• Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
  • We seem to be having technical difficulties with new user accounts. If you are trying to register please check your Spam or Junk folder for your confirmation email. If you still haven't received a confirmation email, please reach out to our support inbox: support.forum@diabetes.org.uk

Pasta in Italy

E

Evergreen

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1.5 LADA
Strange question, but I’m off to Italy (Sicily if that matters!) for a wedding in a couple of weeks. Just wondering if there’s a way of estimating how many carbs a generic bowl of pasta is? Or a pizza?

I’m pregnant so want to do my absolute best in minimising highs as much as possible.

Thank you!
 
Evergreen said:
Strange question, but I’m off to Italy (Sicily if that matters!) for a wedding in a couple of weeks. Just wondering if there’s a way of estimating how many carbs a generic bowl of pasta is? Or a pizza?

I’m pregnant so want to do my absolute best in minimising highs as much as possible.

Thank you!
Click to expand...

What I do is take a good look at my pasta servings at home and kind of memorise the size and carbs. I can then look at pasta when eating out and estimate how many of my portions it is. So, if my home serving is 40g carbs, I’d look at the restaurant plate of pasta and either separate out my home portion if I only wanted to eat 40g carbs or eat the whole plate and use my portion size to estimate, eg it might be the size of one and a half of my portions, so my guesstimate of carbs would be 60g carbs.

I find that far easier and more accurate than Carbs and Cals or similar. I’d do the same for pizza, concentrating on the thickness of the base. They’re normally quite thin in Italy so I’d make sure I took that into account.
 
Like @Inka, I base it on what I eat at home.
I know many love Carbs and Cals but I could never get on with it. I couldn’t find much of what I eat and when I did, portion size was hard to judge without knowing the size of the plate.
My kitchen scales have lasted much much longer than C&C.

One thing to bear in mind with both pasta and pizza is the high fat content which can slow down carb breakdown. I split my bolus for both.
And risotto.
 
As Inka says, estimating based on what you normally eat is the best, probably only, way to do it. You will find the servings are usually large, there is no standard or average size. Whenever I have eaten in restaurants, in Italy or otherwise, I end up leaving at least half of the serving and even then I’ve overeaten but I do eat a pretty small amount and you will be different. Just do your best to guess based on what you usually eat and don’t worry.

Pizzas are also large as standard but probably no bigger than here although they will also vary depending on the type of crust.

Have a good time.
 
Last edited:
Merluza said:
As Inka says, estimating based on what you normally eat is the best, probably only, way to do it. You will find the servings are usually large, there is no standard or average size. Whenever I have eaten in restaurants, in Italy or otherwise, I end up leaving at least half of the serving and even then I’ve overeaten but I do eat a pretty small amount and you will be different. Just do your best to guess based on what you usually eat and don’t worry. Have a good time.
Click to expand...
I found whereas we tend to have plenty sauce and a small amount of pasta, in Italy or Italian restaurants it is lots of pasta and a coating of sauce.
 
Thank you everyone!

I’ve got the carbs and cals app but like others have said I don’t find it that helpful sadly.

It looks like I’ve got some preparation to do with regards of eyeballing pasta! I tend to avoid pasta and pizza a bit, especially now that I’m pregnant but preparation is probably good for the trip!
 
@Evergreen Sicily is somewhere I've always wanted to visit eg Syracuse, Taormina and Palmero. There used to be a Sicilian restaurant in my city but it closed a few years ago. Ive heard if its not a tourist trap, pasta is a separate course and a small portion. Could you ask when ordering for an approx size of cooked? Obviously cooked weight because they probably wouldn't be cooking your pasta on its own and it may be one ladle or two. I would just love the fish and vegetables. I'd like globe artichokes something I've eaten but never prepared.
I do remember pistachio gelato in Venice.
 
Eating in a restaurant gives you a lot more flexibility. There are 4 courses, antipasti, primi, secondi and postre. You can order from any and more importantly you don't have to order from all of them. The primi is going to be the one with pasta so if this is a problem you can opt for something else or just order the antipasto to have with bread. Similarly the secondi is meat or fish and you choose the vegetables with potatoes as an option. Some dishes come with a few potatoes but you can check. The postre is where you find the cakes, fruit and gelati.

A great Sicilian speciality is caponata which is aubergine, peppers, celery, tomatoes, olives and capers and quite delicious. I would avoid the cannoli.

