Spaghetti squash carbonara now joins good company at Spinach Tiger if you remember this shrimp recipe. 

This time, instead of tomatoes, I’m applying a northern Italian spin making spaghetti squash carbonara. It’s been a long time since I’ve made carbonara here with actual spaghetti so it wasn’t too hard to transfer this recipe to be keto or paleo friendly.

What is Spaghetti Carbonara?

Carbonara is a pasta made with egg, hard cheese (usually pecorino), a cured pork (guanciale or pancetta) and pepper.

Guanciale comes from the jowl of the pig, but is not easily found in the United States. I use pancetta,  which comes from the belly of the pig, is often aged with herbs, and also has a different flavor from bacon.

I’ve been lucky enough to eat spaghetti alla carbonara in Rome where the dish originates and it was quite memorable, nuanced, not heavy, but yielding enough good flavor.

I particularly like the use of pancetta in this recipe, because it gives it that little extra Italian flavor. You can substitute with bacon if you prefer.

My original carbonara recipe was for an entire pound of pasta. You would probably have to make a lot of spaghetti squash to get that amount, so this recipe is cut down considerably.

The first thing you need to know how to do is make spaghetti squash and I have that recipe here.

The rest is easy.

Important Ingredients for Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

If you unfamiliar with Pecorino, it’s a hard sheep’s cheese, tangy and salty. It adds a jolt of flavor, and it’s the Italian cheese I use the most.

• Spaghetti Squash
• Pecorino Cheese AND Parmesan Cheese
• Egg
• Garlic
• Parsley
• Pancetta Bacon (or bacon)
• White wine (optional)

The Process

Cook your pancetta or bacon while you are making your spaghetti squash. Put aside, until you are ready to bring it all together. Start with a warmed spaghetti squash before adding your ingredients. You will need to serve immediately.

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More Low Carb Italian Dishes with Spaghetti Squash

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How to Cook Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

A low carb version of Carbonara using Spaghetti Squash

Course Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Total Time 23 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 4 oz. pancetta bacon, either or, or both (sliced into 1/4” inch pieces)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves smashed
• 2 tablespoons dry white wine
• 1 large egg I used pasteurized, but you can use very good farm fresh eggs
• 2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino romano
• 1/4 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
• black pepper
• 1 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 large spaghetti squash

Instructions

• Make Spaghetti Squash. Set aside.
• Fry garlic in oil until golden and then discard. Add pancetta (or bacon). I used half bacon and half pancetta, but you can do this anyway you like.
• Once crispy, add wine. Before you do that, lower the heat, so the oil and wine do not form a geyser. Be careful, as you add wine, having a lid in hand. Cook for 1 or two minutes. Turn off heat.
• Break egg in bowl l you will serving spaghetti.
• Beat eggs and add in grated cheeses, pepper and half of parsley.
• Reserve an extra tablespoon of parsley for garnish (along with a bit of micro greens).
• Add spaghetti squash to bowl with beaten eggs and toss. Reheat pancetta and add to pasta. Serve at once.

The post Spaghetti Squash Carbonara with Pancetta appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Fall is salad season. I know you might be thinking summer takes all when it comes to salads, but think about the kinds of ingredients you can put into a salad.

Brussels Sprouts. Yes, you eat them raw.

Apples. You know you have to wait for Fall to get the fresh, crispy apples.

Walnuts.

Maple. This is the key ingredient in the vinaigrette and ushers in this season well.

Corn Bread Croutons. Doesn’t corn bread start to remind you of corn bread dressing, comfort food and cozy blankets?

My only problem is that there are equal amounts of apples and brussels sprouts and I didn’t know what to call this.

This is an apple salad with Brussels sprouts. It’s also a Brussels Sprouts salad with apples.

In other words, they both play a major role here and I’ve used equal amounts. While apple and Brussels sprouts fight it out, the real star of this salad is the corn bread croutons, and if that’s not enough excitement, add crispy pancetta and a maple vinaigrette.

I cannot imagine anyone not loving this salad. And just so you know you can even roast all of it, if you don’t want to eat it raw. I tried it both ways and it just depends on the mood I’m in.

This is the salad that could change your Fall holidays.

You might also check out this nearly legendary Autumn Kale Salad, which I call the perfect pot luck salad.

