Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Inspiration:
I love, love, love Carbonara. It's one of my comfort foods. Tim isn't a huge fan, so I eat it when he's working late or has other plans. It's so easy to make and perfect for a cold night in.
This recipe is from Tyler Florence.


Ingredients:

• 1 pound dry spaghetti
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces pancetta or slab bacon, cubed or sliced into small strips
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Instructions:

1. Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian "al dente.") Drain the pasta well, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.

3. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.

4. Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (this is done off the heat to ensure this does not happen.) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls and garnish with chopped parsley. Pass more cheese around the table.

Liz's Rating: 9/10

Warm Lentil Salad with Roasted Beets and Goat Cheese

Inspiration:
Bobby Flay and beets from our CSA


Ingredients:

• 1 medium Spanish onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 carrot, quartered
• 1 stalk celery, quartered
• 1 fresh or dried bay leaf
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 1/4 cups dried French green lentils
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 pound slab bacon, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 small carrot, peeled and finely diced
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
• 4 cups frisee or mixed greens
• Sherry Vinaigrette, recipe follows
• 4 slices goat cheese
• French bread, for serving

Instructions:

Begin by roasting the beets.

Lentils:

Tie onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, and thyme sprigs together in cheesecloth. Place chicken stock in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir in the lentils, season with salt and pepper, and reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain well and discard the cheesecloth bag of aromatics.

Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until lightly golden brown. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a dish lined with paper towels. Add the garlic and carrot to the pan and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the cooked lentils and bacon to the pan and stir to combine. Stir in the chopped thyme and 1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Keep warm.

To assemble, place the frisee in a large bowl, toss with half of the vinaigrette, and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the roasted beets around the outside of 4 dinner plates. Divide the greens among each plate in the center. Top the frisee with some of the warm lentils and place a slice of the goat cheese on top. Drizzle each salad with the remaining vinaigrette. Serve with slices of French bread.

Roasted Beets:

3 medium beets (red or gold), scrubbed, leaves trimmed

Olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Coat beets lightly with oil. Wrap beets in aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet, and roast in the oven until cooked through, approximately 45 to 60 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool for 10 minutes, and then peel and slice into 1/4-inch thick slices.

Sherry Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Whisk together the vinegar, mustard, thyme and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in the oil and whisk until emulsified.

Liz's Rating: 8/10

Romanian Bean Soup with Bacon and Chard (Ciorba de Fasole)

Inspiration:
The Amazing Race's third pit stop: Romania
and this recipe for Ciorba de Fasole.


Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound dry haricot, pinto or butter beans
  
• 6 pieces of bacon, sliced into 1-inch widths
  
• 2 litres water
  
• 1 bunch Swiss chard
  
• 2 egg yolks
  
• 1/2 cup sour cream
  
• 1 T vinegar
  
• salt and pepper
  
• small bunch dill
• crusty bread, for serving
  

Instructions:

1. Soak the beans in cold water for 3-4 hours.

2. At the end of the soaking time, cube the bacon. Drain the beans and put them in the saucepan with the bacon. (Make sure there will be plenty of room for the beans to expand.) Pour the water over. Bring to the boil, skim, and turn the heat down. Simmer the beans for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, until soft. More time may be needed...keep checking the beans.

3. Shred the lettuce or other greenery and stir into the soup when the beans are soft. Cook for another 10-15 minutes.

4. Mash the beans a little to thicken the soup. Mix egg yolks, cream and vinegar together, and stir into the hot soup. Season. Chop the dill finely and scatter it over the soup.

5. Serve with bread.
   

Notes: When I started to make this, I thought, oh it's just another bean and bacon soup. But I knew I was wrong as soon as I stirred in the sour cream, egg yolk, and vinegar. I really enjoyed the chard with the other flavors. It's an interesting recipe, and I am glad I tried it.


Vegetarian Option: Omit the bacon.


Liz's Rating: 8/10
Tim's Rating: TBD

Split-Pea Supper with Rye Bread Croutons

Inspiration:
A Cuisine at Home recipe I ripped out of my Mom's magazine


Ingredients:

• 2 strips thick-sliced bacon, chopped
• 1 cup diced onion (about 1 half of a medium onion)
• 1/2 cup diced carrot (about 1 medium)
• 1/2 cup diced celery (1 large stalk)
• 1/2 tsp caraway seeds
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup dried split peas, rinsed and picked through
  
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire or Pickapeppa Sauce
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 slices rye bread, cubed
• 1 T unsalted butter
• 1 T minced fresh parsley

Instructions:

1. Sauté bacon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Once bacon is crisp, remove it to drain on paper-towel lined plate. Reserve 1 Tbsp drippings in pan.
2. Add onion, carrot, celery, and caraway seeds; sauté until onion is softened, about 3 minutes.
3. Stir in water, broth, and split peas. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer until peas begin to soften and break down, about 40 minutes. Stir in frozen peas and Worcestershire or Pickapeppa sauce. Return soup to a boil. Season soup with salt and pepper.
4. Toast bread cubes in a nonstick pan over medium-low head, tossing often. When cubes are crisp and slightly golden, add butter and cook until cubes are golden brown. Top each serving of soup with reserved bacon, parsley, and croutons.

