10. Angel Hair Carbonara



I know, I know... my posts have been semi-MIA lately, but seriously - I warned you in my introduction that periods of postlessness were likely.  Luckily for all of us, my business travel should be done for the year and I have successfully checked some major projects off my "to do" list.  So, I'm happy to not only bust out a post today, but I think it's an especially delicious dish.

I'm sure that many of you have heard of "Spaghetti Carbonara" or seen it on menus.  You many have even eaten it.  I was very surprised recently to discover that many people didn't realize that eggs are a key ingredient for this pasta, giving that sauce it's unique creaminess without any actual cream and not too much cheese.  Plus, like many pasta dishes, it's super easy.

What you need for 4 servings... And by "four servings" I don't mean little puny side-dish servings, I mean big, hearty, full-bowl servings that work as your entire dinner:

• Pasta
• BACON - As little or as much as you want
• 2 eggs
• Fresh Parmesan cheese
• Half of a white onion, chopped
• 2 very large cloves of garlic, minced or chopped
• 4 tablespoons of butter
• 1 cup of peas (optional, obvi)
• 12 ounces of sliced mushrooms

First, fry up the bacon in a very large pan.
You'll also want to have a large pot of
water on another burner, heating up and
getting ready for the pasta.

After removing the bacon and setting aside,
add the mushrooms to the pan and cook
in the bacon grease until they are just
starting to turn golden brown.

Add half a chopped white onion and stir.

Once the onions begin to get translucent,
add the chopped garlic and mix in with
the mushrooms and white onion.

Once you add the garlic to the pan, add your pasta to the now-boiling water.  Angel hair doesn't take too long to cook, which is definitely one of the benefits.  I don't think you will EVER see me make anything with actual Spaghetti.  The thickness of spaghetti really holds back my twirl-skills and if I'm making any long-noodle dishes I will almost always go for Linguine or Angel Hair (my most favorite). To make four semi-large servings, I use about 4/5 of one whole box.  I should really start being more professional with my measurements and recipes, but it's just not my natural style... I usually like to assume that people are smart enough to figure out a few details on their own.  Also, I would like to mention that I have found whole wheat angel hair to be easier to cook and have a much better texture than spaghetti or fettuccine.

While the pasta cooks, make sure the
stove is on medium heat & add the peas
to the mushrooms, onion and garlic.  I
have a very strong preference for fresh peas,
but frozen is second-best. Canned? NO.

Once the pasta is ready - and don't over-
cook it because it will continue to cook a
bit in the next few minutes - add it to the
frying pan, along with the butter, and begin
tossing all the ingredients together until
they are well-mixed and the pasta is
evenly coated in bacon grease and butter.

Reduce the heat again to low, and it's time to add the eggs!  Most recipes ask you to beat the eggs in advance of adding them to the pasta, but I have done it both ways and haven't noticed a difference, and I'd rather have one dirty dish rather than two.  The most important thing for this step is that you quickly puncture the yolks and begin mixing up all the pasta.  You'll want to mix very well, and continuously for several minutes.  The goal is to get the egg mixed with the butter and grease, coating all the pasta, all without letting the eggs "scramble."  You won't really see the eggs, so there aren't any bits of hard egg white or anything like that.  Really what it does is add a richness to the "sauce" that is slick and creamy but only appears like a shiny coating on all the noodles.  I mixed mine very thoroughly for about 3-5 minutes.

Once everything is well-mixed, I slowly add small handfuls of Parmesan cheese.  While you can, of course, use the grated stuff that comes in a can, I would highly recommend you get something a little richer and fresher.  I have even made this dish using Italian cheese mixes that include Asiago as well as Parmesan.  Some recipes call for a lot of cheese, which will give you a thicker, creamier sauce.  I prefer to only add enough to give the pasta some extra flavor, but let the other ingredients speak for themselves.

Now comes the time where I must apologize... It had been a long day and I was anxious to sit down, eat, and relax.  In my rush, my brain made up memories of taking some additional pictures.  Fortunately, the rest is super easy to describe with words:

1. Put some pasta in a bowl
2. Top with a little additional cheese, and some black pepper
3. Crumble bacon on top

Most recipes have you mix the bacon in with everything else.  Which is totally fine.  However, one of the things I love most about bacon is how salty and crispy it is.  Soggy bacon is like hearing a classical masterpiece from a orchestra of kazoos.  I mean, let's be real... I still eat it, it's just not as good.  The point is that when you crumble the bacon on top of the pasta, it stays crisp throughout your meal.

