The brilliant chef and cookery school owner Flora Gordon Clark shares with us another of her tried and tested dinners. This is a wonderful recipe as it’s so delicious and simple to cook – perfect for busy term time evenings and for feeding the family!

Tagliatelle Carbonara

Serves 2-3 as a main course, more for a starter

If you want to feed more than two which I often do I do use a couple of whole eggs at a ratio of 1 to 3. Eggs coagulate (cook) at a relatively low temperature so it is enough just to pour the mixture over the hot strained pasta.  As you mix it in you will see it gently cook. Be ready to eat immediately! It doesn’t matter if you cut the bacon up before or after you fry it. If you have an AGA cook it in the top right for about 6-7 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 150g spaghettini, dried
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 150g pancetta pieces or sliced streaky bacon (about 10 slices)
• 50ml double cream (or single)
• 2 organic egg yolks
• 25g fresh parmesan cheese grated, plus extra for serving
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Bring a large pan of water to the boil over a high heat.
2. Meanwhile, cut up the bacon if using into 1cm pieces.
3. Fry the pancetta / bacon in a little olive oil over a high heat until crisp but not hard.
4. Drain on kitchen roll and break or cut into pieces.
5. Crack the eggs and separate the yolks into a jug. Keep the whites for making meringues another day – or give them to the dog!
6. Add the cream, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper together and whisk again.
7. Add some salt to the boiling water and cook the pasta until al dente.
8. Scoop out some of the cooking water in a jug and reserve until later.
9. Drain the pasta.
10. Return the pasta to the pan and put over a low heat.
11. Pour over some of the bacon fat if you want and stir through.
12. Add the cream, egg and cheese mixture and bacon and stir through.
13. Add some of the reserved liquid until you have the desired consistency.

Serve immediately onto warm plates with extra parmesan and a rocket and tomato salad or some steamed beans or broccoli if required.

Nutrition Notes:

Egg yolks are high in protein (which is what you are built from – you are not built from pasta. That is just the petrol in the tank and which you run on).

Olive oil is one of the best sources of what we call ‘good’ fat.  It is good for hair, nails, and skin and will help keep your joints supple.

 

To learn more about Flora’s cookery school visit her website here

View more of Flora’s recipes here