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1. In a small bowl, cream the soft butter by beating it against the sides of the bowl with a wooden spoon until it is soft and fluffy. In another small bowl, beat the eggs and egg yolks with a fork or whisk until they are well blended, then stir in ½ cup of grated cheese. Set both bowls aside.
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2. Heat a large ovenproof serving bowl or casserole in a 200 oven. At the same time, bring the water and salt to a bubbling boil in a large soup pot or kettle.
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3. Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water and stir it for a moment or two with a wooden spoon to be sure the strands do not stick to one another or to the bottom of the pot.
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4. Cook the spaghetti over high heat, stirring occasionally, for 7 to 12 minutes, or until it is tender. Meanwhile, fry the pieces of bacon in an 8-to 10-inch skillet over moderate heat until they are crisp.
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5. Pour off about half of the bacon fat and stir into the pan the optional red pepper and then the cream. Bring the cream to a simmer and keep it warm until the spaghetti is done.
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6. When the spaghetti is cooked, drain it thoroughly in a large colander, lifting the strands with two forks to make certain all of the water runs off.
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7. Transfer the spaghetti to the heated serving bowl and stir in the creamed butter, tossing and turning the spaghetti with two forks to coat every strand.
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8. Then stir in the hot bacon-and-cream mixture and finally the beaten eggs and cheese, mixing everything together thoroughly. The heat of the pasta and other ingredients should cook the raw eggs on contact.
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9. Taste and season with salt and a few grindings of pepper. Serve the carbonara at once with the remaining ½ cup of grated cheese passed at the table.
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