I grew up in the suburbs of West Philadelphia, just off the MainLine, and our family regularly ate and enjoyed Italian food. The first dish I learned to make as a child was spaghetti and meatballs with homemade sauce (not gravy). The second was chicken scallopini. Both were my favorites. While we are not Italian, it was an memorable cuisine that influence my taste buds and joy of cooking. Other Italian influences included:

• Tel’s secretary Carmella introduced us to ziti with her spicy sauce – yum. The first bite of Carol’s famous lasagna was delicious. Helping Mom make pizzelles before Christmas. Frank introducing me to Pica’s Pizza in Upper Darby.
• Finding a hidden gem in Ardmore, Carlino’s, tasting cheeses at DiBruno brothers. Enjoying the traditional seven fishes on Christmas Eve with the Allen, and Prizios in DC. Reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s book Eat, Pray, Love reinforced what I already knew and experienced about Italy
• Traveling to Italy and tasting regional cuisine (Pizza in a Rome Piazza, truffles in Umbria, veal at an outdoor cafe in the Piazza del Campo in Siena, lemons on the Amalfi coast, buying aged balsamic vinegar Moderna, tasting olive oil in small towns in Tuscany, my first gelato in Bologna. Mom hasn’t been to Italy yet; in 2020 we were planning a trip, but the pandemic put a kibosh on that. Hopefully we get to go in 2022.

To fill time during my recovery/leave, I binged various cooking shows. Tiffany introduced me to Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy on CNN. This food tour of Italy, is a joy, and I finally learned the correct way to cook Cacio e Pepe from the chef in Bistro64 in Rome. The beauty is its simplicity, with just a few ingredients: Pasta, pecorino and Parmesan cheese, pepper, butter, and pasta water. That’s it.

So what makes this dish so delicious? The skill or art is combining the 70% pecorino, 30% Parmesan and pasta water to make a delicate and creamy emulsion while stirring it on the pasta. Mom described it as being similar to mac & cheese, in a more upscale version. She’s not a cheese person, which means the dish was fine not exceptional to her. I on the other hand have seven different kinds of cheeses in the refrigerator now and don’t have enough time in the day to eat them all. A secondary plus is it didn’t take long to make.

Note – We had this earlier in the week. For Mother’s Day, mom wanted Shrimp Scampi. Coincidence, no?

Would I make it again? Yes, with a few modifications. The good news is now I know what to expect. I would add more rough cracked pepper. modify this recipe Based on Italian chef’s recommendations on the cheeses.