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Apple Brussels Sprouts Salad with Corn Bread Croutons

A salad of shredded brussels sprouts, apples, pancetta and corn bread croutons with a maple vinaigrette.

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 pint brussels sprouts cleaned sliced thinly
• 1 apple sliced into apple sticks
• 2 ounces pancetta chopped in small pieces
• 1 piece of corn bread cut into cubes
• handful of roasted walnuts cut into small pieces
• !Maple Dressing here

Instructions

• Wash and trim brussels sprouts.
• Cut thin strips cross wise.
• Cut apples into strips. Gala is a good choice, doesn’t brown.
• Saute pancetta until crispy in a frying pan. Set aside.
• Cut corn bread in cubes and bake in oven for 4 to 5 minutes. You can roast the walnuts at same time.
• Toss brussels sprouts and apples with vinaigrette.
• Add pancetta, walnuts and corn bread croutons.

The post Apple and Brussels Sprouts Salad with Pancetta and Corn Bread Croutons appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

Let’s take a little Italian break. In between the sweet and aromatic flavors of Fall, I need salty, and in this very busy season, you probably need easy.

This is easy Italian comfort food. This is carbs. This is pasta. This is close your eyes food.

This is a dish you should  eat at least once in your life time, preferably in Italy.

But if you can’t get there this week, let me assure you that this does taste like what I had in Rome, only a little better, because I added some freshly made bread crumbs.

It’s a simple recipe, where it’s key to use very good ingredients.

If you want to know how to cook spaghetti carbonara with bacon, start with good ingredients. 

1. Buy a good spaghetti and cook it al dente. This is healthier, as starches are more slowly digested, and glucose is more slowly released into the blood stream. This is a bigger deal than you think, and eating seriously al dente might bring you pack to pasta. When you eat over-cooked pasta,  you will experience a peak in your blood sugar, and tend to eat more of everything. The Italians eat smaller portions of pasta than Americans which helps to explain why they are so thin compared to us, and they really are. In Rome, spaghetti alla carbonara almost has a crunch to it. We would think it was mistakenly not cooked, but it’s a wise way to enjoy pasta.
2. Use pancetta and fry it nice and crispy, but feel free to use a smokey bacon like Benton’s bacon. I used a little of both.
3. Use authentic Italian cheeses. Freshly grated pecorino romano and freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano will combine nicely, but if you must choose one, choose parmigiano-reggiano.
4. Use white wine and be sure to read my notes in the recipe. Wine and hot oil can be dangerous when combined.
5. Use very fresh eggs you buy at a farmer’s market or use pasteurized eggs. (some folks will disagree and think that the link between raw eggs and salmonella is a myth. I just don’t want to take chances with you.
6. Make sure to read the directions carefully, as to not turn the eggs into scrambled eggs.
7. Add the toasted breadcrumbs right at the end and enjoy.

About that Bacon

Pancetta may be called Italian bacon, but it’s quite different. It’s pork belly, not smoked,  cured in salts and spices. It has a pronounced flavor to it which often gives the dish its personality. While you can substitute bacon (for all the right reasons, do find one that has personality like Benton’s Bacon).

One of the more famous pasta dishes in Rome is  Pasta all’Amatriciana, which calls for tomatoes with pancetta and is ever so easy to make. Bolognese has pancetta, a long cooking dish,  this Ground Beef Italian Style, with kale and pancetta takes under twenty minutes.

Connect with me on Facebook. I’m starting to do Facebook Live, which will give you a preview of new recipes and videos I’m shooting for my cooking channel. Please follow.

More Pasta Recipes

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How to Cook Spaghetti Carbonara with Bacon and Bread Crumbs

A twist on pasta carbonara is tossing toasted bread crumbs at the end.

