Pasta Carbonara

Pasta Carbonara is an authentic Italian dish consisting of pasta, eggs, hard cheese and black pepper.

The dish originated in Rome.  The authentic dish uses guanciale, which is cured hog cheeks and Pecorino Romano cheese. Obviously, I have substituted bacon for the  guanciale, but if you can find it use it. Pecorino Romano is sharper than Parmesan, but they are pretty interchangeable. Finally, the original dish does not use garlic. However, I love garlic and it is wonderful with bacon.

So, I guess that I am not giving you an authentic Italian dish, but an Italian dish with American leanings. It’s me, I am the Italian dish with American leanings.

Read through the entire recipe. The final steps must be done while the pasta is still hot enough to cook the eggs.

Pasta Carbonara

Servings: 4-6  
Time: Prep Time 10 mins: Cook Time 20 mins, Dinner in 40 minutes
Hardware:  A large pot, measuring spoons and cups, a cutting board and a knife, a large skillet, a small bowl, a very large ceramic or glass bowl, a large metal tablespoon, a whisk, tongs

Ingredients

• 1/2-pound thick cut bacon
• 2 garlic cloves
• 5 egg yolks
• ¾ cup grated Pecorino cheese, more for serving
• 16 ounces spaghetti
• Salt
• Fresh  ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons of fresh chopped parsley (optional.

1.  Put a large pot of salted water on to boil  
2. Dice the bacon and mince the garlic, set aside. If you are using parsley, chop it now.
3. Put the yolks into the small bowl and whisk vigorously, set aside
4. 
   While the water is coming to a boil, heat the skillet over medium and slowly cook the bacon until it is crispy. Add the garlic and cook until it is fragrant, for a minute or two. Remove from the heat and place the bacon, garlic, and a good deal of the bacon fat (two tablespoons) into the large bowl.
5. The water should be boiling now. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions.
   
6. When the pasta has only a minute or two left to boil, begin to rapidly whisk the egg yolks. SLOWLY, add a tablespoon of the boiling pasta water, but never stop moving the whisk. Add another tablespoon of boiling water, whisking the entire time. Do this until you have added 4 tablespoons of boiling water to the yolks. You are tempering the eggs. This way, you won’t get scrambled eggs as you finish the recipe.
7. Working quickly, when the pasta is al dente, use the tongs to add it to the bacon. It is okay if you get a little water in the mix.
8. Add the egg yolks and cheese and toss the pasta using the tongs. The hot pasta will cook the tempered eggs. If you want a little more sauce, add pasta water, a tablespoon at the time, until you are happy. If you are using parsley toss it in now. Add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Serve right away

 

 

How to Make the Perfect French toast

How to Make the Perfect French Toast

French toast is a brunch staple. The basic recipe consists of bread soaked in a mixture of beaten eggs and milk, which is then fried. Sounds simple and really it is. When prepared properly French toast is a thick, slightly sweetened slice of joy that is crunchy (even crispy) on the outside with a velvety custard-like center. When done poorly it is soggy and under cooked on the inside with little burned pieces of char on the outside, surrounded by rubbery scrambled eggs with a sickeningly sweet start and an eggy, sulfuric finish. I’m here to help.

The first step to making Perfect French Toast begins with picking the right kind of bread. I prefer to use challah bread, but brioche is also good. These breads are sturdy and don’t tend to fall apart when soaked in the egg mixture. Always buy a whole loaf and then slice it at home. Use a serrated knife to slice the bread into 1 to 1 ¼ inch portions. You can leave the slices out for a while because dry bread will soak up more of the egg mixture.

The egg mixture is the second step. The trick? Only use yolks. I know that separating eggs is a pain. I also know that this requires more eggs, more work and more time. The finished product will be worth the trouble. Egg whites are responsible for the aftertaste of sulfur. Just save the whites and make an egg white omelet for tomorrow’s brunch. Whisk the yolks with whole milk. Let’s face it, this is not diet food. It is more like dessert for breakfast, so use full fat milk. The fat helps make the custard fluffy. Trust me. How many eggs? How much milk? I usually use 3 yolks and ¼ cup milk for 2 slices of toast. Remember the toast is thick.  Make sure to whisk like crazy. You want the custard to be custard and not scrambled eggs.

