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In her latest vlog, celebrity host and jewelry designer KC Concepcion looked back on her life as a working student in Europe while also sharing a pastra recipe for cacio e pepe.

She shares that cacio e pepe was her go-to dish while studying and working in France because it was inexpensive and easy to make.

"When I was living in Europe, this was a super easy meal to prepare before school or something I would eat before going to work. Nagtrabaho po ako sa Paris when I was a student. I had a job as a secretary sa isang press agency. Apart from that, nag-stint din ako as a concierge and I was also teaching English sa China Town," she recalls.

KC said that she would often bring packed meals to work.

"Lagi talaga akong may baon and ito 'yung pinaka go-to ko noong time na 'yun kas madali lang siya. It's super minimalist. Konti lang ang ingredients na kailangan," she explains.

Cacio e pepe means "cheese and pepper" as these are the key ingredients for the dish.

KC likes to use a combination of two cheeses, Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Regiano.

Aside from this, she also recommends using good quality pepper and shared a tip she learned from a friend.

"If you are not sure, you just get a whole peppercorn that you can find in markets and then you toast them. You can actually toast the whole peppercorn so that the heat of the pan releases the nice peppery smell. Then you put them in a grinder and you just grind you pepper," she shares.

She also reminded her viewers to serve the dish hot.

"So remember guys, 'pag kinain n'yo 'tong cacio e pepe, 'pag pinrepare n'yo 'to, dapat mainit na mainit para melted na melted 'yung cheese. Hindi na siya masyadong masarap kung lumamig na siya, just like any dish na may cheese na meant to be melted," she warns.

Here's how KC makes her cacio e pepe.

Ingredients
500 grams of spaghetti
200 ml of olive oil
1 tablespoon of smashed whole black peppercorns or ground black pepper
200 grams of freshly grated Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Regiano
lemon
chili flakes

Procedure
1. Boil spaghetti as per package instructions but without any salt
2. Take off the heat in the last two minutes but do not drain
3. Grate the cheese and season with pepper
4. In a pan, infuse olive oil with chili flakes and black pepper
5. Add some pasta water into the pan before adding in the pasta and turning off the heat
6. Dump the pasta into the cheese and pepper mixture then mix
7. Add more grated cheese, pepper and pasta water if needed
8. Add a bit of lemon juice
9. Serve hot and topped with more grated cheese and small chunks of cheese

Watch KC cook cacio e pepe here:

In a previous vlog, KC shared her skincare and makeup routines for working under the so-called "new normal."