Persimmon3,
Welcome to the Discussion Board and also to this way of eating (WOE)!
Lyndzie covered everything really well. I just wanted to expound on the pasta. Yes, if you can get organic whole wheat, that would be the best. A lot of the major pasta companies now also carry whole wheat pasta, some are even GMO-free. But there are other alternatives to white pasta (and white pasta still is acceptable, though those made from whole foods are preferred).
Personally I haven't purchased the alternatives for a really, really long time as none of my family or myself are gluten intolerant and the cost for the alternatives is usually always significantly higher than it is for whole wheat. But other pastas that would be McDougall Plan approved would be: brown rice, chickpea (garbanzo flour), quinoa, lentil, kamut, black bean, spelt, and I'm certain there are others that I either can't remember or haven't seen.
Just be forewarned; a lot of the alternatives have a different texture and turn to mush easily if not prepared properly. I've always found that pasta--white or whole wheat--is much more forgiving if I've boiled them a minute or two longer than I should have.
Keep up the great work!
