Quixotic Quest

For some years, writer and humorist Calvin Trillin has been waging a campaign against turkey and in favor of Spaghetti Carbonara for the traditional Thanksgiving meal. His reasons for this campaign are: 1) “turkey is basically something college dormitories use to punish students for hanging around on Sunday;” 2) Christopher Columbus was Italian; and 3) a 300-square-foot platter of Spaghetti Carbonara would probably be a welcome challenge to those who make floats for Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

I didn’t remember Trillin’s campaign while enjoying deep-fried turkey on Thanksgiving day. Nor did I recall Trillin when I decided to fix Fettuccini Carbonara this past Sunday evening. But Trillin’s quixotic quest did occur to me when I read that Anne had also made Carbonara Sunday night.

Fettuccini/Spaghetti Carbonara had been a favorite of mine since college when I waited tables at a restaurant where it was a specialty. Over the years I’ve made it many times using a recipe based largely on what I remembered from watching the chef fix it. Then, number of years ago, I spent a week in Italy. We rented a villa outside of Rome and used it as a home base to explore Rome and southern Tuscany. One morning we visited the ruins of the Emperor Hadrian’s Villa and afterward had a late lunch at a restaurant there. I ordered Fettuccini Carbonara. It was a revelation.

When it arrived it was a bright lemon yellow. The color turned out to be egg yolks –multiple egg yolks. My version included a single whole beaten egg. What I was served had at least two yolks in it with no whites and no cream. It was unctuously rich and luscious.

The version below serves two and is still basically what I’ve made for years, but I learned a lesson about the eggs in Italy.

Fettuccini Carbonara

4 oz fettuccini (or spaghetti)
4 oz pancetta, 1/4″ dice
1/4 white wine
3 ea egg yolks — beaten
2 tbsp olive oil
4 ea scallions — sliced 1/4″ thick
2 ea garlic cloves — sliced
2 oz parmegiano — grated
1 oz pecorino — grated
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper

Add olive oil to a skillet or saute pan over low heat. Add garlic and cook until garlic is golden. Remove garlic with a slotted spoon and discard. Add pancetta and brown. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of oil. Increase heat to medium, add wine, and reduce by half. Remove from heat.

Simultaneously, cook pasta. When pasta is done, drain and return sauce to medium low heat. Whisk egg yolks into sauce, taking care to avoid having eggs curdle and cook, whisking steadily, until slightly thickened. Whisk in cheese. Mix sauce and pasta, plate, and with dress with scallions and a healthy dose of black pepper. Serves 2.

If you can’t get pancetta, you can use ordinary bacon, but I think ham is a better choice.

Technorati: Food | recipe | main dish | pasta | carbonara

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