Batali Shares: Linguine with Romano Cheese

Did you catch Mario Batali recently on the Martha Stewart Show?   She interviewed our favorite chef last week, and they talked  NYC  Eataly and Babbo restaurant news, shared a few jokes, and Mario shared a favorite Italian recipe:   in Italian it is called “Bavette Cacio e Pepe”,  which translates to a delicious linguine with Romano sheep’s cheese and black pepper.

From the interview:

“Martha: He opened Eataly. How many people came this weekend?

Mario: On Saturday we had 13,200 people.

Martha: . Last Saturday it was 10,000 people!

Mario: It’s just. more and more. I mean, we’re almost at saturation right
now. We’re trying to figure it out!

Martha: There is a line out the door.

Martha: The last time I tried to get in. I snuck in the side door.

Mario: Right. you’re allowed!

Martha: If you go to Eataly.

Mario: Don’t tell everyone to go in the darn side door!

Martha: If you go to Eataly go on the side door!

Mario: Only if you’re with Martha come in the side door! She sneaks in with
a delivery of honey [making a sneaky-funny gesture].

ON MARIO’S RESTAURANT, BABBO:

“Martha: You know you’ve ruined my life Mario.

Mario: No! Hopefully I’ve improved it.

Martha: You’ve ruined it because I once had a dish at Babbo, which is one of
my favorite restaurants in New York, Babbo. Very difficult to get into
because it’s so popular!

Mario: Unless you come in the side entrance with Martha of course!

Martha: Right.”

And here is the authentic Italian recipe shared by Mario for Linguine with Romano Cheese, aka Bavette Cacio e Pepe:

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

* 2 tablespoons coarse salt
* 1 pound bavette or fine linguine
* 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
* 1 1/2 cups freshly grated Cacio di Roma cheese (literally, this means “”cheese of Rome”. It is mild, both sweet and savory, and melts well. You should be able to find it at your favorite grocery, deli, or Whole Foods Market.)
* 1 1/2 cups freshly grated pecorino Romano cheese, plus extra for serving
* 3 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Fill a large pot with 24 cups water; bring to a boil over high heat.
Add salt and return to a boil; add pasta and cook until al dente, 1 minute
less than suggested on the package directions.

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat 1/4 cup olive oil and butter over
low heat until butter is just melted. Turn off heat.

3. When pasta is finished cooking, turn heat back on under skillet and
add 1/2 cup pasta cooking water; bring to a boil. Add a small handful of
cheese to skillet and let melt.

4. Drain pasta, reserving some of the cooking liquid. Add pasta to
skillet along with pepper and toss, using tongs, to combine; add 1/2 cup
reserved pasta cooking liquid.

5. Add remaining cheese to skillet and remove from heat; let melt on top
of pasta and toss to combine. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil; toss, adding additional pasta cooking liquid, until pasta is well coated. Serve immediately with additional pecorino and pepper.

Grazie Mario and Martha!