Would you hate me if you knew that I ate my first bowl of Spaghetti Carbonara last year in Europe? Yep totally true. I think the whole egg thing has thrown me off all these years, and thus kept me far, far away from the egg based pasta. But while on vacation I tend to get a little more adventurous. I was craving creamy pasta and I gave it a try… and what do you know? I loved it, and then proceeded to gorge myself until I had a stomach ache (which by the way I don’t recommend that).
I was inspired to make a lighter version of spaghetti carbonara at home. I was craving comfort food. I had a busy day at the office and all I wanted to do was eat a quick comforting dinner and then veg on the couch (which lets get real I rarely ever veg on the couch. I typically get my second wind after dinner and start working on blog stuff until the wee-hours of the morning).
So on that sluggish evening (this happened be right after I made tons of homemade spaghetti) I knew I wanted to make pasta but I didn’t know what. I typically make my go-to Shrimp Scampi recipe, but on this particular night I did something I haven’t done in a while… I opened a cookbook! gasp! I find myself opening cookbooks less and less and going straight to the internet. And then, of course, once I open the cookbook I tend to get lost in it for hours just as I would the internet. That’s when I flipped to this glorious recipe. This was also around Easter time when I had leftover Slow Cooker Ham. Might I add, that I never have ham in the refrigerator, so I felt that this recipe was destine to be cooked. I will tell you that Spaghetti Carbonara is not as scary as it might seem… even if you aren’t a fan of egg yolks–its creamy and comforting and brought me right back to Italy!
Cook fresh spaghetti for 3 minutes or until al dente. Before draining the pasta, reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta and set to the side.
Heat a large pan over medium heat. Add the diced ham and cook for 2 minutes. Add the pasta to the pan and stir well.
In a large bowl, combine the Parmigiano-Reginnao, sour cream, skim milk, salt, and lightly beaten eggs. Mix well, then add the reserved pasta water. Pour the egg mixture over the pasta and stir until incorporated and cook for 5 minutes. You'll want the sauce to thicken--make sure it does not boil. Stir in ground black pepper and fresh chives and serve immediately.
I don’t cook pork often. In the past year I have tried cooking it more often for my husband… more often meaning once a month. Whether that be pork chops, a loin, or in this case a shoulder roast. I’ve never been a fan of pork (minus bacon) and to be a little too honest my body just can’t digest it well! I saw this recipe in the December issue of Every Day Food and the picture lured me in… I was sold, and I knew my husband would love it! The aroma that filled the house was unexplainable. Even I couldn’t wait to try this pork dish. Since this recipe made a lot of food and I was just cooking for my husband and I — I invited my neighbor over for an impromptu dinner. We all loved this meal! I served it with mashed potatoes (and not pictured steamed asparagus). You could taste the smokiness from the paprika throughout the dish. I will definitely be making this again, sometime soon!
Author: Katie Jasiewicz of Katie’s Cucina Adapted from Everyday Food, December 2011
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
3lbs boneless pork shoulder
salt and pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 pints cherry tomatoes
2-1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 tbsp red-wine vinegar
4 tsp smoked paprika
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Season pork with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven (or in my case a French oven) or heavy pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add pork, fatty side down, and cook, turning each side until all sides are browned (about 10 minutes). Remove pork from the pot, drain excess fat if necessary, and add onion. Cook until fragrant about 5 minutes and then add garlic and cook until fragrant about30 seconds. Add tomatoes to the pot and season with more salt and pepper. Add broth and vinegar and cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits. Return pork to pot (tomatoes and broth still in pot), sprinkle with paprika. Bring mixture to a boil over high on the stove top.
Once the pork has come to a boil, cover, and transfer to oven; cooking for one hour. Remove the pot from the oven, and turn the pork. Return back to the oven and cook uncovered for an additional hour (basting pork every 15 minutes). Using a meat thermometer make sure the internal temperature of the pork reaches at the very minimum 145 degrees. Transfer pork to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes. Slice pork and serve with sauce.
I love cornbread. Growing up this was not something we ever had in my house. It was a novelty item that I would periodically get to have if we were on vacation eating at a Cracker Barrel. My parents are from up north and cornbread was just something they did not grow up eating–thus they didn’t pass on the cornbread loving genes to me! *I know I’m probably going to catch hell from my mom on this post just as I do almost any post I ever mention her in.
As I’ve grown older I’ve been on the hunt for the most amazing and perfect cornbread recipe out their. This my friends… is it. This is my new go-to recipe. I love sweet cornbread and this recipe satisfies all my cornbread needs!
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Into a large bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the whole milk, eggs, butter, and honey. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir until just mixed.
Place muffin paper liners in a 12-cup muffin tin. Evenly divide the cornbread mixture into the papers. Bake for 15 minutes, until golden.
I'm Katie Jasiewicz: home cook, food blogger, and recipe developer. I’ve always had a love for cooking, and more so in the past few years a love for eating!
Join me on a culinary adventure where life always tastes good. {more}
I'm Katie Jasiewicz: home cook, food blogger, and recipe developer. I’ve always had a love for cooking, and more so in the past few years a love for eating!
Join me on a culinary adventure where life always tastes good. 
