The authors of On Top of Spaghetti...: ...Macaroni, Linguine, Penne, and Pasta of Every Kind own the restaurant Al Forno in Providence, RI, which specializes in exceptional pastas and Italian food. The book is a compilation of some of those pasta dishes from the restaurant alongside some at-home and after-hours favorites of the chefs - chefs who are definitely on top when it comes to making great spaghetti (linguini, etc.). There is a wealth of knowledge in the book that will benefit the home chef. For example, they go into great detail about how to tell when pasta is actually "al dente," since it is a mark that tends to be under- or overshot frequently. They also give detailed descriptions of common ingredients - from parmesan to prosciutto - how to use them and how to make sure you're getting the best. in some cases, the best way may be to make up a batch yourself. Case in point, there is a recipe for homemade ricotta cheese that is surprisingly accessible. In fact, all of the recipes are very approachable for the home chef, who will be helped along with lots of tips and flavor-boosting shortcuts that are sprinkled throughout. They will even be useful even if you want to improve a jarred sauce on a really busy weeknight. There are classic sauce+pasta combinations, as well as recipes for baked pasta dishes, such as Ricotta Ravioli, Saffron-Sauced Pasta and Osso Buco, Spaghetti with Fresh Spinach and Gorgonzola and Penne with Fresh Artichokes.

It's definitely on the Neanderthal end of the cooking spectrum. It was developed entirely by accident, when George Germon, of Al Forno in Providence, R.I., dropped a steak on the fire without realizing it.

Here's the recipe: take a steak. Preferably a boneless ribeye, and make sure it's "bone dry" - no blood or moisture at all. Burn the wood in your fireplace down to hot embers. Throw in steak. Wait - maybe five minutes per side. Remove. Eat.

Feels a little me Tarzan, you Jane, eh? Betsy Block thought so, too, and while she liked her steak, it just wasn't... what she expected. "But by no means was it -- you know -- breathtakingly good. It didn't taste, say, like a lustful, illicit encounter in a hotel room. What I mean to say, then, is that it wasn't passion on a plate, as I'd imagined. But it was good. It was more than good. It was utterly delicious. Just not like that."