While this dish is usually some combination of bacon, mushrooms, onion, garlic, and sometimes peas, there's really no reason you couldn't be flexible and make some tasty variations.  Maybe sausage instead of bacon?  Or add some diced tomato?  Broccoli?  What makes Carbonara so special is the unique sauce that is neither marinara/tomato-based, nor is it a thick Alfredo style.  It's most similar to an olive oil sauce but manages to be creamier and more flavorful.  It is by far, one of my favorite pasta dishes EVER.

Love & Eggs,

Laura

These eggs brought to you by Bronte (black and white hen), my Silver-Laced Wyandotte, and Alabama, on of my blue-egg laying Easter Eggers.

9. Doggy Bag Steak 'n Eggs



I'm certain, absolutely certain, you have heard of "Steak & Eggs" before, but in the ridiculous case that I should be wrong about something, let me quickly explain: It's steak.  With eggs.  It's steak and eggs together in one meal, and it's something that people eat sometimes.  There, that's over with.

If you order steak & eggs at a diner or restaurant you'll actually get a whole steak, eggs, toast, and possibly potatoes too.  That is entirely too much for one meal, in my opinion, especially breakfast.  However, the flavor combination of tender steak with runny egg yolk is MMMMMM.  Luckily for me, last week was my 3rd wedding anniversary.  In an effort to prevent us from spending our "special day" eating frozen pizza or whatever else we have stocked and can be made in the 20 minutes from when I get home to when I'm so ravenously hungry I start to scream and throw things, I made a reservation at one of my favorite steak houses in St. Louis, Citizen Kane's.

While I usually get the filet, I opted for a New York Strip this time - mostly because it was the same price and it's bigger so I thought that seemed to make sense.  Did I like it as much as a filet?  No, and I'll probably revert back to my usual order the next time I'm fortunate enough to convince my husband it's ok to spend $150 on dinner (we like wine AND dessert).  However, I managed to bring home half my steak, plus a little bit of leftover creamed spinach and mashed potatoes which means I'll manage to make three meals out of my order, so that's nice.

Since I don't usually have extra steak laying around, I thought this was an excellent opportunity to make a "Steak 'n Eggs" breakfast.  It also plays into one of the themes of this blog which, if you haven't picked up on it, is that with a little creativity and an open mind, you could eat eggs every day of your life and never get bored with it.  Sometimes you can even get creative with non-breakfast related leftovers.

So, here's what I took home from Citizen Kane's:

• Approximately 4 ounces of New York Strip steak
• Less than 1/4 of a cup of garlic mashed potatoes
• About 1/4 cup creamed spinach

I could have used the potatoes, but opted out.  There's enough flavor going down with the steak, spinach, and egg.

First, I slice three thin slices of steak off,
totally approximately 2 ounces.

Then, I lay them down on a micro-wave safe plate.

I heat up the spinach by zapping it for 30-
45 seconds in the microwave.

And I get the fried egg going.  Man, I never, ever
get tired of seeing beautiful photos of egg yolks.

While the egg is cooking, I nuke the steak slices for 45 seconds.  It really doesn't take much to get the steak hot and you don't want to over-cook it and dry it out.  The juices are a very good thing.

I only use a little bit of the creamed spinach - about half of what I brought home.  I spoon a little bit over each of the steak slices, and I save the rest for a second Steak 'n Eggs indulgence later.

And finally - I slide my fried egg on top of the spinach, then salt and pepper the whole thing.

Honestly, I wish this was a meal that photographed better.  I take the majority of the responsibility in that I'm not a professional food photographer, but also I just don't think this meal is easy to make visually appetizing once you start cutting into it.  You're just going to have to imaging all the different textures and flavors.

To help you imagine, I will employ nearly pornographic descriptions of how amazingly delicious each bite of this luxurious breakfast is:  The steak is so tender, I don't even need my knife to cut it... Juices seep out each time I prepare another bite.  The spinach is so rich and creamy, it's like a savory gravy that cascades over my taste buds.  The egg yolk is thick and salty, pooling on my plate in anticipation of the next bite of steak that will be used to wipe it up.  The egg itself is firm and fresh with a crispy edge, crackling slightly as I bite into it...  Ok, so did the words help?  I swear, this was one of my most delicious breakfast concoctions.

