Saffron Cream Sauce

Saffron is THE BEST addition to a simple creamy pasta sauce. It's honestly impossible to explain the flavor but it's pretty subtle and a perfect compliment to a neutral sauce base.

Have you ever heard of saffron before?? I hadn't until I saw a couple of my blogger friends shared it in their recipes a few years back! The spice originates from a flower called crocus sativus — aka "saffron crocus." After looking it up online, it seems that saffron originated in Greece, but today the spice is primarily grown in Iran, Greece, Morocco, and India. That means the saffron we have in the United States is imported!!

What you need:

• 1/2 lb pasta
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 pinch saffron threads (hard to measure, a pinch is like 10-12 small threads)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Optional: parmesan for topping

What to do:

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions.
2. While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a skillet on medium heat and add the saffron threads. Be sure to stir the threads around in the butter for a minute or two in order to let the heat pull out some of their flavor and color.
3. Add the heavy whipping cream in two separate portions. (Wait for the first portion to start to bubble before you add the second portion - it thickens up better if it's not all thrown in the pan at once.)
4. Turn the heat to low/medium and let the sauce simmer until it's somewhat thick and can coat the back of a spoon.
5. Add the cooked pasta and a splash of pasta water (close to 1/4 cup.) Mix to combine. Note: if you didn't salt your pasta water, you may need to salt the sauce.
6. Top with parmesan cheese and serve immediately.