Stupid spaghetti serving question.

[Skidmore]

We're having a get together with some friends at our house on this weekend, and we kind of all decided to have a spaghetti dinner. I don't know why but I've never served spaghetti to company before. When we have it for dinner ourselves, we just kind of dish up plates ourselves and then proceed to the table to eat. Is there a right way to serve spaghetti? Sauced already? Or pasta separate on a platter and sauce in a turrine?

I feel like an idiot for asking.

[The empressof all]

1. I think you lightly sauce the pasta

This will prevent it from getting gloppy. You can serve extra sauce on the side.

I'd plate it for serving. It's an awkward item for people to serve themselves.

[Skidmore]

2. Thanks, empress.

That sounds like a plan to me. I had been considering tossing the pasta with a little olive oil after draining to keep it from sticking together and then serving a choice of a marinara sauce or an alfredo based sauce on the side.

[grasswire]

3. I serve it at the table in a great big wide bowl

...but I usually use some other kind of pasta than spaghetti. Rotini or something. It isn't usually very drippy, because I add parmesan cheese and often fresh spinach that wilts with the heat of the pasta itself. If I have just sauce and noodles, I put the noodles to one side of the bowl and the sauce to the other side so people can get it as saucy as they want. But passing a separate bowl of sauce would work, too.

A patterned tablecloth will work better for you than a white one, incidentally. Ha!

[sandnsea]

4. I like to sauce my own spaghetti

Some people won't be surprised by that. lol.

Anyway, I usually serve it with sauce on the side. Some people like less meat, more sauce. Some people like more noodles, less sauce. Some people like it real soupy. I dont think it's so messy that adults can't handle it.

IMHO.

[eleny]

5. I know it's the thing to serve sauce on the side or put very little in pasta these days

But we've started putting the pasta into the sauce at the stove and cooking it for a minute. I boil the pasta to al dente and then put it into the sauce pot. The pasta flavors up really nice.

My folks used to do that when I was little. But over the years I got away from it since trends change. And my Italian mom in law served her "gravy" on the side. Then I saw Mario Batali suggest cooking the pasta a bit in the sauce and hubby and I are liking it that way.

I can't remember her name but one of the Italian chefs on PBS Saturday programing once advised not to add oil to the pasta cooking water since it can coat the pasta and inhibit the pasta from absorbing sauce when it's served.

Btw, I got one of those sets of pasta bowls with the big serving bowl in it. We never use it. It collects dust on a top shelf!

[hippywife]

6. Was that

Lidia Bastianich, perhaps? I do like her. Reminds me of one of my Italian great aunts, now long gone.

[eleny]

8. At first I thought it was her...

But i think now that it was a woman with darker hair. And it was some time ago, so my memory is not clear on it. I like Lidia's program. She's so calm when she cooks.

[hippywife]

7. Sounds like you've already got a plan...

but if you did want to sauce it and serve it at the table out of a large bowl, sauce it lightly and then have people pass their plates to the hostess to fill. Pass around a separate bowl of sauce for the heavy dippers.

Boun appetito! :hi:

Edited to add: The plate passing gets everyone a little involved and gives them the feel of a more communal meal among friends.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. In our Italian household .........

..... you put the gravy on the macaroni and serve it that way. Cheese on the side. Bead on the table, sliced. Shallow bowl of olive oil with salt and pepper in it for bread dipping (not that dipping (we called it dunking) the gravy is prohibited). Meatballs or sausage, if that's your thing, on the side, too. Separate bowls for the obligatory salad.

Macaroni is a VERY informal meal.

[hippywife]

10. Ciao, paesan!

How did it go with the Buttcrack today? :hi:

[Stinky The Clown]

11. Buttcrack is Wednesday

We called him today. He said he could be here tomorrow, but we're both out, so he comes on Wednesday.

[Skidmore]

12. Thanks for the serving suggestion..

Informal is good because this is just a group of good friends meeting to gab, and pasta was the choice. I have a big crockery bowl I think I'll use for the pasta dish. My mom used to make bread in it. It has also been used to make the turkey stuffing in at holidays. It will be perfect for this. I'd kind of like to make sausages, but meatballs might be a good thing to do. My husband will never make it through a meatless meal. LOL! I'd never served it for a group other than just our immediate family. I thought I'd make up some stuffed mushrooms to serve as appetizers. Salad and garlic bread will be on the table as well. Any favorite dressings for salad? Dessert will be a pumpkin torte I've been dying to make.

[Stinky The Clown]

13. Salad dressing

Our house salad is Sparkly's special ....... balsamic vinegar, olive oil, dried basil, oregano, and parsley, granulated garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. This was originally made with wine vinegar and that's still just fine - and very traditional.

[Skidmore]

14. Thanks for all the help. Dinner went well and I served the spaghetti

on a big old glass platter I have. First I drained the noodles and returned them to the pan with some of the gravy and let it cook a little longer. I put it on the platter and arranged the meatballs on the ends. Extra gravy went in a boat. I served mushrooms stuffed with spinach and artichoke, olives on the side, garlic bread, and a fresh tossed salad with a balsamic viniagrette dressing. zWe had a wonderful meal.

[eleny]

15. Everything sounds so good

And stuffed mushrooms, too! Maybe you can post the recipe for them when you get the chance?

[Skidmore]

16. The stuffed mushroom were really simple.

Aldi's has these great Italian bread crumbs that are already seasoned and they have marinated artichoke hearts in jars. I chopped the mushroom stems, and combined them with chopped spinach, chopped artichoke hearts, greated Romano cheese, and the bread crumbs. Then I used the marinade from the artichoke hearts to moisten the mixture. These artichoke hearts are marinated in garlic, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar so between the bread crumbs and the marinade, you need only to add a little salt and pepper. I stuffed the mushrooms with the mixture, put them on a baking sheet, and drizzled them with olive oil. Into a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes and they were done.

[eleny]

17. I love marinated artichokes

This sounds like a great way to use them. Hubby's birthday is next month. Those are now on the menu. Thanks!