A Book Worth Opening

About a month ago, I discovered Pasta: A Book of Handmade Shapes by Missy Robbins, New York’s leading pasta chef. Her fifteen years of pasta research distilled into one gorgeous volume. I was invited to read it before the Chinese translation officially launched, and honestly? Within the first few pages, I thought: what a beautiful book.

It’s not just the pristine binding—though that’s lovely. It’s how Robbins writes about making handmade pasta with such honesty and grace. People call it “a love letter to Italy,” and I genuinely don’t think that’s overstating it.

The Art of Cooking (and Breaking Rules)

I want to share two of my favorite pasta moments that this book brought back to me.

A while back, I was staying with a friend while moving. Her father-in-law would join us for dinner sometimes, offering gentle critiques of my cooking—all with a smile. One evening, we were discussing gnocchi di patate, those potato dumplings that are 100% “hand feel.” There’s never a consensus on potato-to-flour ratios, and we got to debating whether you could even add egg to the dough.

“My mother-in-law says you can’t add egg,” I said.

“Cooking is an art,” he replied. “Always keep an open heart to trying new things.”

That one sentence snapped me out of my stubborn Neapolitan daughter-in-law phase. When I got home, curiosity won. I whispered a silent apology to my mother-in-law and added an egg yolk to the gnocchi dough. The result? It was delicious. I even filmed it for a recipe video.

Scialatielli: The Pasta That Changes Every Time

Then there’s scialatielli—that gorgeous ribbon pasta from the Amalfi Coast (sometimes called “fat noodles”). It’s not in Robbins’ book, but it’s one of my favorite handmade pastas precisely because it never tastes the same twice.

Recipes are just guidelines. What matters is trusting your senses and intuition. Some days I’m generous with fresh basil and parsley. Other days I add Parmigiano or Pecorino. Sometimes just egg whites, sometimes just yolks, sometimes just water. Every scialatielli I make is different—and that unpredictability is exactly why I love it.

Last week, I made a batch and the next day a friend stopped by. I served seafood scialatielli, and watching everyone enjoy it reminded me why I do this.

Why You Should Pick Up This Book

Pasta: A Book of Handmade Shapes is genuinely one of the best introductions to handmade pasta out there. Robbins is technically masterful but never pedantic. She grounds everything in science while keeping that romantic Italian spirit alive.

Don’t let the 400+ pages intimidate you. Beyond the pasta shapes themselves, you’ll find essential sauces, regional Italian recipes, and modern Italian-American fusion dishes. It’s a complete kitchen companion.

Next time you’re in a bookstore, pick it up and flip through. I’m betting you’ll fall in love with it too.