Vegetarian

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This recipe often produces a very sticky, high‑hydration dough. Most people who've made this found that it helps to reduce the water a bit and to scatter plenty of flour on the work surface so the dough isn't impossible to handle; those who skipped that step ended up with dough balls that flopped, bottoms that tore, or dough that felt like it had no elasticity. As an optional step, some people put the dough in the fridge for a day or more before using it and liked the easier handling and better texture that came from the extra rest.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 2g active dry yeast
• 375g water
• 500g 00 flour
• 12g sea salt

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Add 2 gram active dry yeast to a mixing bowl.
2. Add 375 gram water to the bowl and stir with a spoon until the yeast dissolves.
3. Add 500 gram 00 flour to the bowl.
4. Add 12 gram sea salt and mix with a spoon.
5. Use your hands to thoroughly mix the dough until combined.
6. Transfer the dough to a wheeled container.
7. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
8. After 30 minutes, perform a stretch and fold on each side of the dough.
9. Form the dough into a tighter dough ball and let it rest for 1 hour at room temperature.
10. Divide and shape the dough into 290 gram dough balls.
11. Let the dough balls double in size for an hour and a half at room temperature.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Easy To Customize: Home cooks often adapt it to what they have without issue.
• Reliable Results: It turns out well consistently, with few reported problems.
• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 2 slice sourdough loaf, hearth-baked, sliced
• Clarified butter, melted (or ghee)
• Gruyère cheese, sliced
• Wisconsin cheddar, sliced
• Aged cheddar from England, grated
• New York cheddar
• Onion, thinly sliced
• Leek, thinly sliced into half moons
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Whole grain mustard
• Pickled mustard seeds, to taste
• Water

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Slice a hearth-baked sourdough loaf into two even slices about 3/4 inch thick; aim to hear the blade cut through the crust as you slice.
2. Brush the outside of both bread slices with melted clarified butter.
3. Thinly slice the Gruyère and the Wisconsin cheddar, letting the slices intentionally overhang the crust of the bread.
4. Grate the aged cheddar from England.
5. Using a mandoline or a knife, thinly slice the onion; slice the pre-washed leek into very thin half moons.
6. Mix the sliced and grated cheeses with the onion and leek, season with a little kosher salt, then stir in whole grain mustard and pickled mustard seeds.
7. Spoon the cheese mixture evenly over both bread halves and leave the sandwiches open-faced to give the cheese a head start on melting.
8. Preheat a cast iron griddle (or a cast iron pan) and place the open-faced sandwiches on the preheated surface.
9. Cover each sandwich with a bowl and spray a little water underneath the bowl to create steam; keep covered until the cheese begins to melt.
10. When the cheese is starting to melt, scrape up any bits sticking to the pan, then flip each sandwich onto the melted cheese side; press with sandwich weights and continue to toast until the bread is toasty, the cheese is melted, and the cheese that overflowed has become crispy.
11. Give the finished sandwich about a minute to settle before serving, using sensory cues such as smell, the sizzle level, and small trails of smoke to judge doneness.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

Dough

• 1 litre water, cold
• 10g salt
• 1.8kg fine Italian 00 flour
• 5g fresh yeast

Topping

• 4 tbsp plum tomatoes, hand-crushed
• 80g cow's mozzarella (or buffalo mozzarella)
• 5-6 leaf basil, torn
• Parmigiano-Reggiano
• Extra virgin olive oil

book_ribbon Instructions

Dough

1. Pour 1 litre cold tap water into a mixing vessel and dissolve 10 grams of salt in the water.
2. Add 1.8 kilograms of fine Italian 00 flour and 5 grams of fresh yeast to the salted water.
3. Mix and knead the dough until it becomes elastic and springy, about 10 minutes.
4. Let the dough relax for about 1 hour.
5. Divide the dough into ten equal pieces, each around the size of a cricket ball.
6. Prove the divided dough in a fridge or a cool place for about 6 hours, or leave it overnight.

Assembly and Baking

1. Use your fingers to shape each dough piece into a pizza base.
2. Scrunch up canned plum tomatoes with your hands and use 4 tablespoons of the hand-crushed tomatoes per pizza.
3. Season the tomatoes with a little bit of salt.
4. Top the tomato base with 80 grams of cow's mozzarella, then add 5–6 torn basil leaves and a little Parmigiano-Reggiano.
5. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the pizza.
6. Slide the assembled pizza onto a floured board, jiggle it to stop it sticking, then transfer it to the oven on a floured baking tray or a pizza stone placed at the bottom of the oven.
7. Cook at about 400 degrees Celsius in a very hot oven (about 3.5 minutes in that oven), or in a normal home oven at about 260 degrees Celsius for about 7 minutes.

