Guide to Italian sauces, from Alfredo to Vongole

Q. An Italian cooking expert I'm not, so when it comes time totop the various pasta dishes I make I'm at a loss. Could you pleaseexplain the differences between Italian sauces?

A. The following is a partial list of pasta sauces adapted fromA Pocket Guide to Italian Food and Wine (A Fireside Book - Simon &Schuster; 1986, $5.95) by Spike and Charmian Hughes:

Aglio e olio: garlic, olive oil and parsley.

Alfredo: butter, cream and freshly grated cheese overfettuccine.

Amatricana: sauce of fresh tomatoes, chopped bacon, onion andgarlic, served with grated Pecorino Romano cheese.

Bolognese: rich meat sauce flavored with chicken livers, wine,vegetables and nutmeg. Served with butter and grated cheese;sometimes cream is added to the sauce. Also called ragu in parts ofItaly other than Bologna.

Burro: butter and grated Parmesan cheese.

Cacciatore: meat and vegetable sauce flavored with juniper.

Frutti di mare: seafood sauce.

Funghi e piselli: sauce of mushrooms, bacon and fresh greenpeas.

Marinara: sauce of fresh tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and basil.

Pesto: oil, grated cheese, pine nuts, basil and garlic poundedinto a paste.

Pomidoro: tomato sauce.

Romana: meat and chicken sauce with chopped mushrooms.

Tartufata: truffle sauce with Marsala or white wine and garlic.

Vongole: clam sauce with onions, tomatoes, olive oil and garlic.