Pasta Carbonara

This is hands down my most requested recipe when I serve it.  So, I thought it time to bring it to the top of the blog so I can find it easier:)  ALSO..I figure this out because Max wasn't in the mood for this and I was.  You can make this in the same amount of time that it takes to heat up the oven and make a frozen pizza!!  So, it goes in my under 30 minutes to table too!!

Maybe I'll even post a new recipe here and there?  I kinda miss you guys!!

True pasta carbonara doesn't have any vegetables but I think they really add something.  Do I think it's making it a tad healthier??  Nah, I just like the way it tastes but I'll eat this with or without vegetables.  You can also tone down the red pepper flakes as I did the last time I made it for the kids but everything else is a MUST.

Spaghetti Carbonara

3/4 box Thin Spaghetti
1/2 lb of Bacon ~ chopped
3 cloves of garlic ~ minced
1/2 T Red Pepper Flakes
1 Pepper ~ chopped ~ I use a variation of colors to equal one just because I think it's prettier
1/2 lb fresh Asparagus ~ broken into pieces
2 Egg Yolks
1 ladle pasta water
1/2 container Shredded Parmesan Cheese ~ I personally prefer Asiago but I had Parmesan handy and NO you canNOT use the grated green can stuff
Fresh Cracked Pepper

Fill a pasta pot with water and a LOT of salt. The water should taste salty, I'm guessing 2-3 T of salt~I've never measured, sorry.

In a pan, add your bacon, garlic and red pepper flakes. A few cranks of the pepper mill. Cook until bacon is good and crispy and nicely browned. Add peppers and stir around a couple of minutes. You can turn off the heat and wait for the pasta to finish cooking at this point if you need to.

The water is boiling, add your pasta and give a stir. Throw your asparagus into the water and boil for about 2 minutes, should still have a little crunch left. Scoop the asparagus out and throw into pan with bacon and peppers, it stays floating on the top so it's not hard to get out with a slotted spoon. Turn the heat back on the bacon pan.

Your egg yolks are in a bowl, scoop out a ladle of water and pour into yolks. You are whisking the yolks as you add the water because you don't want to end up with cooked eggs.

Your pasta should be done. Drain your pasta but don't rinse. Add pasta to the bacon, toss. Add egg yolks and toss again. Takes about 1/2-1 minute to thicken. Turn off the heat. Add the cheese. Toss again, taste to see if you need some more pepper and serve.

See all the salt in the bottom of the pan.
Here is your bacon, pepper flakes and garlic. I took this photo like this so you can see how much we're talking about. I also put a few cranks of fresh pepper on top of the bacon. It's about layering the flavors with this dish and I like the peppery taste.
Here's your vegetables ready to go.
The cheese, gotta have the cheese. Lots of cheese..yum!
See how crispy the bacon is, add the peppers and give it a stir.

See, told you the asparagus would float on top.

The egg yolks have been whisked with the pasta water and is waiting to finish the dish.
Throw your asparagus in.

Add the pasta, give it a toss. Add the egg yolks, give another toss and cook until thickened.
Add the cheese. Don't be cheap with the cheese. A couple more cranks of fresh cracked pepper.
I sprinkled red pepper flakes on mine since I cut down for the kids but if you don't want spicy.  Dig in!!

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara

Ok, so I didn't take step by step photos when I did this version so I'm cheating and using photos from the original Spaghetti Carbonara recipe so you know what we're doing.

2-3 lb Spaghetti Squash ~ cooked and chilled
1/2 lb of Bacon ~ chopped
3 cloves of garlic ~ minced
1/2 T Red Pepper Flakes
1 Pepper ~ chopped ~ I use a variation of colors to equal one just because I think it's prettier
1/2 lb fresh Asparagus ~ broken into pieces
2 Egg Yolks
1 ladle pasta water
1/2 container Shredded Parmesan Cheese ~ I personally prefer Asiago but I had Parmesan handy and NO you canNOT use the grated green can stuff
Fresh Cracked Pepper

Fill a pot with water and a couple teaspoons of salt.  

In a pan, add your bacon, garlic and red pepper flakes. A few cranks of the pepper mill. Cook until bacon is good and crispy and nicely browned. Add peppers and stir around a couple of minutes.  Turn the heat off if your asparagus isn't ready.

The water is boiling, throw your asparagus into the water and boil for about 2 minutes, should still have a little crunch left. Scoop the asparagus out and throw into pan with bacon and peppers, it stays floating on the top so it's not hard to get out with a slotted spoon. Turn the heat back on the bacon pan.

Your egg yolks are in a bowl, scoop out a ladle of water and pour into yolks. Quickly whisking because you don't want to the egg yolks to cook.

Add your squash to the bacon, toss until heated through. Add egg yolks and toss again. Takes about 1/2-1 minute to thicken. Turn off the heat. Add the cheese. Toss again, taste to see if you need some more pepper and serve.