Nutritional Information for one-half of the recipe:
687 calories; 21g total fat (7g saturated); 26mg cholesterol; 89g carbohydrates; 656mg sodium; 33g fiber; 41g protein

Recipe Notes:
Split peas continue to absorb moisture after cooking. If this soup has to sit awhile or be reheated, stir in a bit more water or broth to thin it out again.


My Notes:
Very good-- possibly the best split pea soup I've had. I loved the addition of the caraway seeds, the frozen peas, and the rye croutons. I ate half of the recipe and saved the remaining bacon and croutons in an airtight container. When Tim reheats the soup, he can add the reserved toppings along with a little broth or water.


Vegetarian Option: Omit bacon. Sauté vegetables in olive oil instead of bacon drippings, and use vegetarian or vegan broth and Worcestershire sauce.


Tim's Rating: 8.5/10
Liz's Rating: 9/10

Rösti

Inspiration:
The Amazing Race 14's first pit stop: Switzerland!

When looking for a Swiss recipe, I considered fondue, Älplermagronen, and Rösti. Since we recently had a fondue party (using this recipe), I decided to skip fondue. When my mother decided to grill steaks for dinner, I decided to go with the Rösti as it would be a good side dish.

My recipe was adapted from one found on The Food Network's website. My friend Lindsay, who lived in Switzerland last summer, told me that my ingredient list seemed authentic.


Ingredients:

• 6 large baking potatoes
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 1/2 ounces smoked bacon, thinly sliced vertically
• 3 1/2 ounces onion, diced
• 1 sprig thyme
• 3 1/2 ounces mushrooms, diced
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 2 ounces butter
• 6 slices Gruyere

Instructions:

1. Boil the potatoes in their skins for 20 minutes, drain and leave to cool. Peel them. Using a cheese grater, grate them into a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with salt.

2. In a frying pan saute the bacon and onions. Strip the leaves off the sprigs of thyme into the pan. Add mushrooms and cook for about 5 minutes until soft. Combine with the potatoes and mix gently, taking care not to mash them too much.

3. Heat oil in a frying pan and add 3 or 4 spoonfuls of the mixture, See cook's note*. Using a spatula, pat the mixture into a round flat cake. Brown it over a high heat. When the bottom side is cooked flip it over. Repeat with remaining potatoes to make 6 cakes.

4. Put 1/2 tablespoon of butter and a slice of Gruyere on each cake and melt under a hot grill or broiler. Turn the Rosti onto a plate and serve with a green salad, if desired.

Recipe Note: We find that it's better to cook the Rosti individually. 3 or 4 spoonfuls will serve 1 person.

My Notes: I would first like to note that I am not happy with this photo. However I realize this is a food blog, not a photography blog, and while I would prefer to give you appetizing photos, the point is to share recipes. :)

As I am on vacation visiting family, I didn't want to boil and shred potatoes. I skipped the first step by substituting a package of Simply Potatoes. I purchased sliced smoked Gruyere as that is what was available at the local grocery. I had some problems frying the potatoes as my mother has a flat top stove, and I am used to gas. I think they would have turned out a little better if I prepared them in my own kitchen. However, they were still good. (Of course they were, there is bacon involved!)

Vegetarian Option: These would be almost as tasty without the bacon.

Liz's Rating: 8.5/10
Tim's Rating: 8.5/10

Next week on The Amazing Race: I don't want to spoil the locations for those who would like to be surprised, but if you want to see the season 14 map, click here.

White Bean Soup with Bacon and Herbs

Inspiration:
Food & Wine


Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 pounds thick-sliced bacon, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 Spanish onion, finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, finely diced
• 2 celery ribs, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 fresh bay leaf
• 2 teaspoons chopped thyme
• 2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
• 1 pound Great Northern beans, soaked overnight and drained
• 10 cups chicken stock
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

1. In a large soup pot, cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until browned and crisp, about 7 minutes. Drain, reserving the fat and bacon separately.
2. Heat the olive oil in the soup pot. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf and 1 teaspoon each of the chopped thyme and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the drained beans, stock and 3 tablespoons of the reserved bacon fat and bring to a boil. Simmer the soup over moderately low heat until the beans are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the remaining thyme and rosemary. Season the soup with salt and pepper and transfer to shallow bowls. Garnish the soup with the bacon and serve.