Course Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Total Time 23 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 8 oz. pancetta bacon, either or, or both (sliced into 1/4” inch pieces)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves smashed
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 3 large eggs I used pasteurized, but you can use very good farm fresh eggs
• 1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino romano
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
• black pepper
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 pound spaghetti

Instructions

• Fry garlic in oil until golden and then discard. Add pancetta (or bacon). I used half bacon and half pancetta, but you can do this anyway you like.
• Once crispy, add wine. Before you do that, lower the heat, so the oil and wine do not form a geyser. Be careful, as you add wine, having a lid in hand. Cook for 1 or two minutes. Turn off heat.
• Break three eggs in bowl you will serving spaghetti. Do NOT add pasta back into pot and add eggs, as eggs will cook.
• Beat eggs and add in grated cheeses, pepper and 2 tablespoons parsley.
• Reserve an extra tablespoon of parsley for garnish (along with a bit of micro greens).
• Cook pasta al dente, drain well. (See notes on cooking pasta)
• Add to bowl with beaten eggs and toss. Reheat pancetta and add to pasta. Serve at once

The post Seven Tips on How to Cook Spaghetti Carbonara with Bacon and Bread Crumbs appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I’m new to collard greens, which might seem surprising, but I intend to become quite familiar with this Southern staple now that I know it won’t take hours to make them. You can, in fact, cook collard greens in five minutes in a steamer if you choose to, but I took twenty, melting them down with a bit of beef broth after sauteing a hunk of pancetta. Chicken broth or pork broth would work just as well. Sometimes I freeze a chicken neck for the very purpose of making a cup of broth to flavor my vegetables. If you want to skip the broth you can even use plain water.

I was inspired to make collard greens when I had them with shrimp and grits cake at  Gray’s on Main recently. Their collard greens were cooked a little longer and had vinegar, which fit the dish perfectly. Not all sauteed collard greens have vinegar, but I think it’s evolved, because when the greens are overcooked, they get bitter and vinegar offsets the bitterness. I like them both ways, but I left it out in this recipe. I did add a bit of pork fat in the way of pancetta, because that’s something that is usually on hand, and only takes a quick rendering to add in some flavor. This is very similar to my melted Tuscan kale.

Aside from the good taste of collard greens, the surprise to me is finding out collard greens are the super food powerhouse of all cruiciferous vegetables and rank as king for health benefits. With an ANDI score of 1000, collard greens are touted as a near miracle vegetable, lowering cholesterol, fighting cancer, hemorrhoids and colon diseases. Extremely high in Vitamin K, they aid in promoting bone mass and have been cited to aid in the fight against Alzheimers’ disease. High in Vitamin A, and Vitamin C, they serve to fight oxidative stress, the impact of exposed toxins, and possibly airborne flu germs but boosting the immune system.

We all know that greens are good for us, and this is just one more reason to incorporate them daily into our diets, but they also taste good, fill us up and serve as part of the joy of eating.

So tell me, have you ever had collard greens and how were they prepared?

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Melted Collard Greens with Pancetta

Collard Greens, the powerhouse cruciferous vegetable can be made easily in 15 minutes and is a great side.

Course Vegetable

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 bunch fresh collard greens
• 1 tablespoon olive oil you could use less
• small hunk pancetta when chopped makes 2 tablespoons
• 2 small garlic cloves minced
• 3/4 cup meat chicken or pork broth (you could use water)
• sea salt
• black pepper
• red pepper flakes to taste

Instructions

• Prepare collard greens, by washing, rinsing, drying. Cut out ribs in center and then slice in ribbons.
• Fry pancetta in olive oil on medium heat, until fat is rendered.
• Add garlic, saute about a minute.
• Add in chopped greens and ¼ cup water or broth. Simmer until the water evaporates, add another ¼ cup. Kale will be braised, but still have body when done. Season with salt and pepper.
• Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.
• You could toss with a bit of vinegar or lemon juice as an option.

The post Melted Collard Greens with Pancetta appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

This is an upgraded version of a dish my family eats all the time. I first discovered the amazing combination of two simple ingredients, when put together are magical, at an Italian Club potluck.

At first I was put off.Who brings a ground beef dish to a potluck, if you’re Italian.

No one. Unless it’s meatballs. But, there sat this little dish of ground beef, onion and peas, and after my first bite, I nearly ate it all. I think went back three times, while Pasta and bread were flying into the mouths of  the Italian Americans.

I was criticized recently of stereotyping Americans interpreting Italian food, but non-Italians should take heart, as we Italians are most critical of each other.

Now perhaps that’s a stereotype, but it is what it is. We all know your Italian family makes the best sauce. And your Aunt Carmella makes the best eggplant and my Aunt Rita makes the best stuffed shells.  I even take pride in saying no one beats Retro Rose’s Southern Fried Chicken anywhere and I’ll smack down anyone’s Southern biscuits. But, the most trouble is in the Italian food. My grandmother had issues with certain regions of Italy. Their sauce was inferior to her mothers, etc., and there were would be these funny stories about entire villages in Italy that only thought they could cook!