 
Here is your bacon, pepper flakes and garlic. I took this photo like this so you can see how much we're talking about. I also put a few cranks of fresh pepper on top of the bacon. It's about layering the flavors with this dish and I like the peppery taste.
Here's your vegetables ready to go.
The cheese, gotta have the cheese. Lots of cheese..yum!
See how crispy the bacon is, add the peppers and give it a stir.
 Remember you can turn off at this point and wait for the pasta to finish up.
See, told you the asparagus would float on top.

The egg yolks have been whisked with the pasta water and is waiting to finish the dish.
  Throw your asparagus in.



Add the Spaghetti Squash, give it a toss. Add the egg yolks, give another toss and cook until thickened.
Add the cheese. Don't be cheap with the cheese. A couple more cranks of fresh cracked pepper.


Dinner is served!

Creamy Spaghetti Pie

 

I've made spaghetti pie before but this was a little different because I used left over Creamy Italian Chicken Sauce.  It was hit with everyone!

 

 

Here's your ingredients for the sauce
16 oz pkg boneless chicken breast
1 pkg Italian Dressing Mix
1 pkg Cream Cheese~I use reduced fat
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup~I use 98% fat free
Put 1/2 cup water in bottom of crock pot. Place chicken in bottom. Sprinkle chicken with Italian Dressing Mix. Cover and cook on low for about 4 hours. I will use frozen if I want to cook for 6. Shred chicken  and freeze half for another time.

Cook 1 small package of spaghetti noodles until they still have a little bite left to them, drain and pour into a bowl.

Add
1/2- 3/4 container of ricotta cheese ~ I used light
4 ounces fresh parmesan
Half a bag of chopped spinach

Add 1/2 the Creamy Italian Sauce
Stir until well combined.

Pour into sprayed 13x9 cake pan.  Top with about 3 cups of your favorite red sauce (this was leftover for me too) and 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.  Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes and serve.

 

 

 

 

Pasta Carbonara

True pasta carbonara doesn't have any vegetables but I think they really add something.  Do I think it's making it a tad healthier??  Nah, I just like the way it tastes but I'll eat this with or without vegetables.  You can also tone down the red pepper flakes as I did the last time I made it for the kids but everything else is a MUST.  And, did you notice I said "kids"?!?  Yep, clean plate club for not only my kids but Jake and Serena too!!  Jake was picking around and I said, "that's bacon your skipping" and the picking around stopped.

Spaghetti Carbonara

3/4 box Thin Spaghetti
1/2 lb of Bacon ~ chopped
3 cloves of garlic ~ minced
1/2 T Red Pepper Flakes
1 Pepper ~ chopped ~ I use a variation of colors to equal one just because I think it's prettier
1/2 lb fresh Asparagus ~ broken into pieces
2 Egg Yolks
1 ladle pasta water
1/2 container Shredded Parmesan Cheese ~ I personally prefer Asiago but I had Parmesan handy and NO you canNOT use the grated green can stuff
Fresh Cracked Pepper

Fill a pasta pot with water and a LOT of salt. The water should taste salty, I'm guessing 3 T of salt~I've never measured, sorry.

In a pan, add your bacon, garlic and red pepper flakes. A few cranks of the pepper mill. Cook until bacon is good and crispy and nicely browned. Add peppers and stir around a couple of minutes. You can turn off the heat and wait for the pasta to finish cooking at this point.
The water is boiling, add your pasta and give a stir. Throw your asparagus into the water and boil for about 2 minutes, should still have a little crunch left. Scoop the asparagus out and throw into pan with bacon and peppers, it stays floating on the top so it's not hard to get out with a slotted spoon. Turn the heat back on the bacon pan.

Your egg yolks are in a bowl, scoop out a ladle of water and pour into yolks. Quickly whisk because you don't want to the egg yolks to cook.

Your pasta should be done. Drain your pasta but don't rinse. Add pasta to the bacon, toss. Add egg yolks and toss again. Takes about 1/2-1 minute to thicken. Turn off the heat. Add the cheese. Toss again, taste to see if you need some more pepper and serve.

See all the salt in the bottom of the pan.
Here is your bacon, pepper flakes and garlic. I took this photo like this so you can see how much we're talking about. I also put a few cranks of fresh pepper on top of the bacon. It's about layering the flavors with this dish and I like the peppery taste.
Here's your vegetables ready to go.
The cheese, gotta have the cheese. Lots of cheese..yum!
See how crispy the bacon is, add the peppers and give it a stir.
Add your chicken broth and simmer for a minute or two. You don't want the peppers to get squishy. Remember you can turn off at this point and wait for the pasta to finish up.
See, told you the asparagus would float on top.

The egg yolks have been whisked with the pasta water and is waiting to finish the dish.
Throw your asparagus in.