Recipe Notes: "The soup and bacon can be refrigerated separately for up to 3 days. Recrisp the bacon before serving."

My Notes: This is a good, tasty soup. I think I prefer the recipe for Bean and Kale Soup, though. However, who doesn't love bacon? So next time I may try to combine these two recipes.


Liz's Rating: 8/10
Tim's Rating: 8/10

Bucatini All'Amatriciana

Inspiration:
When in Italy, one of my favorite pasta dishes is bucatini all'amatriciana. If you're ever in Rome, head over to La Matriciana near the Vatican for a fantastic meal.

Bucatini is a hollow spaghetti, and for some reason the hole in the middle makes it taste a lot better. :) I had difficulty finding bucatini in the United States, but when I saw it at Trader Joe's, I picked up a few packages for 99 cents each. w00t!

The amatriciana sauce recipe is from Emeril. The tomatoes and onions were from our CSA.


Ingredients:

• 5 ounces raw pancetta, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups thinly sliced onions
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 pound canned chopped tomatoes
  
• 1 pound fresh bucatini, cooked until tender
• 2 tablespoons chiffonade basil
• 4 ounces freshly grated pecorino
• red pepper flakes, for garnish
  

Ingredients:

1. In large saute pan, over medium heat, cook pancetta until crisp, about 6 minutes. Remove to paper towel lined plate.

2. Add olive oil to saute pan and heat over medium heat. Add onions to saute pan. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until wilted, about 4 minutes.

3. Add the wine and continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and reserved pancetta back to pan. Season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for 15 minutes.

4. In a large mixing bowl, toss the pasta with the tomato sauce, basil, and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well.

Notes:
Pancetta is delicious. That's all.
I used two large tomatoes, chopped, in place of the canned tomatoes.


Tim's Rating: 8.5/10
Liz's Rating: 9/10

Squaw Corn

Inspiration:
My Grandma Lois used to make this recipe while camping and has passed it down to my mother and now on to me. It's reportedly an old Girl Scout recipe, although I can't find a similar version online.
This recipe dates back to at least the 1950s. Since the use of the term "squaw" may now be considered derogatory, please let me know if you think the recipe title should be modified.
(Also corn and an onion from our CSA.)

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, minced
• 6-8 strips of bacon, cut into 1-inch wide pieces
• 3 cups of corn kernels (cut from 4 ears of corn) or about 16-oz frozen corn
• Kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper
  

Instructions:

1. Place onion and bacon in a large skillet and cook, over medium heat, until bacon is rendered and onion is soft and beginning to carmelize, 15-20 minutes. Remove some bacon drippings, if necessary.
   
2. Add corn kernels and cook an additional 3-5 minutes.
3. Season with salt and pepper.

Notes: The bacon will not be super crispy. If you want crispy bacon, cook it in batches first, remove, and drain on paper towels. Cook the onion in the bacon drippings and proceed with the rest of the recipe, adding in the cooked bacon at the end.

Tim's Rating: 9/10
Liz's Rating: 9/10

Chicken-Gorgonzola Pasta Salad

Inspiration:
My desire to recreate the pasta salad from D'Amico and Sons and this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. uncooked gobbetti or radiatore pasta
• 4 cubed cooked chicken breasts
• 1lb bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 4 diced roma tomatoes
• 2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves, lightly packed
• 1 cup ranch dressing (more to taste)
• 1 cup gorgonzola, crumbled (4 oz)

Instructions:

1. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package.
2. In a large bowl, mix cooked pasta, chicken, bacon, tomatoes and spinach.
3. Pour dressing over pasta mixture, toss until coated.
4. Fold in cheese.
   
5. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
   
   

Liz's Rating: 9/10

Fettucine with Bacon, Tomatoes, Arugula (with or without Goat Cheese)

Inspiration:
Arugula and green onions from our CSA
Modified from this recipe from Bon Appétit

Ingredients:

• 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes, drained well
  
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 thick bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  
• 4-6 medium scallions (white and pale green parts only), finely chopped
  
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
  
• 3-5 cups coarsely chopped fresh arugula
  
• 1 9-ounce package fresh fettuccine
  
• 3-6 ounces soft fresh goat cheese , crumbled
  
• 6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  
• additional grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Combine well-drained tomatoes and vinegar in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
2. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add bacon; cook until crisp, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels.
3. Add scallions, garlic, rosemary and crushed red pepper to skillet; sauté 1 minute. Add tomato mixture and cooked bacon. Simmer until tomatoes are heated through, about 4 minutes. Add arugula and simmer until wilted, about 1 minute.
4. Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, about 3 minutes. Drain.
5. Transfer pasta to large bowl. Add goat cheese, 6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and tomato mixture. Toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Serve, passing additional Parmesan separately.