I think we are born this way. Try to imagine the thoughts going round the room in that Italian Club pot luck. You better believe they were summing up each dish, all the while enjoying the food with gusto. I was drawn to the most humble dish in the room, because it was different and just delicious.

I’ve written about that dish here, which is still one of the all time most popular dishes. It’s simple. Olive oil. Onions. Ground Beef. Red Chile Pepper.  A few herbs.

Today, I made exciting changes. I added kale, and I added milk to the ground beef. Grass milk with grass fed beef. It’s a healthy dish, and it’s in keeping with my commitment to the primal blueprint, an offshoot of the paleo diet.

Whether you eat for health or eat to eat, you can’t go wrong with Italian style ground beef with pancetta, kale, and peas. It’s affordable, delicious and takes about twenty minutes in total. Now that’s reason enough to pin this one.

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Ground Beef Italian Style with Pancetta, Kale, Sweet Peas

A most delicious, twenty minutes dish, of ground beef, pancetta, kale and sweet peas. Rustic, Affordable.

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 3

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 large onion diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup diced pancetta
• 1 pound grass fed ground beef
• 1/4 cup organic milk
• 1 cup peas
• fresh thyme
• 1 bunch lacinato kale
• 1 to mato or a handful of small cherry or grape tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon cracked chili pepper

Instructions

• Prepare kale: Wash, rinse, cut out the ribs and chop into bite sized pieces. Set aside.
• Heat oil in pan. Add in onions and pancetta and cook until softened.
• Add in ground beef over top of onions. Pour milk over ground beef. Salt ground beef.
• Stir together. Milk will make it slightly cream and adds nice texture
• Continue to stir frequently until ground beef is cooked.
• Add frozen peas and stir until peas or cooked, which only takes a few minutes.
• Add fresh thyme and chopped kale until kale is softened.
• Turn off heat. add in some fresh tomato or tomato grapes. Serve immediately.

The post Ground Beef Italian Style with Pancetta, Kale, Sweet Peas appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I originally made these for a tailgating party, but you can make these anytime. I call these the perfect manfood. Messy, flavorful and not your typical sloppy joe. 

When I think of a tailgating party, I think of food that is hearty, mobile, easy to eat with one hand and a great accompaniment to beer. I knew immediately I wanted to transform an all American classic  by making over the Sloppy Joe into Italian Bolognese sliders.

At first, I was a little hesitant, wondering if bolognese sliders would count as a legitimate tailgating food. I’m not a sports fan and I’ve never been tailgating so I did a little tailgating recipe googling, and I discovered I’m missing out.

Tailgating is a lot more than wings and beer at the back of a car. Tailgaters take their food seriously and may prepare for days in advance.  Some tailgaters just tailgate and don’t even go into the stadium.

They might host a tailgate party for up to 50 friends, many of whom also tailgate and it’s one big serious food party. Did I mention that the food is accompanied by large amounts of alcohol?  And all the while,  I was envisioning burgers on the back of pick up trucks.  And food and drink may not be the only pleasure.

I would bring a rustic table covering,  my  new two-bite hand held apple pies  a big pot of bolognese sauce, rolls and butter for toasting and a big bowl of tuscan kale salad.

This is not the first bolognese I’ve written about. I featured Marcella Hazan’s bolognese with my fresh pasta recipe. It was also delicious, perhaps a bit sweeter, as the recipe had more carrots and a lot more tomatoes.  This recipe is different in that it has sausage (which I increased) and pancetta, two flavor builders I think are just right for this event.

The results were beyond my expectations. I missed last month’s “cooking with wine” challenge as my blog was in maintenance mode, and this covers that too, because bolognese  is made with wine,  just one of the many ingredients that builds an incredible hearty and complex flavor to ground meat.

The  one thing an original  Sloppy Joe and my bolognese sliders have in common is finely ground meat, mostly beef with some tomato. The traditional Sloppy Joe meat is sweetened with brown sugar, not my favorite ingredient in savory food. On the other hand, bolognese is much richer, as flavors are built layer by layer with a battuto of celery, onion and carrot, wine, pancetta, and tomato puree and  finished off with milk, which adds to its richness.

