Brown Butter Pasta with Thyme

Serves 4

8 tablespoons butter

1 lb spaghetti or linguinie

1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme

1 tsp. lemon zest

Salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil over high heat. Add pasta to boiling water and cook until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and set aside.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once the butter has melted it will foam up, then subside. Watch carefully and stir occassionaly as brown specks begin to form at the bottom of the pan. The butter will have nutty aroma. It takes approximately 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat immediately.

Add the cooked pasta, lemon zest and thyme to the skillet. Toss with the brown butter. Stir in 2 tbsp of cheese at a time and stir until melted. Use reserved pasta water (1 tbsp at a time) until the pasta is glossy with sauce. Garnish with black pepper and Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Notes

Use a light bottom pan to make brown butter. It will help to notice the brown specks and color change of the butter itself. If the butter burns in the process, discard and start over.