PASTICIFICIO CARLESCHI

“There is more to food than nutrients and packaging. When we choose what we eat, we make a statement about who we want to be, what we take and what we leave to others. We have to be critical about food and respect the heritage it carries. I think of this when I make my pasta.”

– Giovanni, founder of Pastificio Carleschi.

Pastificio Carleschi (pronounced Past-if-each-yo Car-less-key) is an artisan producer of organic pasta made using traditional Italian methods and British stoneground flour from heritage grain varieties – blending the best of British and Italian heritage.

Founded by Giovanni Carleschi in 2019, Pastificio Carleschi (‘Pastificio’ meaning pasta factory and ‘Carleschi’ being Giovanni’s family name) was born from his passion for pasta and the simple question of ‘why does all dry pasta come from Italy when there are amazing grains and flours of exceptional quality available in the UK?’.

In the short time that they have been established, they’ve already released 9 products and have more on the way! Some of the pastas they produce and sell include Wholegrain Spelt Conchiglie, Einkorn Gigli Rigati and Emmer Casarecce. It is worth mentioning that they were the first British, Artisan dry pasta producer in the UK and 5 of their pasta products won the Great Taste Awards in 2020.

The pasta they produce is artisan, bronze-extruded, slow dried for up to 40 hours at a low temperature and made from organic British heritage grains (Spelt, Emmer and Einkorn). Using these particular methods allow Pastificio Carleschi to keep all the nutritional value, taste and fragrance of the ingredients intact as well as ensuring the pasta has great texture & tenure of cooking.

Pasta is also made in small batches to ensure each and every piece is of a high quality, this means each stage of production is carefully monitored and adapted where needed. This is crucial as slow drying pasta is anything but straightforward – ventilation, humidity extraction, temperature and time to rest all need to be taken into consideration.

Alongside the ancient wheat grains of Spelt, Emmer and Einkorn, they source Fava beans straight from Hodmedod’s to make their Emmer & Fava Bean Sedani Rigati. This pasta has a great flavour and is packed with numerous health benefits! For example, it has high levels of protein and soluble fibre from the legumes.

Sustainability is at the heart of every decision made at Pastificio Carleschi. Giovanni chooses to work with sustainability focused farmers and millers in the UK who are actively looking to enhance the health of the soil and environment whilst producing their heritage grains. These grains were specifically chosen because not only do they grow well in a low input organic system, but because of their height and root density they are perfectly designed to strive in a regenerative farming system. On top of this, they are rich in fibre and boost a variety of micronutrients not found in modern wheat, so you can imagine why using and creating a demand for these types of grains are beneficial now and crucial for our future.

More benefits to sourcing locally include guaranteed freshness, total traceability and low food miles. They are certified organic by the Soil Association so all grains and milled products are grown without chemical herbicides, pesticides, fungicides and chemicals.

Simply put, it’s wheat as nature intended. Giovanni prefers this as it maintains the quality of the soil, fosters biodiversity, reduces pollution from nitrogen run-off, uses less energy and supports both human and animal welfare. Other sustainable strategies they implement include how their London based factory runs completely on 100% green energy and they have 100% plastic free packaging.

You can take a closer look and buy some of their delicious and healthy pasta from their Storefront.

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