The test of a good slider is the tease factor. If after eating one, you have to have another and then another, you’ve got a good slider. These passed the tease test, so you might want to make a double batch if you are serving a large crowd.

Tell me, what is your favorite tailgating food or drink that meets the tease test?

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Tailgating with Bolognese Sliders, the Five Star Sloppy Joe Makeover

(Adapted from La Cucina Italiana , October, 2009) an Italian take on an American tradition of Sloppy Joe’s.

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 14- ounce can San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes in juice or half large 28 ounce can
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 celery rib roughly cut
• 1 small onion roughly chopped
• 1 medium carrot roughly chopped
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter divided (3 for sauce, 1 for toasting rolls)
• 2 links sweet Italian sausage removed from casing
• 2 ounces pancetta or bacon finely chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 bay leaf
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• freshly grated nutmeg
• small water rolls

Instructions

• Puree tomatoes until smooth. Set aside.
• Heat beef broth with tomato paste. Set aside.
• Make battuto. Chop together the celery, onion and carrots.
• Melt butter in large pot until frothy. Add vegetables, sausage and pancetta. Cook on low heat, until veggies are softened, not browned, about 25 minutes.
• Add beef, pork, and break up with wooden spoon. Cook 10 minutes. Do not brown.
• Add salt and pepper.
• Add wine, bring to boil until it is mostly evaporated, about 5 minutes.
• Add tomato puree and beef broth mixture and bay leaf.
• Cook for 2 1/2 hours on simmering heat until liquid is evaporated.
• Add milk and cook for 30 more minutes.
• Add pinch of nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper.
• Brush rolls with butter. Grill until toasted golden brown.
• Spoon bolognese sauce on rolls.

The post Italian Style Sloppy Joe’s appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

The mere thought process that went into figuring out a bronze and red color scheme that looked like peeled paint that had been there for hundreds of years was daunting because I had to get the colors mixed to match what was in the client’s mind. The worst case scenario was if something was already there and had to be removed, like wall paper or badly painted walls from sloppy contractors.

It would have been easier to start fresh, but rarely does one get to do that. And, even with newly built homes, there would be problems with improperly primed walls, badly installed drywall, etc.

I learned that nothing is every simple, even if it’s easy.

Spinach Tiger is moving to word press and this is why I haven’t posted in so long. We knew going in that the move would not be easy because no move ever is, but in the end it will be worth all the work.

The transition is a few weeks away and while I’m idling, I thought I would share another pizza recipe.

The Pizza
My last two pizza posts were fruity, but this is savory, salty and addicting. The combination of broccoli rabe and pancetta is just the thing when you want a real boost of flavor without a red sauce.

Broccoli rabe, also known as rapini, should be a staple in every kitchen. It’s a green that is easy to cook and versatile. It’s probably one of the more misunderstood vegetables in all the American land and that’s all due to it’s name. It is nothing like broccoli in flavor or in the way it cooks. It’s in the mustard green family and it has that bitter (but not unpleasant) taste that marries perfectly with garlic, olive oil and a bit of salt and crushed red pepper. It can jump from a pasta to steak sandwich to a grilled cheese to a pizza in mere seconds and spark up your taste buds with flavor that has been described as pungent, tangy, bitter and nutty. We always buy two bunches because one never seems enough after taking that first bite.

Pancetta is an ingredient I thought I would not have to say much about, but according to the new Whole Foods in my area, it is no longer carried because they didn’t sell enough of it. That’s a culinary surprise and tragedy because they had carried the very best pancetta I ever tasted in Tennessee. (Disclaimer: you can still buy it there prepackaged and pre-sliced, but who would do that, as most recipes call for a dice not a slice.

If you can’t find pancetta, use bacon or a crumbled cooked Italian sausage. And, for the vegetarian, broccoli rabe can stand alone as the star ingredient.

This was made on the grill, but you can also bake your pizza in the oven, preheating a pizza stone and getting as high in temperature as your oven will allow.

Pizza Recipe

Tips for Cooking Brocolli Rabe
Trim the stems at least 1/2 inch from the end. I trim the stems all the way to the part where flowers and leaves begin. If you keep the stems, chop into 2 inch pieces and put into boiling water 3 minutes before adding in rest of broccoli rabe.

These are the stems you will need to discard. They will remain stringy and chewy, unlike broccoli.

