Have you ever stared into the frigid abyss of a near-empty refrigerator? I have. With only bacon, eggs and cheese sitting on cold white grills surrounded by Freon, I understand the tragedy of eating breakfast for dinner too many days in a row. The only recourse? Take-out.
But when you start to feel guilty because of the pile of crumpled McDonald’s wrappers and the judging stares from the GrubHub delivery guy, that’s when you know you’ve got to shake things up. During desperate times like these, I thank god for Carbonara.
I know what you’re thinking – isn’t carbonara supposed to be fancy and difficult? While it often seems that way, this elegant dish is simple at heart: bacon, eggs, cheese and a hearty helping of ground black pepper. Follow these simple steps and you’ll be feasting on a first-class meal in less than an hour.
Photo by Lucy Rubin
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes to an hour
Servings: 2-3
Photo by Lucy Rubin
Ingredients:
½ box spaghetti (any brand is good, I used DeCecco for this)
2 cloves garlic
3 slices bacon
2 eggs
Parmesan cheese (amount depends on your liking)
Black pepper
Salt
Directions:
1. Fry bacon until crispy
Photo by Lucy Rubin
2. While frying bacon, pour water into a pot, add in a lump of salt and set to boil
3. When bacon is done, lay it on paper towels to remove grease and retain crispness
4. Remove pan from heat for a minute or two
5. In the meantime, chop garlic and break the eggs into a bowl
6. Add garlic to the bacon grease and be careful not to burn it
7. When garlic is slightly brown, remove from heat
8. Grate pepper into the eggs until they are fully specked with black dots
9. Once the bacon grease has cooled, add it to the eggs (make sure not to do this too early or the eggs will curdle)
10. Grate Parmesan and set aside
11. When the water boils, add the pasta and cook for about 7-8 minutes
12. Chop the bacon into tiny bits and sprinkle some on the bottom of your serving bowl
13. Once the pasta is done, add it into the bowl with some of the pasta water
14. Quickly add the egg-mixture and toss swiftly
15. Add in the cheese
16. Voila!
Photo by Lucy Rubin
Don’t worry about adding raw eggs into the pasta. The pasta will be fresh from the pot and this residual heat will cook the eggs and create a creamy, luscious sauce.