1.5' Squared Pasta & Cacio e Pepe

This recipe was created for my brother during covid while he was living in a tiny apartment with only about 18"-square inches of kitchen counter top. I had just learned how to make pasta at home, and wanted to share the experience with him remotely. However, it also happens to make a perfect amount of pasta for two people, is relatively easy to do, and so my wife and I have made it on several trips in AirBnBs and hotels with just a hot plate and a pan.

It's a nice home-dinner date meal that is beautiful and elegant, but also basically just high falutin Mac and Cheese, which is almost impossible to go wrong with.

Ingredients and tools

Ingredients

• 2 medium eggs
• 1/2 Tbs (2 Tsp) of olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups flour (1/2 cup for reserve)
  • if you choose to add Senolina, be sure to mix half and half semolina and all-purpose or 00 flour. Otherwise, just all purpose is great.
• 2 tsp of pepper corns
• 150 grams of cheese (comte, pecorino, gruyere, something along those lines)

Tools

• 1 medium mixing bowl
• 2 serving bowls
• Fork or whisk
• Rolling pin
• Wide plate or bowl (for grating cheese onto)
• Sharp knife
• Cheese grater (or a microplane)
• Wide pan or skillet^[1]
• Tongs
• Rubber spatula
• Measuring cups
• Mortar & pestle or pepper grinder or ziplock bag and something to smash peppercorns with

Making dough

1. Beat the eggs, olive oil, and salt in the medium bowl with the fork
2. Add 1 cup of flour (keeping 1/2 cup for reserve), and mix with the fork until a shaggy dough forms
3. Knead in bowl to pick up extra dough, then finish kneading on counter for 10 minutes
   1. dough should end up smooth, supple, and not super sticky; add extra flour as needed
4. Wrap in saran wrap and set a timer for 30 minutes

Prepping the Cacio e Pepe

• Wash the medium bowl (fork optional)
• OPTIONAL:^[2] Toast the Pepper corns in a cast iron or stainless steel pan.
  • Warning: I recommend doing this on a non-non-stick pan because most non-sticks have a heat restriction, and this may exceed that. Additionally, doing this first and allowing the pan to cool before adding water is very good for the health of the pan; you could also use a second pan if you have one.
  • Put the pan on the stove to medium high heat, then add the peppercorns to roast them slightly
  • You should smell the pepper aroma, and they should dance a little on the pan
  • Swish then around a bit, then pour them into a small bowl for future use. Let the pan cool.
• Wash the bowl while the peppercorns roast.
• Grate cheese into a bowl or plate for easy access
• Add about 3 cups of water (no salt) to the pan. If you have a wide pan, it should be about one or two inches deep.^[3]

Finish the dish

1. Lightly dust your flat, stable pasta-rolling work surface with flour.
   1. Reflour surface throughout as needed.
2. Unwrap the dough and dust the exterior for easy handling.
3. Cut into 4ths, then roll each fourth into a ball.
4. Cover three of the balls with the old wrap and begin flattening the remaining ball of dough.
5. Laminate^[4] the dough by flattening it with the roller, folding it in one direction, then flattening it again 2-3 times.
   1. This helps make the pasta more toothsome
6. Once laminated, roll out the dough to flatten, flipping and dusting to prevent sticking to the work surface
   1. If dough sticks to the surface, it can crease while flattening
7. To get the right thickness, aim for dough sheets about 6" wide and 18" long, which should be about 1.3mm or 1/16th of an inch thick
   1. If you have less space to work with length-wise, you can cut the dough sheet in half once you reach the edge and continue 6" wide and 9" long
8. Once flattened, dust and pat down with flour and fold the sheet in layers onto itself, about 3 inches per fold
   1. Result should be about 3" by 6" with about 4-6 layers, something like this
   2. 
9. Repeat these steps for the other three pieces of dough, but on the last sheet, turn the heat up on the pan of water to medium high to get it boiling about half way through flattening
10. Using your sharpest knife, cut the folded dough pretty thin, around 1/4 to 1/6th inch or less.
    1. A wider cut will render the pasta easier to separate.
11. Add all chopped noodles to boiling water at the same time, and reduce heat to medium
    1. Cook for 2-3 minutes or so until almost done, stirring constantly
12. Move noodles to bowl with tongs, and if boiling, reduce heat
13. Use a rubber spatula to slowly stir in the shredded cheese until the sauce is thick and creamy
14. Crush or grind the pepper
15. Turn off heat, add the noodles and crushed pepper to taste (reserving some to sprinkle on top once plated) and mix together with the tongs
16. Plate and serve ASAP, topping with shredded cheese and a sprinkle of pepper