Season properly. The bitter and pungent flavor needs accessorizing. Garlic, salt, and heat achieve this. Some even use anchovies in their base to get that saltiness. I prefer the use of pecorino romano (which is a very salty, yet creamy grating cheese).

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Pizza with Pancetta and Broccoli Rabe

A thin crust pizza with pancetta and broccoli rabe with an amazing pizza crust adapted from Marcella Hazan.

Course Pizza

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 2 hours hours

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 8 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• pizza dough
• 1 bunch broccoli rabe
• olive oil enough to cover bottom of pan and more for adding in later
• 1-2 cloves thinly sliced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup pancetta diced
• 1 cup fresh mozzarella cheese grated or crumbled
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Prepare pizza dough.
• Preheat grill a high as you can get it or put pizza stone in oven and preheat at 450 for 30 minutes.
• Rinse and trim stems up to leafy area. Discard bottom inch of stem. You can maintain stems, by cutting them in 2 inch pieces and cooking a little earlier. I usually don’t keep stems. . If you keep the stems, chop into 2 inch pieces and put into boiling water 3 minutes before adding in rest of broccoli rabe.
• Submerge in large pot of boiling water for 5 minutes. Place in ice bath to keep green color, while preparing next step.
• Saute pancetta in medium heat frying pan until fat in rendered and it’s is cooked through. Remove from pan and use same pan to saute broccoli rabe.
• Saute garlic in same pan used to cook pancetta. Drain broccoli rabe and cut into 3 inch pieces and saute for a few minutes. Add red pepper flakes and salt to taste.
• Assemble pizza.
• Roll out dough to the size of dinner plate. Arrange mozzarella cheese, pancetta, and broccoli rabe.
• Bake for 8 minutes or until bottom is crisp.

The post Pizza with Pancetta and Broccoli Rabe appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I can’t believe how many times I have made this recipe, trying to get it to work. I have a frame of reference for perfection, as spaghetti carbonara was the first pasta dish I ate my first day in Rome. Not every restaurant in Italy necessarily serves pasta as if their reputation depends upon it, but this one did.

We all live with false food ideas in our heads, and I had always x’d out carbonara as too heavy for my taste. What I remember most about that dish in Rome is how rich the pasta tasted, but how light it felt.

Although the ingredients are so basic and so simple as bacon, eggs and cheese, the adage is true, and the simple dishes must be made perfectly. But, how when all eggs are different, as are pastas and other ingredients? How do you get it just right?

The answer is in knowing what you are looking for. I was looking for the same dish I remembered, where the pasta was very al dente, and the sauce was heavily sticking to each strand of spaghetti. The sauce is made from raw eggs beaten with parmigiano reggiano, and bacon or pancetta. The result is a creamy pasta, flavored with the freshest cheese and pancetta or bacon. It is comfort food that doesn’t weigh you down because there is no cream or butter, yet you might think there is.

The Process
The original recipe I began with called for 2 eggs for 1 1/4 pounds of pasta, which would mean a very dry sauce. When I remade this dish(for the third time), I went to 3 extra large eggs to only 1 pound of spaghetti. I kept the other ingredients the same, and I feel I got close enough to what I remembered.

The traditional pasta for this dish is spaghetti and I have to agree with this choice.

This is very easy, once you find the flavors and texture you personally love. I’ve seen many recipes use two eggs per pound of pasta, but I’ve also seen four eggs to one pound. Some use cream, but most do not. Very rarely, you will see wine in the recipe as Marcella used below. This is a great touch, flavor enhancer and more liquid. If you are unsure about using two eggs or three eggs, hold one egg back and then make your decision.

It’s better if you take the dish in the direction you prefer. If you don’t use pecorino cheese, do add in salt. The pecorino is very salty as is the bacon/pancetta, so taste first before adding.

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Cooking Italy: Spaghetti Carbonara

Adapted from Marcela Hazan's, Essentials of Classical Italian Cooking. A traditional spaghetti carbonara, as close as I remember to my dish in Rome.

