Creamy Carbonara: Hold the Cream

As you probably know by now my husband and I lived in Park Slope, Brooklyn during our engagement and a couple years into our marriage. We loved it. We loved it so much that when I was forced to move on up to the Upper West Side to a deluxe apartment in the sky (not deluxe, but it had a killer view!), I was bummed. Really bummed. Perhaps the thing that bummed me out most, aside from leaving all of our friends, was leaving Franny's, an incredible pizza and wine bar which started the upscale pizza trend now taking over Manhattan. About 5 years ago, Andrew Feinberg and his wife, Franny Stephens, created a pizza and wine bar around local, organic ingredients and meticulously made foods. It's truly Almost Slowfood because chef Feinberg cures his own meats and sardines and makes a pizza from scratch like none other.

What's more, Feinberg's such a perfectionist that if he isn't thrilled with a dish, he'll take it off the menu no matter how much two of his regulars plead its pardon. At least that's what the apologetic waiter explained to us all those years ago as we pleaded with him to put Bucatini alla Carbonara back on the menu. If you haven't had carbonara at Franny's and chances are you haven't because it was only on the menu for like a month, then you missed out. Unlike most recipes that call for cream and butter and all sorts of other things to make it creamy, Franny's carbonara was real and true like a Hemingway novel using only eggs, parmesan cheese, guanciale and pasta water.

At the time, I had no idea that's what Feinberg was up to, going back to basics in a hugely exciting way. But then, a couple years back, (after yet another conversation with friends about how friggin good that carbonara was and why oh why couldn't we have some!?!?) I found myself thumbing through Mario Batali's Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home, and I hit pay dirt. There it was, like a sign from the pasta gods, a recipe for Spaghetti alla Carbonara and it looked easy!

The very next night my husband and I made it and to our delight, it was everything we'd hoped for: al dente pasta lightly coated with a thickened sauce of cheese and egg and accented with bacon. It became a staple in our diets, a once a week meal due to its extreme ease and tastiness. Then something happened, a baby perhaps? and I kinda forgot about it. That is, until this weekend. We're headed out of town for a week and a half so I was doing my best to make dinner without buying anything. All I had was some farmer's market bacon, CSA eggs and a thing of fresh grated parmesan. That's all I needed!

My daughter went wild for it as she does for anything with noodles, but this was especially comforting to her as it was a gentle mix of her favorite ingredients and ours too. After a long recess, carbonara is back on my plate and it should make it onto yours too. Enjoy!

Spaghetti alla Carbonara
(Made from stuff you probably have on hand, it's an easy and delicious afterthought leaving you to wonder why you try so hard in the kitchen every other night of the week! -
Adapted from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Home)

What You'll Need:

One (4 serving) box of spaghetti or bucatini (if you can find it)
5-6 strips of good bacon (or a big hunk of guanciale or pancetta) cut into bite-sized chunks
4 large eggs separated
About a cup of parmesan cheese
A splash of pasta water

Over a high heat, boil a big vat of salted water. Cook the spaghetti until it's al dente. About 8-10 minutes. Reserve a cup or so of pasta water and set aside.

Over a medium-high heat, cook the bacon in a frying pan until it's gently crisped. Pour out the fat while preserving the bacon and return the pan to the heat. Add the cooked spaghetti to the pan with a splash of pasta water and about three quarters of the parmesan. Stir vigorously and turn off the heat. Still stirring, add the egg whites and mix well and fast so as to avoid scrambling. The heat will cook the whites and thicken the sauce.

To serve, quickly plate the pasta in four bowls and place an egg yolk on top of each portion. Batali thinks it's a nice way to present the dish to guests and I agree. However, if you are skittish about such things, go ahead and add the yolks when you add the whites. It's will be just as tasty!

Approximate Dinner Cost
• Groceries - $7.00
• Leftovers – Expect 4 servings at $1.75 a serving.

Hale to the Kale

Willie Mae cooked for my great-grandmother, then my grandmother and, even for a short time, my mother. She was a large woman with a high-pitched booming voice and an old fashioned Southern twang. My mother grew up with her as did my brothers and me. While we loved everything about Willie Mae, we especially loved her cooking. She cooked in the old Southern tradition of stewing and slow-cooking nearly everything from baked beans to baby back ribs. Even her apple pie was more of a heavenly applesauce spread in between two layers of flaky pie crust. The only thing that didn't really work were her chocolate chip cookies since they were also cooked forever and therefore hard as rocks.

The other day, as I was trying to figure out what to do with a big bunch of kale from my CSA, Willie Mae sprang to my mind and I wondered why she'd never made kale for us. Kale is after all a big hearty Southern green used in all kinds of braises and stews. Plus, kale is full of vitamins A, K and C and it's also an amazing source of manganese, calcium and fiber.

However, if Willie Mae ever did cook kale, I imagine she prepared it the same way she did her slow-cooked green beans, which she simmered all day in a hunk of bacon. I decided to follow her lead with a couple slices of bacon, a little chicken stock and even some cannellini beans for an Italian flare. To save our hearts and my sanity, I poured out the rendered bacon fat and only simmered it for 15-20 minutes. The results have permanently turned my husband and I from wishy-washy on the kale front to actively buying it every time we see it at the market. It's that good and so easy to prepare. Baby girl loves it too, picking out the beans first, then the bacon and finally the kale. It's a great dish for picky veggie-eaters since it's soft and tastes mildly of bacon. What's not to love?

Simmered Kale with Bacon and White Beans

(If you're tired, a large bowl of this with some crusty bread would make a fine meal.)

What You'll Need:
2-3 strips of bacon cut into bite-sized pieces (go for the pasture-fed pork if you can - I got mine from my local market, but I also recommend Niman Ranch bacon)
1 large bunch of kale chopped
1-2 cups chicken stock
2 15 oz. cans of cannellini beans rinsed

Place a large pot over a medium-high heat and cook the bacon until much of the fat is rendered, but before it gets crispy. Pour off the fat and add the kale. Toss with tongs until the kale is wilted. Add the chicken stock and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes. Then add the beans, turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

*This can be made with just about any leafy green. This past week I used a mixture of dandelion and swiss chard. And, a good friend used turnip greens in his version and chicken sausage - the possibilities are endless.

*Sorry there is no picture this week because I was super silly and deleted it!! I have kale in the fridge so stay tuned for an update to this post with a picture of the real delicious deal.

* One more thing, my title isn't a mistake. I meant it as hale as in hale and hearty kale, but used it like hail as in hail to the king. My husband insisted I post an explanation as he's a crazy meanings obsessed lawyer.

Approximate Dinner Cost
• Groceries - $7.00
• Leftovers – Expect 7-8 side servings and about 4 meal servings.