Spaghetti Carbonara With Green Peas

After the mediocre reception of the other carbonara recipe, I thought I would try an different one.  I thought this one would be superior in several ways.  1) It has cream in it, and that couldn't hurt.  2) This recipe has peas in it.  Not only do I love peas, but I thought it would add another flavor element to the dish that was needed.  And 3) this recipe is from 2 Top Chef contestants I thought seemed to be really great chefs.  (as always click on the title of the post for a link to the original recipe.)  This one was better.  I did have some issues with the dish, but not flavor wise.  The peas and pancetta were not evenly distributed.  No matter how much mixing I did, they sank to the bottom of the pan and I had to hunt with a spoon to put some over the top of the pasta.  The sauce was also a bit thin.  Not horribly so but I would have liked it a bit thicker and dare I say a tad less cream.  The other recipe was perfect in its consistency, but lacking something in flavor.  At the end of the day, this is the carbonara I would make again, but I would probably reduce the amount of cream by 1/4 cup.

Spaghetti Carbonara With Green Peas

1 T  extra-virgin olive oil
2    large garlic cloves,lightly crushed
6    ounces pancetta ,sliced 1/3 inch thick and cut into  -1-inc
3/4 c  heavy cream
3    large egg yolks
1/3 c  freshly grated Parmesan cheese,plus more for serving
Salt
3/4 c  fresh or thawed frozen baby peas
3/4 lb spaghetti
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. In a large, deep skillet, heat
the oil. Add the garlic and cook over moderate heat until golden, about
3 minutes. Discard the garlic. Add the pancetta to the skillet and cook
over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden and
crisp and the fat has been rendered, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted
spoon, transfer the pancetta to a bowl.
2. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the fat from the skillet. Add the
cream and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet,
then pour into a medium bowl. Whisk in the egg yolks and 1/3 cup of the
Parmesan cheese.
3. Add salt to the pot of boiling water. Add the baby peas and cook
just until tender, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the
cooked peas to a bowl.
4. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook until al dente;
drain. Return the pasta to the pot and add the cream mixture, pancetta
and peas. Season with salt and pepper and toss until the sauce coats
the spaghetti. Transfer to bowls and serve immediately with the
remaining Parmesan

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