Pasta al Limone

When you're so tired you just want buttered noodles, but a little fancier.

5 tablespoons unsalted butter Finely grated zest of 1 lemon, plus fresh juice to taste and additional grated zest for serving 1 medium clove garlic, minced salt pepper 1 pound fresh spaghetti 1 ounce grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat until foaming. Lower heat to low, add lemon zest and garlic, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until just shy of al dente. Reserve about 1 cup (240ml) of the starchy pasta water, then drain pasta. 2. Add pasta to butter mixture, along with 1/2 cup (120ml) reserved pasta water. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring and tossing to coat, until pasta is glazed in a satiny, emulsified sauce. 3. Add grated cheese and toss and stir rapidly until sauce thickens; if it becomes too tight and dry at any time, add more pasta-cooking water to loosen it sufficiently. Add lemon juice to taste, starting with 1 tablespoon (15ml), then adding more until desired tartness is reached. Season with salt and pepper. 4. Serve spaghetti right away, topping each serving with additional grated lemon zest and cheese.

Camille and Trent