by Kelli Boylen

Julie Parisi, founder and owner of Zaza’s Pasta, is not only making local food, she is using local sources for the raw ingredients whenever possible as well!

“We're using only Minnesota and Iowa grown wheat in all of our products. Throughout the whole process we're supporting local farmers along the way,” she shared.  All of their garlic, herbs and vegetables come from Frontier Natural Cooperative out of Norway, IA, whose mission it is to support and strengthen rural communities around the globe.

Zaza's Pastas started in 2010 in a small, one-bedroom apartment in Iowa City, selling at local farmers markets. Zaza’s Pastas has been working out of a commercial kitchen since 2012. In 2015 they started working with some local food wholesale distributors. This has allowed their product to reach farther than she could have ever anticipated.

“We pour our heart and soul into each batch of pasta,” expressed Julie. “We love the ingredients, we love the process and we want you to love what you eat!” Her pasta includes only local, organic and non-GMO flour.

Zaza's Pasta are now currently being distributed in six states thanks in large part to Co-op Partners Warehouse and a couple of smaller regional distributors. Julie adds, “We're still really eager to see our products on shelves in new stores so we can share our love of great local food with as many people as possible.”

They have some new products in their lineup as well. “We have added a couple of new shapes and varieties to our lineup of non-GMO, vegan pastas. We're starting to offer bulk size bags to food service establishments now, too,” she said. “We'll make sure to have tons of samples of everything on hand for Feast!. We hope lots of people get a chance to stop by our booth!”

Zaza’s product line includes three flavors of fettuccine, two flavors of pappardelle and two varieties of radiatore.

You can meet Julie, a.k.a. Zaza, at Feast! Saturday, Dec. 2, 2017 at the Mayo Civic Center in Rochester, Minn., from 10 am to 4 pm. The day will be well spent, with scores of different food businesses exhibiting in addition to chef demos, workshops and kids activities.

Related:

Going Gaga for Zaza's Pastas Nov. 18, 2016