So, next time you end up with a few measly ounces of steak, you should totally give Steak 'n Eggs a try.  It's super rich and you don't need much of it to feel like you've just eaten a "splurge" breakfast.  And, not to keep harping on the calories aspect, but this breakfast was only about 250 calories.  ROCK.

Love & Eggs,

Laura

This egg brought to you by Alabama,                                                my oldest "Easter Egger" hen.





1: Bacon & Egg Burger

Mmmmm... Bacon... I've been a recovering vegetarian for seven years.  My ideals are the same, but fortunately for me, awareness of food-related issues in our culture has led to much better options for deliciousness like bacon.  There is something to be said about the role certain foods play in the human experience.  A summer BLT, for example, with garden-ripe tomatoes and thick-sliced bacon.  That BLT transports me to summers in my parents' house, sitting down at the dinner table with my family while the vent over the stove still works to clear the air of bacon grease and smoke.  Or a cheeseburger at 1:00 AM after drinks with friends, pressed über thin with gooey processed cheese melting on top.  It might sound weird, but I firmly believe these things are part of the American experience.  And if there is one thing I value above all else, it is collecting as many experiences as life can offer.

Anyway, I'm done waxing nostalgic about meat (for now).  On to the tasty burger I just ate for dinner!  I've long held the belief that almost any savory food is better when topped with a fried egg.  If you've never had a burger topped with a fried egg, you're missing out.  And a fried egg plus bacon?  Forget about it!  Tasty protein explosion!

I don't think I make burgers the same way twice.  I pretty much combine whatever ground meat we have stocked up in the freezer with diced onions, seasoning salt, a little Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce, mix it up and patty it out.  In this particular case, I used one pound each of ground beef (from my husband's family farm), one pound of ground pork (also from my husband's family farm), and one pound of ground venison (I traded two dozen eggs with a co-worker for some of his venison from deer season).  I would post this part of the recipe, but it's really not the important part.  Almost everyone has a great go-to burger recipe, and all of them would taste equally awesome topped with a fried egg and some...

Yeah, BACON.  In this case, the bacon comes from Salume Beddu, a St. Louis business that specializes in cured meats that are locally sourced and naturally raised.  This is some extra tasty peppered bacon that comes from Berkshire hogs.  It costs a fortune on the bacon-scale, but if my options are (A) commercially produced bacon from sad, confined piggies, (B) no bacon, or (C) pricey bacon from a local, independently owned business sourced from heritage breed farms, I'm going to choose "C" all day long.

So, this is my first EGG of my challenge and it's not much of a recipe, but I happened to have leftover burgers that we grilled this past weekend and I thought, "Why not?"  I mean, even if one person reads this and thinks, "I've never tried a fried egg on a burger, but I'm intrigued!" then I'm a happy camper.

So, here's what you need (if you haven't riddled it out already):

• Burger buns (I always buy the whole wheat Healthy Life brand because they are only 80 calories and a girl has to watch her figure... sometimes)
• Cheese of your choice
• Bacon
• Mayo
• Lettuce, tomato or any other toppings that float your boat

I'm not going to hold your hand through stuff you already know.  Essentially, you just need to assemble a burger per your desires.  I'd recommend putting the cheese on top of the burger and under the egg.  The heat from the fried egg and the heat from the burger help the cheese get melty.  Plus, when the bacon is on top, it helps it stay crispy.

The most important thing is to not over-cook the egg.  The yolk must be runny to fully appreciate the yum-tastic flavors.  I also love having the bacon on top so that when you push down, the crunchy edges break the yolk open so it oozes out the sides of the bun.  Mmmmm... Drooling yet?

Behold!  An amalgamation of delicious tastes and textures!  Soft, yet toasted bun... Cold, crisp lettuce... Juicy, salty burger... Crunchy, peppered bacon... Rich, runny egg yolk! 

You know you want one.

Love & Eggs,

Laura

This egg brought to you by Brontë, my Silver-Laced Wyandotte.

She's the black and white one in the back.