it’s no secret i love creamy pastas from my nose down to my toes. i’ve shared this version of traditional carbonara, as well as this pancetta parmesan pasta, the latter of which uses a white wine cream sauce and is in heavy rotation around here. [particularly in the cold winter months.] the version below is the beautiful brainchild of these two. it uses raw eggs and the traditional method of assembling the carbonara, with the added decadence of heavy cream and peas from the pancetta parmesan pasta. all 3 recipes use pancetta/bacon.
when i posted this photo a coworker mentioned that most chefs now use heavy cream in their carbonara, which surprised me a little as it’s not the true, traditional way to prepare that iconic pasta. but having tested both versions i see the merit - your sauce is much creamier and richer, and little more forgiving in preparation since you’re not relying solely on the eggs to coat each noodle in sauce-y glossiness. this recipe from the pioneer woman also incorporates onions and garlic [which the hubs loves], but for this weeknight dinner i was all about simplifying, and the final dish wasn’t missing a thing. so i think i’ll keep it this way:
adapted from the pioneer woman
| ingredients |
pasta (i like linguine or bucatini)
frozen peas
1/4 pound pancetta or bacon (pancetta is pictured + you’ll need some evoo for cooking)
3 eggs
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan
additional parm for garnish
salt + pepper
| method |
in a small mixing bowl, beat the eggs, heavy cream and grated parm together with a fork. set aside.
in a sauce pot brown the pancetta in a little evoo over medium heat until crispy. remove from heat, drain pancetta from the oil, and set aside. meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. cook the pasta until al dente, tossing the peas into the pot 1-2 minutes prior to completion to cook them. reserve 1 cup of the pasta water, then drain the pasta and peas in a colander.
quickly remove your drained pasta and peas from the colander to a large bowl (oversized for stirring), stir your egg mixture up once more with your fork then immediately drizzle the egg mixture over your hot noodles with one hand, while continuously tossing the pasta with a wooden spoon using your other hand. you want to do this all as quickly as possible - the eggs will begin cooking as they hit the hot noodles, so you want your noodles to be as hot as possible to cook the eggs, melt the cheese and warm the cream, but you also need to keep the whole shebang moving to prevent the eggs from scrambling when they hit the heat of your noodles. continue stirring the pasta and sauce together with your spoon until the pasta is fully coated and sauce is glossy.
if your sauce is too thick, thin with a splash of the reserved pasta water. top with the reserved pancetta and serve immediately, adding a pinch of salt, crack of pepper and extra parm over top if desired.
