Kind of like a Cacio e Pepe but with soft, squidgy, caramelised roast garlic. This dish is all in the technique. It is so creamy, you'll be making it on repeat.
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Serves
4
Parmesan
Pecorino
Garlic
Linguine
Lemon
Black Pepper
Salt
Ben Lebus
Ben Lebus is the CEO and founder of Mob. Ben has always been passionate about food and learnt to cook from his father, who ran an Italian restaurant for a number of years. You can regularly find him cooking (and eating) some sort of puttanesca.
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content.
Serves
4
Parmesan
Pecorino
Garlic
Linguine
Lemon
Black Pepper
Salt
Unlock Mob Premium
Press GO to start step-by-step mode and keep your screen awake as you cook.
Step 1.
Preheat oven to 180°C/365°F.
Step 2.
Place your garlic bulbs on a piece of baking paper and wrap them up. Place the garlic parcel in a roasting tin and whack in the oven for 45 minutes.
Step 3.
Very finely grate your Parmesan and your pecorino and add to a mixing bowl. Grate in the zest of a lemon.
Step 4.
Place a frying pan on the heat. Add 1.5 tbsp of pepper into the pan. Toast the pepper, mixing it around the pan, and remove from the heat as it starts properly smoking. Add to the cheese bowl.
Step 5.
Once the garlic is done (it will be squidgy if you press it), remove from the oven. Peel back the skin and with a knife, squish out the roast garlic within. Once all the garlic is squeezed out, discard of the skins. Chop the garlic up until you have a nice smooth paste. Add to the cheese bowl.
Step 6.
Get a fork and mix the cheese and garlic together. Once it is all combined, you should have a nice thick paste.
Step 7.
Now you need to get everything ready, as speed and timing are key. Get a jug out, and boil your kettle. Put your pan on the heat, and add your water – don’t fill it, you only need enough water to cover the pasta (you need the water to be very very starchy).
Step 8.
Add a nice big pinch of salt to the water and bring to the boil. Then add your linguine.
Step 9.
After 4 minutes, with your jug/mug remove 300ml starchy water from pan. Add it bit by bit to your cheese paste, making sure it is all nicely combined. You’ll end up with a nice creamy consistency.
Step 10.
Back to the pasta – after 8 minutes in total, drain the pasta and pour about 200ml pasta water into another cup. You’ll need this.
Step 11.
Add the pasta back to the pan and put the pan back on a very very very low heat. Quickly, pour over your sauce. Start beating the sauce through the pasta.
Step 12.
As it begins to thicken, keep adding splashes of your pasta water. Keep beating and adding splashes. If it gets stringy or lumps of cheese appear, don’t worry. Just keep beating hard and adding water. This will take about 3 minutes – what you are going for is a thick creamy emulsion. Turn off the heat and keep beating for 1 final minute.
Step 13.
Once the consistency of your pasta resembles the photo, you’re ready to go.
Step 14.
Serve the pasta on to 4 plates. Top with an extra grinding of pepper, a sprinkle of cheese and a nice squeeze of lemon juice (it really cuts through the rich cheese and garlic). Enjoy!
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Ben Lebus
Ben Lebus is the CEO and founder of Mob. Ben has always been passionate about food and learnt to cook from his father, who ran an Italian restaurant for a number of years. You can regularly find him cooking (and eating) some sort of puttanesca.
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Ben Lebus
Ben Lebus is the CEO and founder of Mob. Ben has always been passionate about food and learnt to cook from his father, who ran an Italian restaurant for a number of years. You can regularly find him cooking (and eating) some sort of puttanesca.
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