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 8 oz. pancetta bacon, either or, or both (sliced into 1/4” inch pieces)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves smashed
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 3 large eggs I used pasteurized, but you can use very good farm fresh eggs
• 1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino romano
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
• black pepper
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 pound spaghetti

Instructions

• Fry garlic in oil until golden and then discard. Add pancetta (or bacon). I used half bacon and half pancetta, but you can do this anyway you like. Once crispy, add wine. Before you do that, lower the heat, so the oil and wine do not form a geyser. Be careful, as you add wine, having a lid in hand. Cook for 1 or two minutes. Turn off heat.
• Break three eggs in bowl you will serving spaghetti. Do NOT add pasta back into pot and add eggs, as eggs will cook. Beat eggs and add in grated cheeses, pepper and 2 tablespoons parsley. I reserve 1 extra tablespoon of parsley for garnish (along with a bit of micro greens).
• Cook pasta al dente, drain well. Add to bowl with beaten eggs and toss. Reheat pancetta and add to pasta. Serve at once

The post Cooking Italy: Spaghetti Carbonara appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

When I ate my first fork full sitting at one of those charming outdoor restaurants in Rome, I was ready to just eat a dish of pasta (the way you eat a grilled cheese), but I remember stopping and saying, “whoa, what’s in this? It looks so very ordinary, and the way I think, I’m already eating tomorrow’s bowl when I haven’t finished todays. I came home and I made it several days in a row with fresh tomatoes and then I forgot about it, because summer was over and I thought this dish HAD to be made with fresh tomatoes. I was so positive that every plate of pasta all’ Amatriciana was made with fresh tomatoes, but now I’m not so sure.

I’m going to ask you to trust me that this is a spectacular sauce. It looks like just another dish of spaghetti. In fact, It looks like that 80’s hit, spaghetti pomodoro, that I don’t much care for as it usually reeks of garlic.

As I followed the instructions to chop canned Italian tomatoes, and drain the juice, I thought I might be disappointed. How wrong I was. There simply are no disappointments when cooking a Marcella recipe. The combination of butter, onion, and tomato is very sweet, made sultry with pancetta, and cut just right with hot pepper.

Retro Rose thought I used FRESH tomatoes. I fooled her.

There were three of us for dinner. Two of us were not very hungry. One whole pound of pasta completely disappeared, and that never happens. We are Italians. We eat good food every day. But, we were jumping up and down (almost) remarking over and over again that this is so good. Retro Rose already took home some of my pancetta and the recipe so she can make it.

So trust me, when Retro Rose gets excited about pasta, it’s a big deal, because she has never counted carbs in her life, and she eats pasta several times a week.

So if you don’t trust me, trust her. She’s been eating pasta for 74 years.

 I googled this sauce to see how others might be preparing this dish. I saw a lot of mistakes. 

I saw garlic.
Please, please do not use garlic in this. It will rob you of sweet onion taste.

I saw olive oil.
I’m not as picky on this, but if you do use olive, also use butter. Even though by the end of the dish you don’t really see butter and onions, you will taste them. They make the dish.

I saw bacon instead of pancetta.
While I can see that pancetta might be more difficult for some to purchase, it delivers a completely different taste than bacon. You can purchase just a small piece for this recipe at deli counters that sell Boars Head, if you don’t have access to an Italian market. Our local Whole Foods actually sells pancetta made here by a local farmer.

I saw canned tomatoes and fresh tomatoes. Good canned tomatoes are better than bad fresh tomatoes.

The Pasta
Bucatini, a thick, hollow spaghetti is the traditional pasta used in this dish. It’s the perfect pasta to cook al dente, and add a thick, dicey sauce must especially blanket a pasta with a bite to it. I have never once experienced a true al dente pasta in an Italian restaurant in America. But, that is all you get in Italy, and it’s so much more al dente than you might think. Keep in mind that pasta continues to cook once you strain it. If you think your “al dente”needs another minute, it’s done.

Normally, I have at least 2 pounds on hand, but just when I need it, my Italian market is out of it until late November. I use De Cecco kamut spaghetti. I love this pasta, find it meaty and, while it is NOT gluten free, it’s a great choice for those with wheat sensitivity.

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Cooking Italy - Pasta all’ Amatriciana, Not Just Another Dish of Spaghetti

I had Pasta all'Amatriciana in Rome, and this recipe is just as good.

