Instructions: Trimb fennel of stalks and fronds, bulb halved, cored, and sliced thin (about 1 1/2 cups).

Bring 4 quarts water to rolling boil in stockpot; add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta, stir to separate, and cook until al dente. Drain and return pasta to stockpot.

Meanwhile, combine tomatoes, fennel, oil, basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in medium bowl. Add tomato mixture to pasta in stockpot and toss to combine. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper and serve immediately, garnishing individual bowls with shaved Parmesan

Slicing a Tomato
Unless you have a very sharp knife, slicing a tomato through the skin can be somewhat difficult, because the skin resists the knife surface and the tomato can get a bit crushed. This method is helpful:

Slice off the stem end of the tomato.

Remove a strip of skin from the stem to the blossom end.

Slice the tomato along the skinned strip so that the knife does not have to cut through skin before it can enter the tomato.

Testing Pasta Doneness
A serrated knife blade, held upward, is perfect for retrieving long strands of cooking pasta from boiling water to test for doneness.

The notches in the blade prevent the strands from slipping back into the pot.

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