AUTHENTIC  ITALIAN  RECIPES

 FROM

 RISTORANTE  d'ANNAMARIA

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

This pasta dish is one of my absolute favorites.  The greatest thing about it is that it is not lessened if you can't find one of the ingredients (pancetta).

Pancetta is pork meat that comes from a hog's belly (pancia in Italian). The only difference between Italian pancetta and American bacon is the curing method. Italians smoke pancetta without the sugar. Americans, of course, sugar cure bacon. If you can find pancetta or even smoked bacon, great. If not, thick cut bacon is just as good, if not better. I've prepared this dish many times for Italians using American bacon and they've always loved it.

Ingredients for 4 persons:

Note: the amount that you serve each individual depends, of course, on whether you plan to make this a first course or entire meal as we often do in America with pasta. You'll have to use your own discretion on this. My recipe is used as a first course only.

thin spaghetti or spaghettini or spaghetti alla chitara                one pound           

pancetta or bacon                                                                    1/2 pound          

very thinly sliced and finely chopped onion                               1 scant teaspoon       

grated parmesan cheese                                                            1 cup                   

eggs                                                                                         4                          

heavy cream                                                                             1/2 cup              

extra virgin olive oil                                                                 1/2 cup              

salt and pepper                                                                         to taste

How to do it:

In a large pot over high heat, bring to a full boil the water to cook your spaghetti in.

While the water is heating, slice and chop the onionand cut the bacon into very small pieces.

In a frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the bacon.

Cook the bacon until its crisp (not burned).

Just before you remove the bacon from the hot oil, add the onion and cook it until its tender. Remove it and the bacon from the hot oil and grease. Save the grease and oil for later use in the recipe

When the water starts to boil, add the spaghetti and cook it to your preferred doneness.

In a small bowl add the eggs and beat them with a fork, add 1/2 cup of the parmesan and all of the heavy cream to the eggs and mix them together well.   

When the pasta is done, drain the water and return the pasta to the pot.

Very quickly add the egg, cheese and cream mixture and mix well. The egg will start to cook and cling to the spaghetti.

Heat the oil from the bacon until its very hot.

When its hot, pour it into the spaghetti to finish cooking the egg and mix well.

Add the bacon and nion and mix well.

Serve immediately with some more parmesan sprinkled over the top.