Creamy, bacony, garlicky goodness!

Years ago my best friend and then co-worker Andrea, lover of all things Italian (no she's not Italian) made Pasta Carbonara.  She'd made it for dinner one night and after talking about it at work she made some and brought it for us to try.  I honestly didn't think it would be very good because 1) she is a self admitted non cook and 2) cooked eggs the next day, really?

Boy was I wrong; her Pasta Carbonara was excellent!  It was flavorful and creamy.  Honestly I don't think I have ever replicated her dish as well as she did.  Non cook?  Yeah, right...whatever you say!

Having some time on my hands, lots of time, I decided to make Spaghetti Carbonara for breakfast.  I mean, really, if people in Italy actually eat this for breakfast why can't we?  It is after all bacon and eggs with a little cheese thrown in.  Anyway, my version turned out pretty albeit a bit salty (I'll tell you about my mistake later).

From what I understand, in Italy plain, leftover spaghetti is used like this for breakfast.  A good way to use up extra pasta.  I think it's cooked a bit differently and I'm sure theirs tastes much better though.  I mean come on, Italian food from Italy is a no brainer.


Now for some prep pics:

I used bacon instead of pancetta. Let's face it: pancetta is expensive and I had bacon on hand. I also cut the bacon larger than usual because I thought it looked better...especially for breakfast.
 


Next I used plain ole basic thin spaghetti. Had that on hand too.



Onion and garlic cooked in bacon grease...seriously, is there a more perfect combination? Nope, can't think of anything.



Oh, let us not forget the garlic! Ok, confession time...I used a wee bit more garlic than necessary. It was still good; I just know for next time to use just a couple of cloves!
  

















Three egg yolks, a splash of olive oil, grated Parmesan, fresh parsley and black pepper later and voila....

Hungry?

 

Oh, my 'salty' mistake...I used some of the pasta water in the finished product to pull the sauce together, just a ladle full...but I forgot that I had salted the water when I cooked the pasta...I won't do that again!  All in all this was a really good brunch.  Will definitely make again.  I think some fresh tomato added next time sounds great!