My love for Carbonara is no secret. I’ve blogged several varieties in the past…it’s a true Mix and Match dinner for me. Not only is it easy, it’s creamy without using cream and it’s a great place to hide a bunch of veggies so your husband children don’t know what they’re eating. The hearty pastas of fall and winter are retired for the next few months…it’s time for lighter pasta suppers with fresh, spring ingredients. It’s Carbonara night.
Shopping List
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 pound spaghetti noodles
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
lots of Salt and Pepper (S&P)
1 pound Italian mild sausage (I used chicken sausage but you could use pork or turkey)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup chicken stock
2 egg yolks, beaten
2 cups fresh spinach leaves
Handful of Parmesan cheese
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
On a foil lined baking sheet, spread out your cherry tomatoes. Drizzle EVOO over the tops and sprinkle with S&P. Roast about 20 minutes in the oven.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil and drop your pasta in to cook to al dente.
In another skillet, saute sausage in a few tablespoons of EVOO. Once sausage browns and crumbles, add in onion and garlic and saute about 5 minutes. Stir in chicken stock and “de-glaze” your pan (you know, get all the bits off the bottom).
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer. Drain pasta but reserve about a cup of the hot cooking water. Add pasta to skillet. Pour a little bit of the hot water into the dish where you have your beaten eggs and whisk with a fork. (This will temper your eggs so that they don’t scramble in your skillet.)
Turn skillet off and add in your tempered eggs to the pasta. Add in the roasted tomatoes from the oven, spinach, and cheese and toss until everything is incorporated with the pasta. Top with extra cheese.
The egg yolks make the pasta taste creamy and delicious. I love sausage but you could substitute bacon instead. Just mix and match this to fit what your family loves. This is a seriously delicious meal. Your family will eat it up in no time.
Aubs says
this looks so.darn.good! your picture taking skills are rockin'…don't think i've ever told ya that! =)
JenetFuller says
Um, yum! Definitely making this for my husband this week – he loves pasta carbonara. He tried to make it once himself using egg whites despite me telling him it wouldn't work – needless to say, it wasn't great.
http://livingourfullerlife.blogspot.com/
Sarah says
This sounds so great. I've never made carbonara before and I was wondering how to make sure the eggs are cooked thoroughly? Thanks.
Mix and Match Mama says
Eggs cook so quickly that I don't worry about it. Your pan will already be really hot, they will be absolutely fine!
Susan Pelizzaro says
Whoa, this looks really good! And I love that this recipe just calls for the egg yolk because my son is allergic to egg whites 🙁