Perfect Recipe

Spaghetti with Lemon and Olive Oil (al Limone)
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

Salt
1 pound spaghetti
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 medium shallot, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons finely grated zest and 1/4 cup juice from 3 lemons
1 ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 1/2 cup), plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons shredded basil leaves

Directions:

In a large Dutch oven, bring 4 quarts of water to boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta to water. Cook, stirring frequently, until pasta is al dente. Reserve 1 3/4 cups of pasta water, drain pasta and set aside.

In the now-empty Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon of oil. Once hot, add shallot and 1/2 teaspoon salt, cooking until shallot has softened, about 2 minutes. Whisk in 1 1/2 cups of the reserved pasta water and cream. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add pasta, tossing to coat. Stir in remaining 3 tablespoons of oil, lemon zest and juice, cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

Cover and allow pasta to stand for about 2 minutes, tossing halfway through, so that the sauce can thicken and pasta can absorb the sauce. If needed, add the remaining 1/4 cup of pasta water to adjust the consistency of the sauce. Stir in basil and add salt and pepper to taste. To serve, drizzle each individual portion with olive oil and sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Ingredients:

500 g spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
200 g pancetta or slab bacon, cubed or sliced into small strips
300 ml heavy cream
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
3 eggs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian “al dente.”) Drain the pasta well, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.

Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken. Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls. Pass more cheese around the table.