorie content. Also there are some Asian noodles, Miracle noodles I think, that have few to zero calories. I haven't been able to find them around here, but I'm sure someone else can tell you more about them.

I was going to say the same thing - Dreamfields, in a black box! Does NOT taste grainy like whole wheat pasta, but better for you.... right now I think it only comes in penne & angel hair but I love it! Then I use the heart healthy sauce & fat free parmesan - lower calorie... & you can get your pasta fix for sure!!! I even added some roasted red peppers to mine the other night... yumm!!
I think it's like 190 cal for a cup and a half cooked penne..... but they measure it dry, go figure!

try zero calorie zero carb noodles, in my opinion they taste really good, they're also known as shirataki noodles. nothing beats zero calorie food

Hi I understand your comment about wheat noodles. And I'm anxious to hear responses. Wheat pasta sux..!

Just keep in mind that the difference between whole grain and regular pasta is minimal. They're both low GI and WW has a few more g's of fibre, which over the course of the day, heck the meal if your adding veg and other ingredients means absolutely nothing. WW is a diet industry darling that have people completely fooled. If it were actually whole grain it could never be rolled out and made into pasta......it's refined just as much except the bran was left on and the consistancy is very similar.....I like my fiber to come from something that resembles fiber.

This is true, except that the GI / GL of pasta is relative to cooking time. Pasta cooked beyond al dente has a high GI. And with wholegrain, even though the fiber is processed, our bodies still can't absorb it so those carbs don't count and help keep other things passing smoothly through our system.

In regards to the comment about fiber and carb count, I read somewhere recently that for every gram of fiber in something, you are allowed to subtract a gram of sugar because the fiber slows the carb absorption. That's why low fiber processed crap spikes your blood sugar and high fiber foods don't. For example, if you ate something with 5 grams of fiber and 9 grams of sugar, it would be as if you had only consumed 4 grams of sugar.

I am another pasta lover. I once saw a picture online that has always really stuck with me, it was in an article about healthy recipes or something. And they had two servings of pasta: one was "unhealthy" and it was a ton of pasta with a couple of veggies, and the other was less pasta with a ton of veggies. And both servings looked the same size, they filled the serving dish the same amount. It was just that with the "healthier" option you still got to eat your pasta, you were just filling up on veggies more than simple carbs. So I've tried to keep that image in mind. I did it the other night, I made a little farfalle and tossed it with olive oil, some onions, garlic, black pepper, and a bunch of broccoli and peas with some diced red bell pepper. Super tasty, filling, and I got to eat pasta (my number one comfort food).

I love whole wheat pasta but I get that not everyone does. To me it has a nutty flavor. I buy Belallo whole wheat pasta. I make a roasted veggie pasta dish that is a ton of veggies cut up, oven roasted. Then the "sauce" is balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, lots of chopped up fresh basil. OMG! Fantastic. I now make it with about half the pasta and twice the veggies.

You can use a mandolin to make long shreds of zucchini to act as pasta. Saute them up for a minute or two then add a marinara sauce. Cooking them with a little minced garlic, chopped onions and then a tomato sauce is yummy.

Zucchini is my veggie substitution even though spaghetti squash works too.

But if you are really craving it, make a small cup of pasta and eat it. Work around the calories. That's how I still enjoy the whole wheat pasta. I adjusted my recipes or only make it as a side to my dinner.

I like Trader Joes frozen pasta's (Penne Arrabbiata, Rigatoni Siciliana)
A serving or 2 def. doesn't break the calorie bank, so to speak. yeah the sodium is a little more than I'd like it to be, but if I typically have enough of my sodium goal left over where it won't matter too much.