Behind the Scenes with Alfresco Pasta: What Chefs Want to Know

Behind the Scenes with Alfresco Pasta: What Chefs Want to Know

By August 16, 2024 Produce, Vegetables

Ever wondered what goes into making some of the finest artisanal pasta available for professional kitchens? We sat down with the team from Alfresco Pasta to get the scoop on their passion for pasta, their unique production methods, and why chefs everywhere are raving about their products.

Q: Can you tell us more about the inspiration behind Alfresco Pasta and how it all started?

A: Alfresco was founded from a desire to produce hand-crafted, small-batch artisan pasta for chefs and restaurateurs. Our commitment to only the finest ingredients and old-world manufacturing techniques still remains after 24 years. Our products save time and labor, offer unique product choices, and provide quality chefs can rely on.

What Sets Alfresco Pasta Apart

Q: What makes your pasta stand out from other artisanal brands on the market?

A: It’s all about the details: fresh cracked shell eggs, the finest durum wheat from a single mill in Great Falls, Montana, top-tier Italian pasta machines, and flash freezing to lock in freshness. Plus, our dedication to local product sourcing ensures that we’re creating the best pasta, pizza dough, and sauces possible. Our products are only as good as the ingredients we source, so sourcing is everything.

Q: Could you elaborate on your small-batch production process and why it’s beneficial for professional kitchens?

A: Small batch production enables us to keep quality control standards very high, ensuring that each piece of pasta meets our exacting standards.

Q: How does your flash-freezing process help in maintaining the quality and flavor of the pasta?

A: Fresh pasta starts losing freshness as soon as it’s made. We flash freeze to lock in that freshness and flavor, so it’s like you’re cooking with pasta that was just made. In addition, we rotate our complete inventory every three weeks, so our customers are always getting the freshest pasta possible.

Q: What are the best practices for storing and handling your pasta to ensure it retains its quality?

A: Keep all pasta frozen and cook it from the frozen state without thawing. For our pizza dough, it can be cold fermented at 45 degrees from 1-4 days depending on the dough type: Neapolitan for one day and New York Style for 1-4 days.

Stuffed With The Real Stuff

OTHERS – Other ravioli and filled pastas on the market are par-cooked, lightly filled, and have ingredient lists full of fillers and preservatives. Par-cooked ravioli impacts the quality and means you’re paying for up to 20% water weight.

ALFRESCO – Alfresco ravioli and filled pastas are truly raw, flash-frozen, and packed with delicious fillings made with whole, fresh ingredients. They crack their eggs, grate their cheese, hand cut fresh vegetables, and thoughtfully source their ingredients just like you would in your kitchen.

Chef Favorites: Top Pasta Varieties

Q: What are some of the most popular pasta varieties that you offer, and why do you think chefs love them?

A: Squid Ink Bucatini, Campanelle, Artisan Pizza Dough, and Lemon Ricotta Ravioli are big hits. Simply put, they taste amazing!

Q: Let’s talk pizza dough! What sets the Alfresco Pizza dough apart from the competition?

A: Our traditional New York style and Neapolitan dough balls are all-natural with no preservatives, additives, or artificial leavening agents. Each recipe uses just six ingredients, and we offer six sizes to fit any pizza need.

Check Out the Wide Variety of Alfresco Pasta Options Available at What Chefs Want

Pasta

  • Bucatini (Item #98611) – 12″ long, hollow, smooth, round tubes of Montana semolina and fresh egg pasta.
  • Bucatini – Squid Ink (Item #90915) – 12″ long, hollow, smooth, round tubes of Montana semolina, squid ink and fresh egg pasta.
  • Spaghetti (Item #95690) – Thick, medium width noodles cut from tender sheets of Montana durum wheat semolina and fresh egg pasta.
  • Campanelle (Item #95699) – 2.5″ Fluted tubes of Montana semolina and fresh egg pasta.
  • Fettucine (Item #95682) Thick wide noodles cut from tender sheets of Montana durum wheat semolina fresh egg pasta.
  • Casarecce / Gemelli (Item #96552) – 3″ Thick twist of Montana semolina and fresh egg pasta.
  • Pappardelle (Item #95684) – Thin, very wide noodle cut from tender sheets of Montana durum wheat semolina and fresh egg pasta.
  • Ravioli – Spring Pea (Item #95685) – Fresh spring peas, Creamy Yukon gold potatoes and Freshly Grated aged Wisconsin parmesan wrapped in tender sheets of Montana Durum Wheat, Italian Parsley and Fresh Egg Pasta.
  • Ravioli – Butternut Squash (Item #95698) – Roasted local butternut squash wrapped in delicate egg pasta.
  • Ravioli – 4 Cheese (Item #95680) – Freshly grated Parmesan, Asiago, Provolone and Ricotta Impastata blended with spices and wrapped in tender sheets of Montana durum wheat fresh egg pasta.
  • Ravioli – Lemon Ricotta (Item #90917) – Freshly grated lemon zest blended with fresh Wisconsin ricotta impastata cheese, filled into “pillows” of Montana durum wheat and fresh egg pasta.
  • Ravioli – Mushroom (Item #95681) – Tennessee baby portabella and porcini mushrooms with fresh herbs and Italian cheese in egg pasta.
  • Tortellini – Italian Cheese (Item #95683) – Delicious blend of freshly grated Wisconsin cheeses, fresh herbs and spices, filled in delicate “little hats” of tender sheets of Montana durum wheat and fresh egg pasta.
  • Gnocchi – Ricotta (Item #95773) – Delicate potato dumplings made with Idaho potatoes, unbleached pastry flour, fresh egg and ricotta Impastata.
  • Gnocci – Sweet Potato (Item #95688) – Delicate potato dumpling made from wheat flour, Idaho potatoes, sweet potatoes and whole eggs.

Pesto

  • Pesto (Item #94099) – Rich puree of fresh basil, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil and fresh garlic.

Pizza Dough

  • Pizza Dough (Item #90708) – Alfresco Pasta uses only unbleached, naturally aged flour in our recipes. The unbleached flour has a rougher texture, and a darker color. The natural aging helps develop the gluten and produce a better pizza crust.

Sustainability Efforts

Q: Sustainability is a growing concern in the food industry. How does Alfresco Pasta address this in your production processes?

A: We work with local farmers to source Tennessee-grown ingredients whenever possible, supporting sustainability and local agriculture. We also help restaurants by providing a zero-waste option – by providing pre-portioned cut pasta, which can be cooked to order for exact menu portions, minimizing waste.

Supporting Chefs

Q: How do you support chefs who are new to using your products?

A: We offer cooking demonstrations and product samples to help chefs get familiar with our products.

Q: Can you tell us about any new products or innovations Alfresco Pasta is working on?

A: We’ve got some exciting new items like Neapolitan Pizza Dough, Creamy Gorgonzola and Walnut Ravioli, and Fresh Pear and Pistachio Sachetti in the works.

*All products may not be available in each region. Please check the app or reach out to your customer advocate for availability.