Pasta is a gourmet food

Pasta has gotten an undeserved bad name in the US, where it is associated with red sauce and cheap Italian restaurants with poor service. That is just not true. Italian food has a lot of variety; just that what passes for Italian food in the US (except in the Haute Cuisine) is Sicilian food. Sicilian food uses a lot of olive oil, and very little Parmesan.

It's all because of the geography. Northern Italian cuisine is a whole lot closer to French and German cuisine than to Sicilian cuisine. Reason? Northern Italy has weather that allows raising cattle that feeds on grass (Sicily is a whole lot more arid). Cow's milk is converted to butter and cheese. What grows locally is used: such is the way of the world. Italian cuisine is refined and versatile.

The best Italian cookbook I know of (and most critics agree) is Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. In that she talks about the right way of making pasta. A little bit of butter goes a long way.

How to make pasta sauce?
It is very simple to make pasta sauce at home. All it takes is some care and a tiny bit of effort. Homemade pasta sauces can be jarred or frozen, they keep for about 6 months.

Here's a photo of my homemade pasta sauce. This sauce has no olive oil or coloring. The heavy cream and fresh grated Parmesan give it a orange hue. Topped with chopped parsley and finely grated Parmesan cheese. Served over shell pasta, cook al dente and then tossed with butter. Everything except the cheese is organic.