Italian restaurants are on the whole very flexible, more touristy ones maybe not so much, on one occasion my wife and I just two two antipasti and that was no problem. Our moment of revelation was in a restaurant in Rome where a man came in and ordered what he wanted rather than what was on the menu. At lunch time you will also find a menu del giorno in most with a list of what's on offer with two or three courses at a fixed price and you can look at what others are eating before you choose.
 
Last edited:
Have fun and enjoy yourself
 
Merluza said:
Eating in a restaurant gives you a lot more flexibility. There are 4 courses, antipasti, primi, secondi and postre. You can order from any and more importantly you don't have to order from all of them. The primi is going to be the one with pasta so if this is a problem you can opt for something else or just order the antipasto to have with bread. Similarly the secondi is meat or fish and you choose the vegetables with potatoes as an option. Some dishes come with a few potatoes but you can check. The postre is where you find the cakes, fruit and gelati.

A great Sicilian speciality is caponata which is aubergine, peppers, celery, tomatoes, olives and capers and quite delicious. I would avoid the cannoli.

Italian restaurants are on the whole very flexible, more touristy ones maybe not so much, on one occasion my wife and I just two two antipasti and that was no problem. Our moment of revelation was in a restaurant in Rome where a man came in and ordered what he wanted rather than what was on the menu. At lunch time you will also find a menu del giorno in most with a list of what's on offer with two or three courses at a fixed price and you can look at what others are eating before you choose.
Click to expand...
Yes, this is true of course! Somehow forgot pasta isn’t necessarily part of the main course in Italy! I might just skip it this time round (although I do love a caponata!)
 
Re Carbs and Cals I agree with the previous comments about it not being all that useful re the plate serving size as I've no idea how large that plate is (iirc it's a standard plate, but what does that mean, what are mine, etc.). The carbs per mass are sometimes useful, but it's usually just as easy to look something up on a supermarket website.
 
SimonP said:
Re Carbs and Cals I agree with the previous comments about it not being all that useful re the plate serving size as I've no idea how large that plate is (iirc it's a standard plate, but what does that mean, what are mine, etc.). The carbs per mass are sometimes useful, but it's usually just as easy to look something up on a supermarket website.
Click to expand...
Got a tape measure or a ruler? Just measure your plates and compare then you know
 
SimonP said:
Re Carbs and Cals I agree with the previous comments about it not being all that useful re the plate serving size as I've no idea how large that plate is (iirc it's a standard plate, but what does that mean, what are mine, etc.). The carbs per mass are sometimes useful, but it's usually just as easy to look something up on a supermarket website.
Click to expand...
My Carbs and Cals book has at the top of each page what the size of plate or bowl it is in the pictures as it explains in the front introduction.
 
Evergreen said:
Strange question, but I’m off to Italy (Sicily if that matters!) for a wedding in a couple of weeks. Just wondering if there’s a way of estimating how many carbs a generic bowl of pasta is? Or a pizza?

I’m pregnant so want to do my absolute best in minimising highs as much as possible.

Thank you!
Click to expand...
Congratulations and wow what a fantastic time of year to be going to Sicily!
 
Leadinglights said:
My Carbs and Cals book has at the top of each page what the size of plate or bowl it is in the pictures as it explains in the front introduction.
Click to expand...

Maybe it’s better for Type 2s but I find it hopeless/pointless as a Type 1. It’s just easier to weigh the pasta yourself.

@Evergreen No need to deprive yourself of pasta just because you’re pregnant. It would be a culinary crime to go to Italy and not have pasta. My mouth is watering at the thought of it!
 
Lucyr said:
Got a tape measure or a ruler? Just measure your plates and compare then you know
Click to expand...
Indeed, though that would also mean trying to work out what a standard size plate is as Carbs and Cals doesn't appear to say anywhere - even the "standard" bit I may be mis-remembering as I can't find that mentioned anywhere....
 
Leadinglights said:
My Carbs and Cals book has at the top of each page what the size of plate or bowl it is in the pictures as it explains in the front introduction.
Click to expand...
Ah, the book, that must be where I read it - I now need to find the book.... 🙂
 
Inka said:
Maybe it’s better for Type 2s but I find it hopeless/pointless as a Type 1. It’s just easier to weigh the pasta yourself.
Click to expand...
Agreed, but there is an advantage to seeing a picture if you can't weigh things - not near scales, out, etc.,

As an aside I wonder how accurately people (in general) can judge volume from a picture, easier without sauces/mixed ingredients that's for sure 🙂
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top