The Arizona Republic

Ready to branch out from boxed pasta and cheese?

Here's a list of different shapes of pasta, their cooking times and suggestions of what type of sauce goes best with each.

Farfalle: Also called bowties or butterflies. They come in small, medium and large. Their large, flat surface makes them best for tomato, meat and vegetable sauces. Cooks in 11 minutes.

Penne: Diagonally cut smooth tubes are great for trapping sauces. Those with ridged sides are called penne rigate. Cooks in 12 minutes.

Campanelle: This fancy-looking pasta with a cone shape and wavy edges traps and holds chunky sauces with meat and vegetables. Cooks in 13 minutes.

Castellane: The ridges and conch-shell shape of this pasta help trap hearty sauces. Cooks in 13 minutes.

Rotini: Short, 2-inch-long, corkscrew-shaped pasta that's good with chunky sauces. Cooks in eight minutes.

Fiori: In Italian, fiori means flower. This pasta has rounded petals that provide extra surface area for chunky tomato-based sauces. Has lots of kid appeal. Cooks in seven minutes.

Elbows: Short, curved tubes of pasta are available in different sizes. Most often associated with macaroni and cheese, elbows also can be used with other creamy sauces or with meat sauce. Cooks in seven minutes.

Rigatoni: Ridged tubes about 2 inches long and 1/2-inch wide. This hearty pasta should be served with hearty, chunky sauces. Cooks in 13 minutes.

Fettuccine: Translates to "little ribbons." This pasta is usually 1/4-inch wide and available straight or in coils. Its thickness makes it perfect for heavier sauces, such as alfredo. Cooks in 12 minutes.

Angel hair: In Italian, this fine spaghetti is called capelli d'angelo. Goes best with light, delicate sauces. Cooks in six minutes.