From Penne to Penny

How Pasta Guides Led Me Back to the Story That Started It All

There is a kind of quiet power in finishing something you started. A slow, simmering pride that settles into the body when you can look at what once lived only in your imagination and see it, fully formed, in the real world. That is exactly how I feel about completing my pasta guides. What began as a soul tug and a craving to reconnect with simplicity has turned into a set of creations I am genuinely proud of.

These guides were never just about recipes. If they were, I would have just developed a full-fledge cookbook. But I wanted more than just a collection of recipes. I wanted to continue to write my story behind the shot. I wanted pages of snapshots honoring tradition, making things by hand, trusting your senses, and returning joy to the kitchen. Cooking has brought me comfort, creativity, and connection and I was hoping it might do the same for others. And based on the messages I’ve received from people rolling dough, stirring sauces, and folding ravioli with fresh eyes and full hearts, I think it has.

I’d love to tell you a little bit about each guide and what they mean to me.

Story Behind the Dough
This is the foundation, the place where it all begins. This guide walks you through the heart of homemade pasta making with six different dough recipes, including options for gluten-free and egg-free diets. Whether you’re using just a rolling pin or a pasta machine, the goal here is to demystify the process and remind you that pasta-making can be both sacred and simple. The nonne in Italy never needed fancy attachments. Love, flour, and patience is all anyone needs.

Story Behind the Sauce
In this guide, you’ll find thirteen sauce recipes that bring warmth and personality to every dish. But it’s also more than that. It includes troubleshooting advice, flexible pairings, and guidance for those moments when your fridge feels empty but your spirit still wants to create something nourishing. This guide is about making magic out of what you have. It’s about improvisation and resourcefulness when developing flavor.

Story Behind the Fillings
This one is for the dreamers! the people who find joy like I do in the tiny folds of tortellini or the satisfying seal of a handmade ravioli. Stuffed pasta is an art and a labor of love, and in this guide I walk you through everything you need to feel confident in making it yourself. There is something incredibly intimate about crafting food this way, and I wanted this guide to feel like a friend by your side in the kitchen. Just remember to pour yourself a glass of wine while you cook.

Each guide stands alone, but together they tell a story: a story about slowing down, reconnecting to our senses, and finding creativity in the everyday. The pasta-bilities are endless, and knowing these guides have made their way into other people’s homes and hearts means more to me than I can say.

With these guides now complete and out in the world, I’ve been drawn back to another project that’s been quietly waiting for me. It’s a novel I began outlining in my mind during a reflective drive home from Christmas Day in 2020. A whisper of a plot. A name. A feeling. And a question I couldn’t shake: What would you do if you had the chance to live again?

That question became the heartbeat of my book: Penny’s From Heaven.

Where Penne & Penny came together in my “Writer’s Room.”

It is a story that asks what it truly means to use our time well. What if our internal clocks are more than metaphors? What if the ticking we feel inside us is not a countdown, but a call? A guide?

Here is the seed of the story:

People are like clocks. That’s why we describe their personality as what makes them tick. Some people find their ticking goes by quietly through life. Others, the ticking is worrisome. A good clock doesn’t need winding. Our gears continue to turn and grind until we make things right. While some may wonder if they are using their time wisely, what if you had the chance to live one more time? Would you do things differently?

Penny’s From Heaven follows Penny, a woman who has spent her first thirty years living a quiet, safe, and largely unremarkable life. When she is suddenly diagnosed with a fast-moving terminal illness, her world is turned upside down. Just as she begins to grieve all the time she wasted, she is given one more chance to live again.

This time, Penny is determined to follow what stirs her heart, even if it means rewriting everything she thought she knew. The novel explores what happens when the gift of time is no longer taken for granted. It asks what truly matters, what makes us feel alive, and how we might live if we stopped waiting for the "right time" and simply began.

Returning to this book after completing my pasta guides feels natural, like stepping into the next room of my house. Both projects came from the same desire: to nourish, to connect, and to create something meaningful from the raw ingredients of everyday life.

Thank you for walking this journey with me. Whether you’ve made pasta with me in your kitchen or are following along as I shape words into something that, I hope, touches the heart. There is more to come, and I’m grateful you’re here for it.

Love & Pasta,

-JS

If you’d like to explore the guides and bring the joy of homemade pasta into your own kitchen, you can find them all here:
View the Pasta Guides

Whether you're craving a classic tagliatelle, a cozy stuffed ravioli, or simply a moment of calm at the stove, I hope these guides meet you where you are.

And if you're curious to follow the unfolding of Penny’s From Heaven feel free to subscribe or share this space with someone who loves stories, second chances, or a little soul with their spaghetti.