Saturday, July 11, 2009

What to do for a debut?

Call it kismet, but I just so happened to be reading "Garlic and Sapphires - The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise" by Ruth Reichl. You gotta love reading a book whether it is a mystery, biography or memoir when you get FREE recipes. SCORE! Since I had pasta making in the plan and I was reading this book....the first recipe to create with my homemade pasta fell into my lap....

Spaghetti Carbonara

1 pound spaghetti (I used the angel hair that I made)
1/4-1/2 pound thickly sliced bacon
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 large eggs
black pepper
1/2 cup parmigiano cheese, plus extra for topping

Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Follow the directions of pasta package to cook boxed spaghetti. I used fresh pasta which you only cook until the pasta floats to the top or until is 'al dente'.

Cut the bacon crosswise into pieces about 1/2 inch wide. Put them in a skillet and cook for about 2 minutes, until fat begins to render. Add the whole cloves of garlic and cook another 5 minutes, until the edges of the bacon just begin to get crisp. The author warns of overcooking the bacon for if too crisp it will not 'meld' with the pasta. We found this to be not cooked enough for us. So cook the bacon the way YOU prefer.

Meanwhile, break the eggs into the bowl you will serve pasta in, beat them with a fork. Add some grindings of pepper to taste.

Remove the garlic from the bacon pan. If it looks like too much fat for you, discard some but you're going to toss the bacon with most of it's fat into the pasta.

When it's cooked, drain the pasta and inmmediately throw it into the beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly. The heat of the spaghetti will cook the eggs and turn them into a sauce. Add the bacon with it's fat, add cheese and serve.

Serves 4


LOL, here is my 'unworthy' food porn site picture....I will submit the one above with fingers crossed....


YUMMMMMMMM, nothing beats fresh pasta I tell ya! This recipe is definitely a do-again. Next time I think I will add some peas or onions also! Make this NOW (with your pasta from a box of course, I know you don't have homemade pasta right this second...bwahahahahaha!)

1 comment:

Donna-FFW said...

This carbonara looks delicious. I have read that book and enjoyed it immensely. Hope you do too.