The Layers of Pastorey Pasta

There’s a Story in Every Storey

Pasta with a Purpose. Traditional, Nourishing, Gentle.

Have you ever looked at something and thought, Hmm, that's interesting. I wonder what that's all about?

Maybe that's what you thought when you first came across Pastorey Pasta.

A unique name, some interesting pasta shapes, perhaps an ingredient or two that made you stop and scratch your head. Mushrooms in pasta? Dandelion roots? Ashwagandha? What on earth is this woman making?!

Well, let me tell you, there's a whole lot more to Pastorey than meets the eye.

And the funny thing is, I didn't even realize just how many layers there were until I started peeling them back myself.

It All Started With a Name

When we first named our business, we thought we were being incredibly clever.

Our last name is Storey. We make pasta.

Put the two together and voilà! Pastorey!

Pretty unique, right? I certainly thought so! Haha!

But as our little business began to grow, I started thinking about the meaning behind our family name.

Storey is an English surname, from what I understand. And while there are different histories behind surnames, I couldn't help but think about a storey in a home.

A home has levels. Layers. Foundations. Each storey is built upon the one beneath it.

And isn't that exactly how life works?

We build, we grow, we climb. Sometimes we find ourselves climbing those stairs with ease, and other times we're crawling up them on our hands and knees!

But every level has a purpose.

Every experience becomes part of our story.

And suddenly, the Storey in Pastorey started to mean so much more.

A Miller in the Family? Well, Would You Look at That!

Now here's another little piece of the puzzle that makes me smile.

My maiden name is Goettemoeller, a name I've understood to mean something along the lines of the best miller.

Now, I haven't traced our family history far enough to know exactly what my ancestors were milling, but I like to imagine it was grain.

How fitting would that be?!

Here I am, generations later, building a pasta business around ancient grains, sprouting, fermentation, and now working toward bringing our grain preparation in-house.

Taking whole grains, soaking them, encouraging them to sprout, gently drying them, and having them freshly milled into beautiful flour.

Maybe there's a little miller in my blood after all!

There's something incredibly satisfying about taking a raw ingredient and following it through each stage, understanding it, respecting it, and turning it into something nourishing.

I want to know where our food comes from. I want to know how it's grown, how it's prepared, and why each step matters.

And if I can support our local farmers and millers along the way, even better.

Because good food should build more than healthy meals. It should build healthy communities.

The Unexpected Shepherd

Now, this next part is probably my favourite.

When we were working on branding Pastorey Pasta, I actually considered changing the name.

Can you believe that?!

Thankfully, our brander encouraged us to keep it. He had discovered a connection between our name and the Italian word for shepherd.

The standard Italian word is pastore, meaning shepherd. Although Pastorey isn't the standard Italian spelling, that connection absolutely captured my heart.

Because we aren't Italian. We had never made pasta before starting this adventure. And yet somehow, we had chosen a name that brought us right back to something deeply meaningful.

A shepherd.

What does a shepherd do?

He leads. He protects. He nourishes. He watches carefully over his flock.

He notices when one is missing.

He doesn't simply rush ahead and hope everyone follows. He guides with patience, intention, and care.

In Luke 15:4, Jesus tells the parable of the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine sheep to search for the one that is lost.

And in Psalm 23:1–2, we read:

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures." (KJV)

I find so much peace in those words.

Because isn't that what we all need sometimes?

Someone to slow us down. To guide us. To remind us that we don't have to rush through every season of life.

When I learned about the shepherd connection, I felt an incredible reassurance about the path I was walking.

Here I was, a woman who had never dreamed of becoming a pasta maker, now spending her days learning how to create wholesome food for families.

And suddenly, Pastorey felt less like a clever business name and more like a calling.

Not because I'm here to shepherd anyone, but because I want to carry those same qualities into the work of my hands.

Care. Patience. Compassion. Purpose.

I want people to feel welcomed at my table.

I want families to slow down, share a meal, and find a little nourishment for both body and soul.

Ancient Grains, Ancient Wisdom

One of the most beautiful things about Pastorey is that while our pasta may look modern, so much of what we do is rooted in traditions that are thousands of years old.

Take ancient grains, for example.

Khorasan, spelt, and other heritage grains connect us to agricultural traditions that existed long before modern food factories.

In Ezekiel 4:9, Scripture speaks of wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt being gathered to make bread.

I love that.

Thousands of years ago, people were working with grains, soaking them, grinding them, fermenting dough, and preparing food for their families.

They didn't have all the technology we have today, but they understood the value of preparation.

At Pastorey, we begin with organic grains and the ancient practice of sprouting.

When a grain begins to germinate, enzymes become active, and changes begin taking place within the seed. Some stored nutrients are mobilized, and certain compounds, including phytates, may be reduced.

That matters because phytates can limit the absorption of minerals such as iron and zinc.

Sprouting isn't magic, and it doesn't remove every digestive challenge, but it can be a meaningful part of thoughtful food preparation.

Then comes sourdough fermentation.

