What’s in this article:
- Barilla created a film about the origins of the popular pasta set in Rome, 1944
- In its text on the video, Barilla urges viewers to take inspiration from the legend portrayed in the film and prepare a dish to show they care: “On April 6th for #CarbonaraDay prepare a carbonara for whoever you care”
- Carrying on the theme of caring, Barilla informs us that it is donating a million pasta dishes over the course of the year to the non-profit organization Food For Soul
Taking pasta to dramatic heights, Barilla creates a film about the origins of the popular pasta set in Rome, 1944. Released on April 1, it hit millions of views even before April 6 – the date of Carbona Day.
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CareBonara | The Origins of Carbonara — A short film by Barilla is the longest commercial millions of people have ever watched. That’s because it truly embodies the ideal of having engaging entertainment take the place of obvious ads.
The film is just 9 seconds shy of 10 minutes as it shows Private Robbins determined to fulfill the mission his commanding officer charged him with: getting an unforgettable meal served to the American troops stationed in Rome within the next four days.
He meets a chef who speaks no English and tries to convey to him what is needed. Nothing comes up to what Robbins knows he must deliver. Finally, he brings the chef to where the men are stationed to convey to him what is sought. It works, and the carbona dish is served to everyone’s delight (and strangely enough to bagpipe music).
While Barilla admits this is a fictionalized account, it is one of the possible origin stories for this dish. As noted in Food Voices, “Legend has it that Carbonara was born unifying different cultures, when in the 1940s a young American soldier and an Italian cook met in Rome and came up with the idea of using military food rations, including American bacon and eggs, and mixing with the Italian pasta to create a more flavorsome and wholesome dish to feed the troops. In doing so, the classic Carbonara was born.”
In its text on the video, Barilla urges viewers to take inspiration from the legend portrayed in the film and prepare a dish to show they care: “On April 6th for #CarbonaraDay prepare a carbonara for whoever you care.”
To make that point, it adds an e into the name to turn “#Carbonara into #CareBonara, the ideal recipe to take care of people.”
Carrying on the theme of caring, Barilla informs us that it is donating a million pasta dishes over the course of the year to the non-profit organization Food For Soul. The chef at this organization draws on the same kind of ingenuity featured in the new Ikea cookbook to cut down on food waste by finding innovative uses of what is typically thrown out.
Massimo Bottura, founder of Food For Soul told Food Voices that when he opened the of Refettorio Gastromotiva in Rio de Janeiro, the conditions were far from ideal with no water, electricity or gas. But he didn’t give up.
Instead, he thought of the organization’s mantra: “‘NO MORE EXCUSES.’” With that in mind, his perspective changed:
“I was able to see the pile of banana peels in front of me with new eyes. With a bit of creativity, culture, knowledge and a dash of folly, we were able to create an amazing banana peel carbonara pasta. We diced and smoked the banana peels until they tasted like bacon, added Parmigiano cheese we had brought in our suitcases, and were given some Barilla pasta from “Casa Italia”, the Italian Olympic house, to create an unexpected and amazing meal. What I learned from that experience is that a recipe can be an act of solidarity.”
In the Barilla film, the chef also has to overcome the challenge of losing gas and not being able to get some key ingredients without what the American troops have or can obtain on the black market. But it all comes together into something wonderful. That’s the magic that Barilla wishes to associate with its brand, and it works well in its film.