These little cousins of couscous are near the top of my list of favorite pastas. They’re great for salads, soups, main courses, pasta courses and probably for some sort of food pop art.

Fregula are traditional Sardinian pasta made from coarsely ground semolina. Pasta dough is rubbed into small round balls (about the size of cous cous). They’re lightly toasted – twice – so they’ve got an interesting sort of nutty flavor to them.

On Sardinia, fregula are used in soups and stews and while few Americans are familiar with them they’re as easy to cook as any other pasta. Try topping some with tomato sauce and crumbled goat cheese or a spoonful of ricotta.

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