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Angela Roberts

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 tablespoon butter
• 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 ”slice pancetta cut into 1”strips (1/2”wide)
• 1 1/2 cups Italian tomatoes diced,drained of juice
• 1/2 small dried hot chili pepper or 1 t chile pepper flakes or to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or taste
• 1 pound pasta
• 1 tablespoon Pecorino cheese freshly grated
• 3 tablespoons Parmigiano Reggiano freshly grated

Instructions

• Saute onion in oil and butter on medium until it's pale softened, almost golden. Add pancetta, cooking for about 2-3 minutes.
• Add tomatoes, chili pepper, salt and simmer for 25 minutes. Taste and correct for salt and pepper.
• Toss pasta with sauce then add both cheeses.

Recipe for filling adapted from Marcella Hazan’sEssentials of Classical Cooking

The post Cooking Italy – Pasta all’ Amatriciana, Not Just Another Dish of Spaghetti appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

I have mood swings when it comes to herbs. If you noticed my summer fare, you saw a lot of basil, parsley and thyme. Thyme is my summer go to herb for just about everything that isn’t tomato based. But as soon as October arrives, I crave everything rosemary and sage, which is why I couldn’t wait to add Marcella’s Ebogoné to the Cooking Italy schedule.

Rosemary and sage amidst the beauty of the cranberry bean, also known as the borlotti bean, October bean or French horticultural bean, is the best way to usher in the coziest time of year.

It’s not unusual for me to pair beans with pasta.  And, I’ll do it again. But, it’s a bit unusual to puree the beans (or mash them), to make a “sauce.” Embognoné is a trademark dish of the Dalla Rosa family, who own a trattoria for four generations in San Georgio, north of Verona. This is a Marcella Hazan recipe giving tribute to this family that has served this dish for 4 generations.

It is THE bean that is most often used in Italy’s pasta e fagioli. But did you know that many of the Borlotti beans in Italy are cranberry beans imported from America? I took this picture in Rome at an open market.

Uncooked, they are the most beautiful bean in the world. Cooked, they lose that gorgeous pink color, but they gain all their flavor, similar to a chestnut.

I will probably never pass a barrel of fresh cranberry beans again without a purchase. It is one of my life pleasure’s to sit and shell my own beans and cozy up to a slower food style. Fresh beans do not need to be soaked, and will cook in under an hour and the taste is worth the joy of shelling.

This is a perfect “cook from scratch” sauce, with just enough of the right ingredients and fresh herbs. You might be tempted to add in more fresh herbs, but I believe the recipe balances out perfectly and I would wait until you have put everything together before changing the recipe.

You can choose to make a homemade pasta or use a factory made. Marcella has assured us that there is nothing wrong with good factory made pasta, and there are some pastas a home cook will never be able to duplicate as well. I purchased a pasta that was made with chick peas and had a high protein count, and it was quite good.

If you can’t find cranberry beans, the next best bean for this dish is the pinto, followed by the red kidney bean.

The good news is that beans are healthy and a great option for recession times, and with food like this, you will feel very rich.

Tell me, what are your favorite beans and how do you most like to eat them?

Recipe adapted from Marcella Hazan’sEssentials of Classical Cooking

Ingredients

• 3 pounds fresh cranberry beans, unshelled weight or
• 1 1/2 cups dried
• Extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon for sauce, 2 tablespoons for tossing pasta
• 1/4 pound pancetta,chopped very fine to a pulp
• 1/3 cup onion chopped fine
• 1 teaspoon garlic chopped fine
• Chopped sage leaves, 1 teaspoon if fresh, 1/2 teaspoon if dry
• Chopped rosemary, teaspoon if fresh, 1/2 teaspoon if dry
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Parmigiano-reggiano cheese, freshly grated, plus more for the table

Instructions

Cooking Beans

1. If using fresh beans, put in pot with covering beans with 2” inches water.
2. Cover pot, turn on low, cook until tender, (check at 45 minutes). Do not salt until the beans are done.

Making Sauce

1. In separate pan, add pancetta to 1 T olive oil in medium high heat, until rendered.
2. Add onion until translucent. Add garlic, sage, rosemary. Cook for one minute.
3. Drain beans, reserve some liquid.
4. Mash 3/4 of beans, leaving some whole. Add salt and pepper.
5. Add in pancetta and herbs. Add in some of the reserved water to thin the sauce.
6. Add in cheese.
7. Toss with cooked pasta. Serve immediately.

The post Ebogoné–Cranberry Beans, Sage, & Rosemary appeared first on Spinach Tiger.