It is easy to imagine medieval Europe eating only coarse breads and porridges, with pasta emerging much later in the Renaissance. But medieval people — especially in southern Europe — were already enjoying pasta-like dishes.

• Pasta’s early history:
  By the 12th century, references to “itriyya” appear in Sicily, describing dried strands of dough, likely introduced by Arabs during their rule from the 9th to 11th centuries. The Arabs themselves had long traditions of dried noodles, useful for storage on journeys.
   

In the late Middle Ages, pasta dishes become more common in Italian records. For example, in 14th-century Tuscany, pasta was served with cheese and spices. The famous Libro della Cucina (an Italian cookbook from the 14th century) contains recipes for pasta cooked in broth, or tossed with grated cheese and sometimes sugar — a sign that medieval palates did not shy away from combining sweet and savory.

• Not just Italy:
  In England, recipes for “losyns” appear in The Forme of Cury, a 14th-century cookbook from the court of Richard II. Losyns were layers of pasta sheets with cheese and spices — an early form of lasagna. These were boiled, not baked, and often finished with sweet spices.

So yes, medieval diners were eating pasta — though perhaps with cinnamon and sugar instead of tomato sauce! shutdown123