This next step is really a matter of personal taste. What else should you add to the custard? If you plan to serve the toast with syrup or fruit you can just add a pinch of salt and go for it. However, I know this is supposed to be decadent. And I know everyone adds sugar. So, do that. Add sugar. But use powdered sugar. Granulated sugar can burn and give you a charred taste or cause the outside of the toast to cook before the inside is finished. To give your toast a little flair, add in a splash of vanilla extract or a good rum, bourbon or liqueur. Not too much or that will be all you can taste. Soak the bread in the custard mixture. I put each piece into the bowl and sort of press it down into the custard for 30 seconds and then flip it over and do the same thing on the other side. Take the bread out of the custard and allow the excess to drip back into the dish. You don’t want the bread to be dripping nor do you want any part of it to be dry. Now we toast.

Before I start cooking the bread, I place a wire rack over a cookie sheet and put that into a 250˚ oven. To fry the bread, you should use both butter and light vegetable oil. The butter is for the taste and the vegetable oil is to stop the butter from burning. Heat the fats in a cast iron or other non-stick skillet over medium heat. If the skillet is too hot, the outside will burn before the center is cooked. If the skillet is too cool, the egg mixture will spread out and make an egg ‘foot’ around the toast. The foot is the rubbery scrambled egg that surrounds not great French toast. When the butter has completely melted lay the toast, sides not touching, into the pan. Fry for 3-4 minutes or until the outside is golden and edges are just starting to crisp. Flip and toast the other side. Place each finished piece of toast onto the rack in the oven. The oven will keep the toast warm and the rack ensures that both sides are crispy. Don’t leave the toast in the oven for too long, however, or it will dry out. Wipe the pan out between slices of toast. If you don’t the little bits of egg from the previous toast will burn and make your Perfect French Toast into mediocre French toast that is covered in little, burned bits of egg.

Now you have something special, the Perfect French Toast. This toast is so rich, that usually I can only eat one slice. I’m lying to you. I eat 2 slices and rest and come back for more. Before serving, I put powdered sugar (and sometimes cinnamon) into a small strainer and tap it gently over the toast. The sugar falls like sweet, powdery snow. Then I top the toast with fruit and a little honey or whipped cream. Or I just pick up a piece and walk around the kitchen eating it like a cookie. You do you. But try this. You'll never be willing to eat mediocre French toast again.

The Perfect French Toast

Chorizo Breakfast Sandwich

Breakfast is good for dinner!

The first time I made these they were not our favorites-the chorizo was overwhelming. But I played with the ratios and SUCCESS. These were so tasty. And because you make the patties in a sheet pan, you can easily cook for a crowd. We don’t have a crowd, so I placed pieces of parchment between the cooked sausage patties and froze them. Now we can easily have breakfast for dinner this weekend.

Servings:  6 sandwiches

Hardware:  Measuring spoons and cups, a large mixing bowl, foil, a rolling pin (or a smooth sided glass), 2 baking sheets, knife
Time: Prep-10 minutes, Cook-25 minutes

Ingredients:

•  1-pound ground pork 
•  2 chorizo links (5-6 ounces) I used Ole Mexican Foods
•  ½ cup bread crumbs
• 1 egg
•  ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon + 1 teaspoon taco seasoning
•  2 teaspoons onion flakes
•  1 package King Hawaiian Mini-Sub Rolls
•  3 tablespoons soften butter
•  Scrambled eggs, 8 slices of cheese (we used pepper jack and cheddar), sliced tomato
•  Mayo, mustard and butter

1.  Line one of the baking sheets with foil. Pre-heat the oven to 375˚. Set aside.
2. Open the sausages and discard the casing. Use your hands to mix the sausage, pork, crumbs, egg, salt and 1 teaspoon taco seasoning. You may need to break up the chorizo so that it is evenly distributed throughout.
3. Roll the pork mixture out on the foil until it is two inches wider and two inches longer than the package of rolls. Sprinkle the top of the pork mixture with the onion flakes and the rest of the taco seasoning. Place it in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. 
4.  Smear the rolls with butter and place them in the oven for the last four minutes so they are toasted. 
5.  Slice the pork into six slices so the patties will fit onto the rolls. Top with slices of cheese, you can pop them in the oven for a few minutes to melt it if you want. Top with scrambled eggs, slices of tomatoes and your favorite condiment.