Pasta with butter

Ingredients

• 14 ozspaghetti
• 2 3/4 ozsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
• 2 ozvegetarian Italian hard cheese, finely grated
• 1/2 tspblack pepper
• 1 tbspsea salt, for the pasta water

Method

1. 1

   Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the salt. Cook the spaghetti until it still has a little bite, and keep a full mugful of the water before you drain it.

2. 2

   Return the drained pasta to the pan, off the heat, and add a good splash of the reserved water.

3. 3

   Drop in the cold butter a few cubes at a time and shake and toss the pan hard, adding more water as you go, until the butter has disappeared into a glossy sauce coating every strand.

4. 4

   Take the pan to the table, add the cheese and a good grind of pepper, and toss again until it has melted in. Loosen with another splash of pasta water if it tightens.