Pasta alla Carbonara (Fettuccini or Spaghetti)

I seriously love this dish. It's an easy, stick-to-your ribs Roman classics that I could eat three times a day. (When I had it in Rome, it was for breakfast...but it is hearty enough to be served at any meal!)

The basic recipe is simply this:
1 box of spaghetti or fettuccini (or any other noodle you like)
4-8 oz. pancetta or smoked bacon
2-3 eggs
2 oz. pecorino romano cheese, grated (you can sub parmesan, but pecorino is better)


Cook 1 box of spaghetti or fettuccini in salted water to just before al dente. Reserve 1-2 cups of the pasta water before draining.

Pan fry pancetta or bacon cut into small pieces in a LARGE pan. Drain off the fat (some people *cough-my husband* keep the fat, but it makes the dish too rich for me). Remove the pan from heat.

Toss the pasta in the pan with the bacon with 1 c. of the reserved pasta water. Temper 2-3 eggs with some of the remaining reserved pasta water and add the grated cheese. Pour over the pasta and toss until the egg, water, and bacon fat have combined to make a custardy coating on the pasta noodles. Be careful to toss right away so the egg doesn't scramble in the bottom of the pan! If necessary, return the pan to low heat to cook the egg and dry out any excess liquid -- the pasta should be thick and hearty, not soupy.

Serve topped with extra cheese and fresh ground black pepper.


Now -- my variation on this is that I add sauteed bell pepper and mushroom to this to liven it up a bit, but this part is by all means unnecessary. Notice there is NO CREAM in this recipe...because classic carbonara doesn't have any! Enjoy!