Add the pasta, give it a toss. Add the egg yolks, give another toss and cook until thickened.
Add the cheese. Don't be cheap with the cheese. A couple more cranks of fresh cracked pepper.
I sprinkled red pepper flakes on mine since I cut down for the kids but if you don't want spicy.  Dig in!!

Parmarosa Pasta

Here's one of Dylan's favorites. It's easy and quick and I typically have the ingredients in the house. He likes it with or without shrimp. You can also throw in some vegetables like asparagus or peppers if you're feeling sassy. Just saute those in place of or in addition to the shrimp.

What you'll need:

1 lb of Shrimp ~ I used raw frozen but you could easily make this with pre-cooked
Drizzle of Olive Oil ~ couple teaspoons
3 cloves Garlic minced
1 can petite diced Tomatoes with Green Chilis drained
1 Jalapeno minced and seeds taken out
1/2 C Heavy Cream ~ I used Whipping Cream
1/2 C Half and Half ~ I used Fat Free
SIDEBAR...the second time I made it I used a can of fat free Evaporated Milk
instead of the Half and Half and Cream and although it wasn't quite as rich, it
was still really good.
1-2 t Basil ~ Fresh would have been awesome but I only had dried
1 t Salt
1 t Cayenne
1 t Black Pepper
1/2 C Parmesan ~ Fresh and Shredded
1 small box Thin Spaghetti cooked

Start a pot of water with a sprinkle of salt to boil. When water is boiling, cook pasta until it is cooked, about 7 minutes. Drain and set aside. If you don't rinse the pasta, the sauce will stick a little better.

Heat your olive oil and garlic for a minute. Toss in your shrimp and jalapeno. Cook until shrimp turn pink, about 3 minutes.

Remove shrimp, try to leave the jalapeno and garlic and add diced tomatoes. Cook for a few minutes to blend flavors. Add heavy cream, half and half, Basil, salt, cayenne and black pepper and let it slow simmer for a few minutes. Stir in cheese. Add cooked pasta and toss with sauce. Serves 4-5

Mince your jalapeno
Let's get the party started with some garlic and Olive Oil
Saute the shrimp, remove from pan and start sauce.
Add the cream and half and half to the diced tomatoes
Simmer the sauce for a minute
Toss your pasta in
Dinner is served

Flat Bread Pizza

I had some left over flat bread that was to dry for a sandwich and decided to use it as a pizza crust. My kids LOVED it and what was nice, I could make what each person wanted easily~in this case meat and/or cheese;).

Super easy and you have dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes.

What you'll need:

Flat bread
Pizza Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese
Pizza toppings

Spread sauce on flat bread. Top with cheese and toppings. Pop in a 350 oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and dinner is served!

Pepperoni is under the cheese on one of these.

Red & White Lasagna

Remember when I've said to store those little bits of sauce away in the freezer until you get enough to do something with it. Here's what we're going to do with left over Creamy Italian sauce and regular Spaghetti sauce. If you don't want to make it from scratch, you can use your favorite jarred sauce I'm sure. Alanna claims the Ragu Alfredo sauce is very good. I'm taking her word on that one.

This was seriously YUMMY. I think it's my new favorite lasagna. We're also going to pretend that we're making a 13x9 pan because that's what most folks want to do when they are taking the time to make lasagna. PLUS..you'll want left overs, I promise.

What you'll need:
3 C Red Sauce ~ I used my spaghetti sauce with ground turkey
1 1/2 C White Sauce ~ I used Creamy Italian Chicken sauce with chicken but you could use Alfredo
Box of Lasagna Noodles
1 Egg beaten
15 oz container Ricotta~I used low fat
1/2 bag of Spinach chopped
1/2 t salt
1 t pepper and garlic powder
1/2 C Asiago shredded ~ you could use Parmesan or any hard cheese like that
3 C Mozzarella shredded

Mix your egg, Ricotta, spinach, salt, pepper, garlic powder and Asiago cheese and set aside.

Spray a 13x9 pan. Put 1 1/2 C red sauce in the bottom of pan, top with dry lasagna noodles, single file.

Half of the ricotta mixture goes on top of the noodles.

Top with white sauce

Sprinkle with 1 1/2 C Mozzarella.

Another layer of noodles

Rest of Ricotta mixture

Rest of red sauce

Rest of mozzarella cheese

Cover and refrigerate over night. Take out of fridge for at least 30 minutes (you can go as long as an hour out of the fridge) before popping into a 350 degree oven for an hour uncovered. Serve.

Sauce

pasta

Beaten Egg

this is what the spinach mix looks like

spinach spread on top

cheese

White sauce

Noodles, not pictured

Spinach mixture, not pictured,

Cheese, not pictured

Noodles, not pictured

Red Sauce, not pictured

Cheese

YUM!!