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A non-traditional spaghetti recipe with amazing flavor. This Brown Butter Spaghetti is full of Romano and Parmesan cheeses, plus deliciously rich brown butter.

I have an older church cookbook titled Martinez United Methodist Church Cherished Recipes. It’s dated 1994 so not quite antique or vintage. But this little recipe book is full of comforting main dish recipes and even sweet desserts like church window cookies.

I was planning my weekly menu and came across Spaghetti Mizithra. It only had 5 ingredients and completely intrigued me. It reminded me of the spaghetti carbonara that my family loved, so I made it…and it was fantastic. Today I’m sharing this recipe with you!

shredded cheese in spaghetti in a skillet

Why you’ll love this recipe:

Only 5 ingredients.
Ready in about 20 minutes.
Comforting, amazing flavor.
Perfect as a side dish to a meat or a main dish.
Use any leftover spaghetti to make spaghetti pie.

What is mizithra?

My first question when looking at the recipe was, “what in the world is mizithra?”. And upon searching, I found it was a hard cheese. The Old Spaghetti Factory has on their menu a past called “Mizithra and Browned Butter Pasta”. That is why this recipe is so popular.

Mizithra cheese is a Greek cheese that is white, creamy and almost slightly sweet. The Old Spaghetti Factory has their own secret blend of Mizithra cheese that they use in their recipes. But you can buy this special blend at many Sprouts grocery stores. Unfortunately the closest one to us is about 6 hours away, so needless to say we did without Mizithra.

What is a substitute for Mizithra cheese?

So instead of calling this by the original title in the cookbook, we are calling it brown butter spaghetti. If you can get your hands on mizithra cheese, I 100% recommend using it. I used a blend of parmesan and romano cheeses. The original recipe also said you could use a dry ricotta cheese, caciocavallo or kasseri cheese.

How to Make Brown Butter Spaghetti

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions.
While the water is boiling and pasta is cooking, brown the butter.
Slice the butter into tablespoons. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until the butter turns a light brown color and smells nutty and caramely. (Takes less than 10 minutes. Watch closely! Once it starts to brown it will brown quickly and can burn easily.) Click here to see our complete brown butter guide.
Combine the cheeses.
Place the spaghetti on a platter or in a large bowl or skillet.
Sprinkle with cheeses, then drizzle with browned butter.
Sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley.

This is best served immediately. The parmesan cheese won’t melt completely.

What to Serve with Brown Butter Spaghetti