Notes:

• This makes a lot of sauce. We like a lot of sauce with our pasta; if you don't, I would add another package of fettucine.
• The original recipe uses fresh tomatoes. I used canned, because tomatoes still aren't in season here, and I had a lot of cans of diced tomatoes in the pantry. I would suggest using fresh tomatoes in this recipe, and I likely will next time.
• Tim doesn't care for goat cheese, so I just added it to mine! His loss!

Liz's Rating: 8/10

Linguine and Collard Greens with Bacon

Inspiration:
So I had collard greens from our CSA, and I was going to cook them "Brazilian style" (a Mark Bittman recipe) to go along with some pork burgers that my friend Helen and I picked up at the farmers market. Well luckily today at work I mentioned my dinner to her, and she told me that my "pork burgers" were actually breakfast sausage patties. Hmmm. I am glad I found out before I served Tim breakfast sausage on a bun with condiments. (Thanks Helen!) So I scrambled for a way to use up my collard greens and found this recipe from Gourmet.

Ingredients:

• 10 bacon slices (1/2 lb), chopped
• 3/4 cup pine nuts (1/4 lb)
• 1/4 lb shallots, finely chopped (3/4 cup)
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes (heaping teaspoon if you like spicy food, less if you don't)
  
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 lb collard greens, stems and center ribs discarded and leaves chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups water
• 1 lb dried whole wheat linguine
• 1 lb grape or cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano shavings, made with a vegetable peeler from a 6-to 8-oz wedge

Instructions:

1. Cook bacon in a 5-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, about 5 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons bacon fat from pot. Add pine nuts to pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer nuts with slotted spoon to paper towels to drain and season with salt.
2. Add shallots to pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add oil and half of collard greens and cook, stirring, until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. Add remaining greens and salt and continue to cook, stirring, until greens are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes more. Add water and cover pot, then simmer greens, stirring occasionally, until just tender, about 15 minutes.
3. While collard greens are simmering, cook linguine in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente.
4. Drain linguine in a colander. Add drained linguine and tomatoes to pot with greens and cook over moderately high heat, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Season pasta with salt and pepper and serve topped with bacon, pine nuts, and cheese shavings.

Recipe Notes:
Active time: 50 min Start to finish: 50 min
Servings: Makes 4 to 6 main-course servings.

My Notes: The richness of the bacon, pine nuts and cheese pairs well with the bitterness of the collard greens. This is a different kind of recipe, but it's good!

Liz's Rating: 9/10
Tim's Rating: 9.5/10
("Well having bacon in it gives it an extra point. I really like it.")

Hung's Clay Pot Rice

Inspiration:
Hung, the winner of Top Chef season 2, was featured in the February 2008 issue of Food and Wine Magazine. I decided to try his recipe for Clay Pot Rice.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup short-grain rice (7 ounces)
• 3 ounces mixed mushrooms such as oyster and stemmed shiitake, quartered if large (2 cups)
• 2 scallions, coarsely chopped
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon low-sodium soy sauce
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 thick slices of fatty bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice (1/2 cup)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, cover the rice with water and let soak until the grains turn white, about 1 hour. Drain the rice.
2. In another bowl, toss the mushrooms and scallions with 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce and season with salt and pepper; let marinate for 10 minutes.
3. In a small, enameled cast-iron casserole, clay pot or medium saucepan (I used a 4-quart enameled cast iron dutch oven), cook the bacon over moderate heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the soaked rice and stir to coat with the fat. Add the ginkgo nuts, marinated mushrooms and scallions, the water and the remaining 1 teaspoon of soy sauce. Bring to a boil over moderately high heat. Drizzle the oil around the edge of the pot so it runs down the insides.
   
4. Cover the pot and cook the rice over low heat until tender and the liquid has been absorbed, 10 minutes. Raise the heat to high and cook the rice, covered, until sizzling and a crust forms on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Fluff the rice with a fork and serve.

Notes: The crispy crust part of the rice is the best part- just like paella!

Tim's Rating: 10/10
Liz's Rating: 9/10