Pasta Sticks Are The Best Addition To Your Next Party Platter

As much as we love pasta, it's really a shame it isn't as easily eaten as, say, a cheeseburger, a chicken nugget, or a shish kebab (not to be confused with souvlaki — which is also a handheld food). Do you see where we're going with this? Here at Mashed, we believe that pasta should be eaten anywhere, everywhere, and effortlessly. At long last, that can be done with pasta on a stick.

Content creator @emilyscooking posted an Instagram video of her famous pasta sticks, which she initially shared in 2021. Landing somewhere between a personal pizza, a baked pasta dish, and a shish kebab, this handheld snack puts penne pasta — layered with cheddar cheese, red onion, pepper, bits of pork, and pesto tomato ricotta spread — right on a skewer for easy dining. Perfectly suited for a backyard barbecue or a cocktail party, these savory little treats bring a fun new twist to hors d'oeuvres hour.

While penne is used in this case, any sturdy pasta that can hold its shape and the weight of toppings will work as the base for this dish (think rigatoni or ziti). Whichever pasta shape you choose, do your best not to overcook it. Overcooked noodles may be perfect for pasta salad, but al dente pasta works best when putting it on a skewer.

Building the pasta skewers is simple: Just slide a handful or two of al dente noodles onto a skewer, cover it with your favorite pasta or pizza toppings, toss it in the oven to bake, and voilà! With so many opportunities for customization, the difficult part is choosing how you'd like to dress them up. If you're looking for a classic pizza vibe, try brushing the noodles with marinara (on both sides), topping it with mozzarella and a sprinkle of fresh, chopped basil. Speaking of basil, you can whip out your favorite basil pesto sauce recipe, and brush that on your pasta skewers instead, topping it with Gruyère cheese and pine nuts.

If you'd like to take this a slightly fresher route, you might try making pasta salad on a stick instead. Modeled more like a traditional shish kebab, ingredients like soft, cheese filled tortellini tossed in olive oil and spices, cherry tomatoes, mini mozzarella balls and slices of salami can be alternated on a skewer. If you'd like a vegan option, try a pasta primavera style pasta salad skewer, with rigatoni, and grilled zucchini, summer squash, and red onion.