Cacio e Pepe from the NYT's Cooking Column

This simple pasta recipe comes to you from Mark Bittman of the New York Times. Google tells me that the name translates to 'cheese and pepper' in English. I'm afraid my childish mind had gone elsewhere with a translation. I'm not sure whether the quality of the cheese I used was inadequate, but I wasn't wowed by this recipe. I can say that it was an absolute breeze to make. 


Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/2 cups of finely grated pecorino Romano
• 1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 3/4 pound long pasta (I used capellini, which is so thin you could thread a needle with it)
• good olive oil

Methods: 
Put a pot of salted water on to boil. Add the pasta when the water boils.

In a large bowl, combine the cheeses and black pepper, then mash them together with enough water to form a paste. Spread the paste evenly in the bowl. When the pasta is done, transfer it to the bowl with the cheeses. Reserve a cup of the pasta water. Stir the pasta  to coat it, adding a teaspoon or two of olive oil and pasta cooking water to thin the sauce as necessary. Serve with additional pecorino and pepper.