One of the most famous Italian pasta shapes and loved across Italy, Penne, which means “pen” in Italian, gets its name from its shape. The tube-shape with angled ends was inspired by the quill of an old style ink pen. The large diameter and ridges of Penne make it ideal for retaining sauces on the entire surface, inside and out! Try Penne with chunkier meat or vegetable-based sauces, refined dairy-based sauces, like a mushroom cream sauce, tomato sauces, or spicy sauces. Penne is also delicious in baked casserole dishes, known as “pasta al forno.”