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This dish comes together fast and people who made it generally loved the flavor, but a few things commonly went wrong. Most people found it’s easy to overdo the pepper, start light and taste before adding more. A frequent snag was the cheese clumping and cooking instead of melting, so give extra attention when you add the cheese and work steadily to integrate it. And don’t use metal tools in a non-stick pan; cooks who used wood tongs avoided scraping the surface. Do those three things and you’ll avoid the usual small disasters.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Beginner Friendly: First-time cooks consistently pull this off without trouble.
• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 300g Spaghettoni
• 1 cup Pecorino Romano, grated (or Parmesan)
• Black pepper, freshly cracked
• Rock salt, to taste
• 12.8 cup Water

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Bring water to a boil in a large pot and add rock salt.
2. Add the spaghettoni to the boiling salted water and cook on the stovetop; cook them 9 minutes in the pot (the packet time is 12 minutes).
3. While the pasta cooks, place a medium fry pan over medium heat and toast a generous amount of freshly cracked black pepper for a few minutes until aromatic; grate pecorino while the pepper toasts.
4. Scoop a little hot pasta water from the pot into the peppered pan so it bubbles and loosens the toasted pepper.
5. Put half a ladle of pasta water into a bowl with the grated pecorino and mix with a fork or spatula to form a thick cheesy paste.
6. When the pasta has approximately 3 minutes left, transfer the pasta from the pot to the peppered pan using tongs.
7. Add a cup of pasta water to the pan with the pasta and mix well; continue cooking and stirring the pasta in the pan (risottare) for the remaining 3 minutes, adding more pasta water and more pepper if it becomes too dry.
8. After mixing in the pan for about 2 minutes, turn the heat off.
9. Add the cheesy pecorino paste to the pan with the pasta while the heat is off.
10. Combine and toss the pasta with the cheese and pasta water for at least another minute, or until all the cheese has melted and dissolved into a creamy emulsion; gently toss or flip the pan to help emulsify and avoid stringy cheese.
11. Serve immediately with extra grated pecorino and a final sprinkle of freshly cracked black pepper.

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Most people who've made this say it hinges on three small things: temperature, water, and cheese. Letting the pan get too hot wrecked the sauce for lots of cooks, so keep the heat lowish and take the pan off the heat if things look too lively. Adding too much pasta water diluted the sauce, add liquid slowly and stop when the texture feels right. And finally, having enough cheese matters; people who skimmed on cheese either ended up with a thin sauce or stringy bits. If you mind those three, it comes together reliably and tastes great.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Beginner Friendly: First-time cooks consistently pull this off without trouble.
• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 125g Spaghettone quadrato, thick dry (or tagliolini, pici, fresh pasta made with water and flour, fresh pasta made with eggs and flour, fresh pasta made with eggs and semolina)
• 75g Pecorino Romano, grated
• Black pepper, freshly cracked
• 1 tbsp Rock salt
• 1 cup Pasta water

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and, once boiling, add 1 tablespoon rock salt.
2. Add the spaghettone to the boiling water and cook for two minutes less than the package's recommended time (the packet used in the video says 13 minutes, so remove at 11 minutes).
3. While the pasta is cooking, place a saucepan on the heat at a gentle temperature, cover the cooking surface with a generous amount of freshly cracked black pepper and toast the pepper for approximately 2 minutes, then switch off the heat.
4. In a small bowl, combine some freshly cracked black pepper with the grated pecorino romano and mix.
5. When the pasta has cooked to the shortened time (11 minutes in the video), use tongs to transfer the pasta directly from the pot into the peppered saucepan, reserving plenty of pasta water.
6. Place the saucepan on top of the uncovered pot so steam keeps the pan warm, add about one cup of reserved pasta water (enough to cover most of the pasta), turn the heat back on, and continue cooking the pasta in the pan while stirring for 2 more minutes.
7. Scoop another mug (about 1 cup) of pasta water and add a little at a time into the pecorino mixture, stirring and gradually adding more water until the cheese becomes a thick paste (do not make it runny).
8. Add the pecorino paste to the pasta in the saucepan, add a little more reserved pasta water if needed, and toss the pasta repeatedly over the steam until the pecorino melts and forms a creamy sauce that coats the pasta; if the pasta will not toss, add small amounts of pasta water and continue tossing until creamy.
9. Serve immediately, topping each portion with any leftover cheese paste and extra freshly cracked black pepper.

