This one’s for my juniors living off campus. This dish is so easy you can make it in any Foster, Gerald, or Kirk kitchen. Yes, even gross boys’ kitchens. Meet your new go-to dinner: cacio e pepe. 

Nine times out of ten, if you’re coming over to our house for dinner, I’m making this. This pasta dish sounds super fancy. All it takes is a few simple ingredients—stuff you usually have on-hand anyway—and a super big pan. Here’s my recipe for The Best Cacio E Pepe.

Ingredients: 

• One package of long pasta (think spaghetti, fettuccine, linguine type beat)

• Butter, cut up into little cubes

• Grated parmesan cheese

• Grated pecorino romano 

• Ground pepper 

Steps: 

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook your pasta until it is al dente. You don’t want it to be too mushy and well-done because it will cook a little bit more when we mix it with the cheese. SUPER IMPORTANT: Before you drain the pasta, make sure you save at least 2 cups of pasta water. Pasta water is KEY and can make or break your cacio e pepe. 

2. Once you’ve finished cooking your pasta, put a few cubes of butter in a pan on medium-low heat. Wait until it melts a little then throw in your pasta. 

3. So this is going to sound complicated, but it’s really not. We’re going to alternate throwing in parmesan, pecorino, pasta water, and more butter. Make sure you’re tossing the pasta with tongs. Keep repeating adding each of these ingredients until your pasta is creamy (ew, I hate that word I’m sorry but it’s the only way to describe it). 

4. Once you’ve got a nice cheese sauce going, add a whole bunch of ground pepper. 

And voila, you’ve got yourself some cacio e pepe! Make sure you tag us in pics on Insta if you make it (: Happy cooking, BOS babes!

XO,