Frugal Italian Food Made Simple - Penne Carbonara
It is time for Michael’s Frugal Penne Carbonara!
Carbonara is an absolutely delicious pasta dish that is usually made with a pork cheek that has been salted and cured (it is called guanciale which sounds much better than ‘pork cheek’). My version uses good ol’ bacon and I have to admit that it is pretty darned good regardless of how many little Italian (pronounced ‘eye-talian’ here in the south) women are going to be up in arms over it.
INGREDIENTS
1 pound of penne pasta
1/4 pound of bacon
1/2 cup of shredded cheese (parmesan is preferred, mozzarella or romano will work)
1 egg
olive oil
salt
pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Boil the pasta.
2. Chop the bacon and fry it well. Drain and chop it up even more.
3. Drain the pasta and put it in a large bowl. Add shredded cheese, egg, drizzle of olive oil (if needed), bacon and salt & pepper to taste and stir well to mix.
MICHAEL’S NOTES
If you have that long held fear about eating raw egg, leave it out and replace it with a bit more olive oil and a splash of water from the pasta you cooked.
I tend to add garlic to anything, and it tastes fantastic in this dish. If you have fresh garlic, use it. If not, replace the salt with garlic salt. Trust me.
This dish is equally delicious served warm or cold, but since it does have raw egg I don’t recommend storing it any longer than overnight.
Think this sounds good? Head over to the Frugal Mania Recipe Archive for more great cheap food ideas!
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