break material

ok, so how important is getting a hot break with your extract? more info:
ive been doing partial mash's with a partial boil.
ive also been adding all of the extract i need at the very end.

ok, now is it necessary/advised/helpful to let my wort return to a boil after adding the extract (which is what ive been doing) or can i just leave the heat off and start cooling 10 min sooner (about what it takes me to take the pot off heat, add the lme, and dissolve it off of the bottom of the pot, and return to boil) ?

Especially with extract brewing, the boil is mainly just for hop bittering. Malt extract has already been processed to be fermentable: the only thing you're doing when adding it to your boil is to sterilize it. To that end, then, it's good to have a full boil to get all of your IBUs from your hops.

IMHO, although the extract only needs to be pasturized, I boil everything for at least a few minutes. I add my DME at the end and allow it to boil for 5-10 minutes.

As davesrose states Malt Extracts have already been processed, which means the grain has been mashed for you, and has been boiled once already.

Many add at flameout, yes it will save you a few minutes, but like I said I like to boil everything.

As those guys stated, it's totally fine to add at the end, but you'll still want to boil for a few minutes. Also, remember that you'll need to adjust your hops as well for lower utilization if you do not have all of your DME in throughout the 60 minute boil.