Spaghetti alla Chitarra al Pesto Genovese e Pinoli Tostati (Fresh Spaghetti alla Chitarra with Pesto Genovese and Toasted Pine Nuts) Spaghetti alla chitarra come from Abruzzo and pesto genovese comes from Liguria, so putting the two together is not tradition. It is a decision about surface. The chitarra cuts a strand with a square section and four live edges, and those edges hold a thick basil paste in a way that a round extruded spaghetto never manages. Nothing else here is

Ciriole are thick handmade flour-and-water pasta from Terni in southern Umbria. The strands resemble stout, irregular spaghetti but have no egg and should retain the honest resistance of a rustic dough. A classic Ternana treatment uses tomato, garlic, parsley and peperoncino, allowing the rough surface of the ciriole to capture a simple sauce. The preparation depends on texture rather than an elaborate ingredient list.

Lorighittas are the hand braided pasta rings of Morgongiori. This version pairs their firm, irregular surface with a slowly cooked rooster ragù whose meat is pulled from the bone and returned to a concentrated tomato and wine sauce.