Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara

It’s been a crazy week over here. I am actually wrapping up at work and next week is my last week. . . and then, I will stay at home with my girls. Very big step for me as I have never not worked but my oldest will start kindergarten soon, we’re still transitioning to WA, and basically I want to raise them and be more a part of their lives at this point. Straddling between work and home has always been tough for me. I am not one to half-ass something so I put 110% of myself into work and sadly, my family/home life suffers because of that. I am constantly checking email, am stressed out and sometimes, I’m just not a nice person to be around. So, anyway, my husband and I are very happy with this decision and have a lot of peace with it.

It’s never going to be a good time to leave work and things are even crazier than ever so I feel really bad but they’ll get through it and will be fine. So, I wanted to end this crazy work week with a “I don’t give a flip about my waist line” pasta dish (and I didn’t have time to grocery shop + we had all the ingredients at home already) :).

As I’ve said before, I usually don’t like creamy, rich pastas and surprisingly this one isn’t as heavy as it looks! Of course, the hubby loved this one and my oldest actually ate all of it but my youngest threw her bowl on the floor but what are you gonna do? If you like Spaghetti Carbonara, this recipe is simple and tasty! and just when I felt like I was loosing my mind and about to pull all of my hair out, both of my daughters went to sleep last night with no fuss at all (note to self: feed kids spaghetti carbonara more.). This rarely happens. So, it was a great night. Enjoy!

Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara

Print Recipe

Creamy Spaghetti Carbonara

Course: Main dish/Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Hip Foodie Mom

Ingredients

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 ounces thickly sliced pancetta cut into 1/8-inch dice
• 2 garlic cloves thinly sliced
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 3 ounces, plus more for serving
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg I didn't have any nutmeg so def next time!
• Freshly ground pepper
• Few leaves of fresh basil for garnish optional
• 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water*

Instructions

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the spaghetti until just al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water*.
• Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks and cream.
• In a large, deep skillet, heat the oil. Add the diced pancetta and cook over moderately high heat, stirring, until crisp, 4 minutes.
• Add the garlic and cook until golden, 1 minute.
• Add the spaghetti to the skillet. Cook over low heat, tossing, until coated.
• Slowly add the reserved pasta cooking water and beaten egg yolks. Toss until coated with a creamy sauce, about 1 minute.
• Add the 1 cup of Parmesan and the nutmeg; season with pepper.
• Transfer to bowls and serve, sprinkling with the extra Parmesan.