The Suburban Cook

Several years ago, we used to spend one Tuesday a month at a local restaurant at an event called Drinking Liberally. If you know the organization, then Cheers! If not, it’s ok. Anyway, the local place had the best Pasta Carbonara and I looked forward to that meal, great conversation, and a little happy hour every month. Tonight, I tried to recreate my favorite Tuesday dinner.

This recipe is all about timing….not usually my strong suit, but luckily children remained amused with other things and Hubby helped keep us on task!

First, let’s start with pancetta. I mean, bacon is good, but pancetta? Well, that’s masterful. Fry 1/4 lb chopped pancetta in olive oil until crisp. Remove to drain off excess fat on a paper towel. Keep a few tbsps of grease in the pan. Next, boil a pot of corkscrew pasta until cooked al dente about 8 mins in salted water.

Meanwhile, chop 1 garlic clove and let it cook on medium until soft in the pancetta pan. Add a splash or two of white wine.

In a separate bowl, mix 2 eggs well with about a cup of shredded romano pecorino (because Parmesan is like $20 a pound which nearly sent Hubby into cardiac arrest).

Drain the cooked pasta as soon as its done and add to the garlic pan. Add the cooked pancetta back in. Mix until pasta is covered with grease and garlic. Yea, I said mix the grease in the pasta! I never promised your doctor would approve.

Finally, add the egg and cheese mixture to the pasta in the hit pan. It’s important that it be hot, but not on the burner to cook the egg without scrambling it.

End result? Pretty strong flavor of luscious egg, salty cheese and pancetta with the just soft pasta. Carbonara Tuesday is back!