Cacio e Pepe, my way

A little pasta to pep up your week

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Before I dive into today’s recipe, here are three quick things:

• Patagonia is having their annual big winter sale, with last season’s stuff all discounted. I take advantage of this sale to stock up on outerwear for my kiddo, and occasionally, a jacket for me. This puffer is a favorite; I have it in a brick red and forest green and am regularly asked where it’s from. Patagonia!

• Big news: On Tuesday, I ordered an alarm clock. After years of realizing it was a problem, I decided I don’t want to use my phone as an alarm anymore, and also want to stop doomscrolling reading it before bed. I haven’t owned an alarm clock since…2009? 2010? I’m excited for the change and will report back.

• On that note — I think something’s finally, seriously shifting with the zombifying pull social media has had on us all. Also, this. (Especially the last line!)

Okay, onto the eats!

Cacio e Pepe, like its quick-and-easy pasta cousins Amatriciana and Carbonara, feels defiantly simple. And it is! But it’s also, well, exacting. And it’s Italian, so naturally, there is ample debate about what makes for an authentic recipe.

Forget all that.

I like making Cacio e Pepe when there is nothing in the fridge, the pantry is looking bare, and a contagion of hangries is spreading through the household. It’s not fancy food, it’s desperation-meets-deeply-satisfying food. I am also the first to admit that little about my version is authentically Roman. For instance, I like adding a clove of chopped garlic to the mix. I never have Pecorino Romano around—the cheese for “real” Cacio e Pepe—and would never bother shopping for a wedge specifically for this recipe. Instead, I use parmesan. Sometimes, I toast the black pepper in a mix of olive oil and butter, for no reason other than it sounds delicious.

And you know what, it is delicious. How could it not be? It’s pasta with cheese and olive oil!

But before we get too excited, I do have a caveat: The “exacting” descriptor of this dish isn’t wrong. There are a few things to know about making Cacio e Pepe, even if it is simple: