Linguine alla Carbonara

Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2004

Prep Time:

10 min

Inactive Prep Time:

hr min

Cook Time:

5 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 yellow onion, minced
• 4 ounces pancetta or prosciutto, diced
• 1 pound fresh linguine
• 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, at room temperature
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Heat oil and butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and pancetta and cook until the onions are translucent and the pancetta is beginning to crisp. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the linguine according to package directions until al dente, about 2 to 3 minutes. Drain pasta in a colander (reserve a small amount of the cooking liquid in a small bowl) and return pasta to the pot. Return the pot to the heat and add the reserved pancetta and onion mixture. Stir over high heat until pasta is coated with the pancetta mixture.

In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and heavy cream and add to the pasta, along with the Parmesan. Remove the pot from the heat and toss the pasta until it is well-coated. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste. If needed, add a bit of the reserved pasta cooking liquid to help toss the pasta if it is dry. Serve immediately.

Beautiful Zucchini Carbonara

Recipe Excerpted from JAMIE AT HOME by Jamie Oliver. Copyright (c) 2008. Published in the U.S. by Hyperion. All rights reserved. Available wherever books are sold. www.jamieoliver.com

Prep Time:

20 min

Inactive Prep Time:

hr min

Cook Time:

20 min

Level:

Intermediate

Serves:

4 servings

Directions

Carbonara is a classic pasta sauce made with cream, bacon and Parmesan and is absolutely delicious. Try to buy the best ingredients you can, as that's what really helps to make this dish amazing. I'm using a flowering variegated variety of thyme but normal thyme is fine to use. When it comes to the type of pasta, you can serve carbonara with spaghetti or linguine, but I've been told by Italian mammas (who I don't argue with!) that penne is the original, so that's what I'm using in this recipe.

Ingredients

• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 medium green and yellow zucchini
• 1 pound penne
• 4 large free-range or organic egg yolks
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 good handfuls freshly grated Parmesan
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Olive oil
• 12 thick slices pancetta or lean bacon, cut into chunky pieces
• A small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked and chopped, flowers reserved (if you can get hold of flowering thyme)
• Optional: a few zucchini flowers

Before you start cooking, it's important to get yourself a very large pan, or use a high-sided roasting pan so you can give the pasta a good toss.

Put a large pan of salted water on to boil. Halve and then quarter any larger zucchini lengthwise. Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the zucchini at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne. Smaller zucchini can simply be sliced finely. Your water will now be boiling, so add the penne to the pan and cook according to the package instructions.

To make your creamy carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the cream and half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly with salt and pepper and set aside.

Heat a very large frying pan (a 14-inch is a good start - every house should have one!), add a good splash of olive oil and fry the pancetta or bacon until dark brown and crisp. Add the zucchini slices and 2 big pinches of black pepper, not just to season but to give it a bit of a kick. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves, give everything a stir, so the zucchini is coated with all the lovely bacon-flavored oil, and fry until they start to turn lightly golden and have softened slightly.

It's very important to get this next bit right or your carbonara could end up ruined. You need to work quickly. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately, toss the pasta in the pan with the zucchini, bacon and lovely flavors, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly. (No more cooking now, otherwise you'll scramble the eggs.)

Get everyone around the table, ready to eat straightaway. While you're tossing the pasta and sauce, sprinkle in the rest of the Parmesan and a little more of the cooking water if needed, to give you a silky and shiny sauce. Taste quickly for seasoning. If you've managed to get any zucchini flowers, tear them over the top, then serve and eat immediately, as the sauce can become thick and stodgy if left too long.

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