crowdsource Community Insights

This version tends to finish very cheesy and easy to overdo, most people who added extra cheese wound up with a heavier result, and those who added too much salt found it overpowering. Some cooks who were using a sharper cheese chose to add a bit more to balance flavor, so extra cheese is an option if your cheese is milder, but people who piled it on without that reason usually regretted it. A smaller number scorched the pot during the sauce step and said that was the main failure, so the shared takeaway is to watch the seasoning and the pot.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Beginner Friendly: First-time cooks consistently pull this off without trouble.
• Low Effort: Comes together with minimal time or effort.
• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 1 lb (454g) elbow macaroni, dried
• 1/2 cup salted butter
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp ground mustard
• 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp white pepper
• 3 cup milk (or whole milk, 2% milk, 1% milk)
• 8 oz (227g) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (or a combination of cheeses that melt well, any melting cheese)

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil on the stove.
2. Shred 8 ounces of sharp cheddar cheese and set aside.
3. Add 1 pound elbow macaroni to the boiling water, stir, and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes; drain well.
4. Meanwhile, in another large saucepan over medium-low heat, melt 1/2 cup salted butter.
5. Whisk in 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons ground mustard, 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon white pepper into the melted butter.
6. Increase the heat to medium-high and cook the roux, whisking, for 1 to 2 minutes.
7. Pour in 3 cups milk and whisk until smooth, then bring to a simmer (do not boil) until bubbles form.
8. Turn off the heat and whisk in the shredded cheddar until melted and smooth.
9. Pour the drained pasta into the cheese sauce and stir to combine, then serve hot.

crowdsource Community Insights

The biggest thing people learned here is about the sauce. People who heated the roux until hot and then slowly added cold milk found the sauce came together, while those who poured hot liquid into the roux ran into trouble. Baking generally didn’t help either, cooks who skipped the oven and finished it on the stovetop had better luck. And people who made the sauce too thick had problems; a splash of extra milk at the end smoothed the texture. Those three small moves fixed the issues that tripped most people up.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 6 tbsp butter
• 6 slice white bread, de-crusted and torn into little pieces (or omit (skip the breadcrumb topping))
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 5 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 lb (454g) macaroni
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• 3 cup cheddar cheese
• 1 1/2 cup Gruyère
• Sour cream, ice cold (or omit)

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°.
2. Make the breadcrumb topping: melt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a small saucepan, drizzle over 6 slices of de-crusted white bread torn into little pieces, toss to coat, and set aside.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and lightly salt it.
4. Add 1 pound macaroni to the boiling water and cook it for about 3 to 4 minutes less than the package (box) instructions so it remains slightly al dente.
5. Drain the cooked macaroni in a colander; to reduce steam, run cold water next to (not on) the colander, then shake out excess water.
6. Make the béchamel: in a heavy-bottomed saucepan melt 6 tablespoons butter, stir in 1/2 cup all-purpose flour and cook the roux without burning it.
7. Very slowly whisk in 5 1/2 cups boiling whole milk, stirring constantly to avoid lumps, then raise the heat and cook until the sauce thickens and bubbles.
8. Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.
9. Add 3 cups cheddar cheese and 1 1/2 cups Gruyère to the sauce and stir until combined and smooth.
10. Add the drained macaroni to the cheese sauce and toss to coat, then pour the mixture into a baking dish.
11. Sprinkle an even layer of Gruyère and cheddar over the top, then scatter the buttered torn white-bread pieces (breadcrumb topping) over the cheeses.
12. Bake in the preheated oven until browned on top, about 45 to 60 minutes.
13. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes before serving.
14. Optional: serve with a dollop of ice-cold sour cream on top.
15. Optional storage: wrap well and freeze the assembled dish for later use.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 1 lb (454g) elbow macaroni
• 4 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• Evaporated milk
• Butter, cubed
• 3 oz (85g) cream cheese, cubed
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated (or other cheeses in the same total amount)
• Black pepper
• Cooking spray
• Cajun seasoning
• Breadcrumbs (or crushed crackers)

