So This is What It's Like
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
You can tell taper has started. Last night I made dinner for the second night in a row. This, my friends, hasn't happened since I-can't-tell-you-when.
Usually, my schedule goes like this: wake up, sometimes run/swim, head to work, duck out as early as I possibly can without calling attention to myself, head home and change, bike/run/swim until it's dark out (or well after it gets dark, as is often the case), and then (about 9:30 p.m. or so) start thinking about dinner, which usually involves Taco Bell (yes, really -- I rotate between the taco salad and the grilled stuffed burrito), Noodles, a frozen pizza, a fried egg sandwich, or a quesadilla . And I wonder how I've actually gained weight through this experience... In any case, Monday night after finishing my brick, I whipped up a little Greek salad and Parmesan-and-Italian sausage-stuffed chicken breasts. Last night, my friend Patrick was in town. We met up for a quick (or, for me, not so much) 5-miler to catch up before he had to head out to his aunt and uncle's for dinner, joking about how things sure have changed -- years ago we'd be meeting up for happy hour; now, our social event is running together. But I like this change, and it was so good to see him even for such a short time. You can get some good visiting done during a run, and we did. Afterwards, I ran to the store, picked up a few provisions, and was back at home and in the kitchen by 7 pm. With a little Michael Massey for background music, Chianti to sip on, and some help from Chief of Stuff, I chopped, sauteed, and concocted my way to -- if I do say so myself -- what was a pretty good Carbonara. For anyone who's made Carbonara knows, there are two main challenges. First is finding an actual Carbonara recipe. The ones that tell you to use bacon, or use an Alfredo/cream base? Frauds. Run away from them. The second challenge is that Carbonara, no matter how closely you follow the recipe, turns out a little bit different almost any time. Here's the recipe I used this time, from the Italian Stallion, Molto Mario. It's a little variation -- presentation-wise -- on how I normally make Carbonara, but I'd highly recommend it. Spaghetti alla Carbonara Ingredients:1/2 pound guanciale (or pancetta) Salt 1 pound dry spaghetti 1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated 4 eggs, separated Black pepper, freshly ground
Directions:
- In a 12- to 14-inch sauté pan, render and cook the guanciale until it is crispy and golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Do not drain the fat from pan and set aside.
- Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons salt. Cook the spaghetti, until tender, yet al dente. Drain the spaghetti, reserving the pasta cooking water.
- Reheat the guanciale in the pan with the fat and add approximately 1/4 cup of the pasta cooking water. Toss in the cooked spaghetti and heat, shaking the pan, until warmed through, about 1 minute. Add the grated cheese, egg whites and black pepper and toss until fully incorporated.
- Divide the pasta among 4 warmed serving bowls. Make a nest in the center for the egg yolk. Gently drop an egg yolk into each serving, season with more freshly ground black pepper and grate additional cheese over the top. Serve immediately.
Just a caveat or two (or five):
- I use bucatini instead of plain 'ol spaghetti. Why? I don't know. More interesting, and I really like how bucatini behaves in this dish -- no clumping, and the ingredients mix with it more evenly;
- I'd make it 5 whites instead of 4, and add 4T of whipping cream to give the "sauce" a smoother texture (cut the pasta water down by just a bit if you do this);
- I would mix in a cheese with a bit more bite with the Parmigiano-Reggiano, like Parmesan or Asiago;
- I've never tried the egg yolk in the nest of Carbonara as a final presentation, but it works. It cooks a bit from the hot mixture, and pools eventually on the bottom of the bowl so that you can sop it up with the noodles as you eat. Yummm (promise);
- And finally, I garnish with fresh chopped Italian parsley to give the dish a little color.
The end result should look something like this (with a little parsley on top if you're doing it my way, of course):
"So this is what my life used to be like..." I pondered as we were sitting down to eat. CoS asked if this was a preview of things to come. I sure hope so, I told him.
Until, of course, I start spending hours at the barn each night. But that's another bridge to cross altogether.
Posted by Erin 7:58 AM
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Have a nice day,
Robert