Save that pasta water. It’s the key to this creamy goat cheese sauce.
A big bowl of warm pasta often was my go-to on weeknights when I didn’t feel like cooking. I’d boil it, toss it with olive oil, assorted dried herbs and grated Parmesan, and dig in.
Then, I discovered how with just the tiniest bit more effort, I could go from a satisfying bowl of pasta to a dish with deeper flavor and a luxurious texture. The key was adding cheese to piping hot, starchy pasta water and giving it a vigorous stir.
These days, almost every time I boil pasta, I retain the murky water and add a ladle full as a thickener, giving body and a bit of flavor to a variety of sauces, gravies — even soups.
For the emulsion to work, the pasta water should be piping hot, and one should be prepared to add the cheese to the water and quickly stir until the creamy sauce emerges.
Some cooks retain the pasta water by lifting the noodles out of the pot with tongs. I prefer to place the colander over large measuring cup and pour the pot over, catching the starchy liquid in the container below. I then add the water back to the pot and reheat, if necessary.
One rookie mistake to avoid: Remember, if you salted or seasoned the water before you boiled your pasta, you are adding that salt or seasoning to your sauce as well, so adjust as needed.
Until now, I had used the technique with hard cheeses such as Parmesan and Romano. Recently, I tried it with goat cheese, and now I have a new favorite.
Here, I added garlic, dried oregano and cayenne to the sauce pan with chunks of goat cheese and hot pasta water. Unlike with hard grated cheeses that require brisk stirring, this preparation calls for a more gentle mixing. As you stir, the goat cheese will melt into the hot water, creating a thin sauce that is then tossed with herbs, spinach and, finally, pasta.
The sauce coats each pasta strand, spreading the tangy goat cheese flavor through the dish. Sub in your favorite vegetables, herbs and toppings as desired.
I added walnuts and crisped bacon to bring a little texture to the creamy bowl.