Learn Italian: Dopo aver finito la cena, restano sempre molti avanzi. - After finishing dinner, many leftovers always remain.

You could say: Quello che resta sempre dopo aver finito la cena sono molti avanzi (What always remains after finishing dinner are many leftovers). Notice how the verb essere becomes plural (sono) to agree with the focus (molti avanzi), even though the pseudo-cleft clause starts with the singular Quello che.

Why is it Dopo aver finito and not Dopo essere finito? Doesn't the verb finire often take essere in the past tense?

Finire takes the auxiliary avere when it is transitive, meaning it has a direct object. Here, the subject is finishing something (la cena). If the dinner itself were the subject finishing, it would be intransitive and take essere (for example, Dopo che la cena è finita...).

Why is the subject molti avanzi placed at the very end of the sentence?

In Italian, with verbs that describe existing, appearing, arriving, or remaining (like restare, rimanere, or arrivare), it is very common and natural to place the subject after the verb. This highlights the introduction of the new information into the scene.

Since the verb comes before the subject here, what is a common trap for English speakers to avoid?