Kitchen Concoctions

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Sinfully Delicious

Ohhh this is good. Real good. Too good.

The second (and very classic Italian) recipe I made from the CBOM was Chicken Carbonara. I have had Chicken Carbonara before but had never attempted to make it on my own. I don’t know why though, because this was so easy (maybe too easy and convenient). This cream sauce is smooth (real smooth), decadent, and rich. It is fabulous! I love a good rich and creamy classic white sauce (alfredo) but with the addition of herbs and the secret ingredient, egg yolks, (ok really not so secretive if you know what makes a carbonara, carbonara but saying secretive is fun and intriguing!).

Need further proof this is make your heart cry good: Eric is sometimes skeptical of new dishes and requested me to make traditional alfredo sauce as well in case he didn’t like this. Well folks, the alfredo sauce was made but never touched. And Eric ate 3 bowls* of this raving all the while that he was so glad his “other” girlfriend could teach me a new and insanely delicious recipe! HaHa!

*A note from Eric: Just to clarify things I ate 3 bowls through the course of one day… not all in one sitting.

Chicken Carbonara
Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 22 minutes Serves: 6
4 sliced bacon
2 large chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces and seasoned with salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups whipping cream

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

8 large egg yolks

1 tablespoon dried parsley leaves

1/2 tablespoon dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound spaghetti

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Heat a heavy large frying pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook until it is brown and crisp, about 3 minutes. Remove cooked bacon from pan, leave drippings. Add prepared chicken to pan with bacon drippings and cook until done, about 8 minutes. Add prepared garlic to pan to cook during the last 1 or 2 minutes with chicken. Remove cooked chicken and garlic from pan and drain any remaining grease.
In a large bowl, whisk together the cream, cheese, yolks, basil, parsley 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper; to blend.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the spaghetti and 1/2 a teaspoon salt. Cook until it is just tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Drain.

Crumble the bacon and add it back to the pan over low heat. Next, add the cream mixture. Let the cream/bacon heat through. Add the cooked pasta and chicken and toss over low heat until the sauce coats the spaghetti thickly, about 3 minutes (do not boil or you might end up scrambling the eggs). Transfer the pasta to a large wide serving bowl and serve.
adapted from “Giada’s Family Dinner” by Giada De Laurentiis
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