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat; add the elbow macaroni and 4 1/2 teaspoons salt.
2. Cook the pasta until just barely tender, about 5 minutes; drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
3. Grate the sharp cheddar cheese; set aside 3/4 cup shredded cheese and reserve the remaining shredded cheese.
4. Cut the butter and cream cheese into cubes so they will melt slowly.
5. Spray the inside of the slow cooker with cooking spray.
6. Add the drained pasta to the slow cooker and stir in the whole milk (1 1/2 cups), evaporated milk, cubed butter, cubed cream cheese, and black pepper.
7. Whisk one egg and one egg yolk together in a small bowl until well combined, then stir the egg mixture into the pasta mixture.
8. Stir most of the grated cheddar into the pasta mixture, reserving the 3/4 cup for the topping.
9. Cover and cook on Low until bubbly and lightly browned around the edges, about 1 1/2 hours.
10. Set a timer and stir the mixture once after 1 hour of cooking.
11. Sprinkle the reserved 3/4 cup cheese over the top, cover, and cook until the cheese is melted, about 15 minutes more.
12. If using a toasted topping (breadcrumbs or crushed crackers), toast it in a little butter first and add it when you add the reserved cheese in the final step.
13. Serve immediately, or turn the slow cooker to Warm or Off until ready to serve.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Repeat Worthy: People who make this tend to come back and make it again.

grocery Ingredients

• 350g spaghetti (or other pastas)
• 60-70 cracks black pepper, cracked and finely crushed
• 1 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano, freshly grated (or Parmigiano Reggiano)
• Salt, to taste
• 2-2 1/2l pasta water, starchy

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Grate 120 g (about 1 1/2 cups) Pecorino Romano and set aside.
2. Crack or crush the black pepper (about 60–70 cracks, or roughly 1 1/2 tablespoons if using a mortar and pestle) and reserve; keep extra cracked pepper (about 15 cracks) for garnish if desired.
3. Bring a relatively small volume of water to a boil in a large pot; place a lid on to speed up boiling.
4. When the water boils, remove the lid carefully, season the water with salt to taste, then add 350 g (12.3 oz) spaghetti and stir.
5. Cook the spaghetti for 2 minutes less than the package instructions.
6. While the pasta cooks, place the cracked pepper into a dry pan over medium heat and toast for about 2 minutes, stirring and lowering heat if it begins to burn.
7. When the pasta is cooked (2 minutes under packet time), remove the pot from the heat and reserve starchy pasta water.
8. Turn the pepper pan down to low, then add about 2 to 2 1/2 liters of starchy pasta water to the pan with the toasted pepper, scraping any pepper from the sides.
9. Increase heat to medium–medium high and bring the pepper and starchy water to a simmer; simmer for about 2 minutes to develop aroma and starchiness.
10. Introduce the drained pasta into the pan with the starchy peppered water, bringing along a little extra starchy water if desired.
11. Turn the pan off and, working quickly, add all of the freshly grated Pecorino Romano to the pasta off the heat.
12. Using the residual heat of the pasta and the starchy water, vigorously mix to melt the cheese and create a creamy emulsion; if it does not fully combine, briefly return to low heat and stir until emulsified but not clumped.
13. Adjust the sauce consistency with additional starchy pasta water as needed until you reach a smooth, creamy coating.
14. Serve the pasta into bowls and garnish with additional Pecorino Romano and more cracked black pepper (about 15 cracks) as desired.

military_tech Why This Recipe Stands Out

• Reliable Results: It turns out well consistently, with few reported problems.

grocery Ingredients

• Pasta, fresh (or tonnarelli (square-cut spaghetti), other pasta types, fresh pasta)
• Oil
• Pecorino cheese, grated
• Freshly ground pepper

book_ribbon Instructions

1. Begin by making the cheese paste from the grated Pecorino.
2. Roast the freshly ground pepper in a skillet.
3. Cook the pasta (traditionally tonnarelli; fresh pasta cooks more quickly) until done.
4. Use the pasta's starch to help bind the pasta and sauce.
5. Combine the hot cooked pasta with the cheese paste and the roasted pepper, and stir until the sauce is creamy and not lumpy, adjusting temperature and technique as needed.
6. Do not add butter.
7. Serve with grated Pecorino cheese.
8. The dish is ready in just five minutes.