Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe
The key to getting a creamy sauce without the addition of butter or cream? It’s all in the way you grate your cheese. Chop it into 1 inch chunks and blend in a food processor until powdery with a little grit. Grating on a microplane would result in too light of a texture, and your sauce may clump.
Directions
In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta according to package instructions. When the pasta is 2 minutes from "al dente", reserve 1 cup of the starchy water.
In a large bowl, blend the ¾ cup of the grated cheese and black pepper together with a whisk. Gently add a dash of warm pasta water, 1 tbsp at a time and whisk vigorously to form a thick paste.
When the pasta is cooked, do not pour it into a strainer, instead, grab a pair of tongs and toss from the water directly into the bowl coat the pasta with the cheese mixture. The residual heat and liquid from the pasta will help create creaminess in the sauce.
Finish with the remaining 1/4 cup of grated cheese and a few more turns of freshly cracked pepper. Eat immediately.
Pasta