Now, this is where I get really excited!

Fermentation has been part of human food traditions for thousands of years, and leavened bread is mentioned throughout the Bible.

Jesus even uses leaven as an illustration in Matthew 13:33, describing how a little leaven works its way through the dough.

I love the symbolism.

Something so small can create such a remarkable transformation.

During sourdough fermentation, microorganisms and enzymes work together, producing acids and changing components of the dough. Depending on the ingredients and fermentation conditions, this can improve flavour, reduce some antinutrients, and influence digestibility.

And here's something I find fascinating.

Our bodies are home to trillions of microorganisms, many living in our digestive tract. This community, known as our gut microbiome, plays important roles in digestion, metabolism, and immune function.

Not every fermented food contains live beneficial bacteria by the time we eat it, and dried, cooked sourdough pasta isn't a probiotic food simply because it's fermented. But fermentation can still change the food itself.

It makes me wonder how much wisdom is waiting to be rediscovered in the ways our ancestors prepared their meals.

Slow Food in a Fast World

After sprouting, milling, blending, and fermentation, our pasta is shaped and naturally air-dried.

No rushing.

No racing to get it out the door.

Just time, airflow, careful attention, and patience.

Slow, controlled drying has deep roots in traditional Italian pasta making. It helps preserve the pasta's structure and develop the finished product we work so hard to create.

And honestly, I think there's a lesson for life in that.

We live in a world where everything is expected yesterday.

Faster production. Faster meals. Faster results. Faster success.

But what if some of the most beautiful things in life simply cannot be rushed?

Ecclesiastes 3:1 reminds us:

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." (KJV)

There is a time to plant.

A time to grow.

A time to harvest.

And sometimes, a time to simply wait.

Building Pastorey has taught me that the waiting seasons can be just as valuable as the growing ones.

The mistakes, the learning curves, the long production days, the moments of wondering whether I'm doing the right thing.

They're all part of the process.

And much like our pasta, I believe we're being shaped along the way.

A Little Modern Wonder

Of course, I couldn't just stop at ancient grains and fermentation!

I wanted to explore what else nature had to offer.

That's where our functional ingredients came in.

Lion's mane mushrooms, dandelion root, turmeric, spinach, beetroot, dulse seaweed, açaí berry, ashwagandha, and more.

Each ingredient brings something different to the table, whether that's colour, flavour, naturally occurring nutrients, or an interesting connection to traditional food and herbal practices.

I love researching these ingredients and learning how they have been used throughout history.

And I love bringing them together in a way that makes wholesome food approachable.

Because eating thoughtfully shouldn't have to be complicated.

Sometimes it can be as simple as gathering your family around the table and serving a beautiful bowl of pasta.

As Hippocrates is often credited with saying:

"Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food."

While the exact wording isn't reliably traced to him, I appreciate the sentiment that food has an important place in caring for ourselves.

Food isn't a cure-all, but the choices we make around our meals can help support our health and well-being.

And that's the kind of food I want to make.

More Than a Pasta Business

You know, when I started Pastorey, I thought I was building a business.

And I was.

But somewhere along the way, it became something more.

It became a place where my love of family, faith, food, learning, and community could come together.

As a mother, I've spent years teaching my children that learning doesn't have to happen only inside a classroom.

Sometimes it happens in a garden, at a farmers' market, in a kitchen, or during a conversation with someone who has a lifetime of wisdom to share.

Now my girls get to watch their mother build something from the ground up.

They see the hard work, the setbacks, the excitement, the exhaustion, and the joy.

And I hope they're learning that you don't have to know everything before you begin.

You just need the courage to start, the humility to keep learning, and the faith to trust the process.

Because there are days when being a mother, wife, homeschool educator, and small-business entrepreneur feels like climbing every storey of the house at once!

But then someone stops by my market booth and tells me how much they love our pasta.

Or a family shares a meal made with something I created.

Or one of my girls steps into the kitchen to help.

And I'm reminded why I started.

There's a Story in Every Storey

So the next time you see a box of Pastorey Pasta, I hope you'll see a little more than an interesting name.

I hope you'll see the ancient grains and the hands that grew them.

The patience of sprouting.

The transformation of fermentation.

The care behind the ingredients.

The tradition of slow drying.

The local farmers, millers, shopkeepers, and families who help make this possible.

And maybe you'll see a little of the shepherd, too.

A reminder to slow down, care for one another, and find joy in the simple act of gathering around a table.

Pastorey isn't about making pasta faster. It's about making pasta with intention.

It's about honouring what came before us while remaining curious about what we can learn today.

It's about nourishing our families, supporting our communities, and remembering that some of life's greatest blessings come from the simplest things.

A grain.

A seed.

A little water.

A little time.

A whole lot of faith.

And a family with a Storey to tell.

Thank you for being part of ours.

With love from my kitchen to yours,

Angela

Founder & Pasta Maker, Pastorey Pasta

Pasta with a Purpose. Traditional, Nourishing, Gentle.

www.pastoreypasta.com