A few words about saucing pastas

Ideally, pastas should be cooked in whatever sauce you are serving for just a little bit. It's OK to just dump the sauce on top, but it's so much better when the sauce is absorbed into the pasta. As a general rule, it's a good idea to drain pasta about 30-60 seconds before it's done (and "done" means it's still a wee bit firm -- al dente). Don't rinse the pasta with water -- just pour it back into the pot, and put the sauce on top of it, stirring to coat thoroughly, and cook for that extra minute. And don't over-sauce. You shouldn't have big pools of sauce left when you're done with your pasta -- just enough to coat it, with a little left over for scooping up with Italian bread.