Pick of the Crop – Bombolini Pasta

South of the James on Saturday is going strong but you want some local farm fresh goodies tonight. Worry not locavore  because there is the Wednesday Souther of the James Farmers’ Market. It kicks off at 3 p.m.  and runs until 8 p.m. every Wednesday, rain or shine in the field next to the empty Blockbuster on Forest Hill Avenue. Every week we profile a Wednesday regular. This week Bombolini Pasta is profiled.

May I Have a Twist Please!! That is what you order from Bombolini Pasta, a home-made pasta company run by John and Lolita Kreckman, (jlk@bombolinipasta.com).

This fresh pasta company makes 12 to 15 different pasta items. Their products are extruded pastas; those pushed through a machine which is a pasta press. John was so charming in describing the process to me; he asked me if I remembered the kid’s playdoh press. That brought up fond memories of my Illinois childhood “extruding” pink playdoh fences for my troll houses in the leaf piles. Anyway, too much digression.

He says his press is the playdoh press on steroids. He makes the Spaghettinni, Mostaccioli, Fusilli, Fettuccine, Mini Shells, Linguine, Penne, Lasagna Sheets. That is the shape menu. How about this for a flavor profile:

Lemon Pepper
Black Pepper
Roasted Red Pepper
Roasted Garlic
Cucumber
Spinach
Black Olive
Pumpkin
Lemon Pepper
Tomato Basil
Cucumber
Squid Ink
Spicy Tomato
Chocolate
Tomato
Beet
Black Bean
Herb
Cinnamon
Spicy Pepper
Carrot

Each “twist” is about 3 ounces, cooks in one minute in boiling water (salt optional) and has no artificial additives or colors. You can do a quick rinse in cold water; is this not the ultimate fast food? The shelf life is 2-3 weeks because it contains no egg. Bombolini Sauces, to finish this fast food feast are meat sauce, sweet Italian sausage and marinara. This company is endorsed with full Virginia Department of Agriculture inspection and blessing.

This pasta is purchased by 6 different restaurants in the area. The Bombolini Farm Market presences is huge with appearances at 8 markets; 4 on Saturdays! Ellwood Thompson and Farm to Family are retail sources of the product.

Check these folks out for a quick, healthy, pasta meal; add a spot of Grayhaven Norton red and enjoy your evening. By the way, the Black Pepper flavor is the most popular. Which one will you adore?

Previous Picks of the Crop

Pick of the Crop is written by Trish Morrison.
Originally from Illinois where she was pioneering with Food Co-ops and Farmer’s Markets in the Chicago suburbs, Trish now lives in the neighborhood near Westover Hills Elementary School. A city dweller by week, weekends she travels to Lunenburg County working on an agricultural venture with her son. She enjoys the blend of art, agriculture, music and muse, you can find at a Farmers’ Market and hopes it comes through in her interview style of writing.