Spaghetti Alla Carbonara

Prep. time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min

  • Ingredients:
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 Tbs unsalted butter
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 4 oz pancetta, prosciutto or bacon, diced
  • 1 lb linguine or spaghetti
  • 3 eggs yolks, room temp
  • 1/2 Cup heavy cream or half & half
  • 3/4 Cup finely grated Parmigiano-Regiano
  • Black pepper

Directions:

  1. Heat oil & butter in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add onion and pancetta & cook until onion translucent and pancetta is beginning to crisp. Remove from heat set aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the linguine to al dente. Drain pasta and return pasta to pot. Heat and add the reserved pancetta and onion mixture. Stir over high heat until pasta is coated with the pancetta mixture.
  3. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks & heavy cream and add the pasta, along with Parmesan. Remove the pot from the heat and toss the pasta until it is well-coated. Season with salt and 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.

**I like to add peas to the pancetta and onion mixture.

~Recipe via Rachael Ray at foodnetwork.com

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Always a hit at any party! A great snack & easily reheat-able

Prep. time: 20 min

Cook time: 16 min

Ingredients:

  • 20 Medjool pitted dates*
  • 1 pound aged Manchego cheese, cut into 20 blocks
  • 10 slices bacon, cut in half

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Make an incision on one side of each date and insert a block of Manchego. Squeeze the date shut in your hand to secure. Wrap each date with a bacon strip and secure with a toothpick. Place all the dates on a sheet tray lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Roast the dates in the oven until the bacon on top is starting to crisp, 5 to 6 minutes. Turn the dates over and cook the other side until the bacon crisps, roughly another 10 minutes.

*I’ve started to replace the cheese with an almond, which makes them dairy free and adds a bit of a crunch.

*I often get dates with pits in them and de-pit them myself with needle-nose pliers. By cutting the tip of the date off and pulling out the pit.

~Recipe is based on Anne Burrell’s from foodnetwork.com