CARBONARA

Harris Teeter - usually a little too pricey for me, I go now and then to check out the produce they have on the quick sale rack, and some of the specialty items you don't see anywhere else around here. This time they had some green beans for 75 cents, regularly almost $3.00. So I bought two bags of them.

I wasn't sure what I would do with them when I bought them but when I got home and looked at what else I had in the pantry and freezer, peas, ricotta cheese, bacon bits, parmesan cheese, eggs, and Orecchietti pasta, it became Carbonara with Green Beans and Peas.

To me there's not much that's more comforting than a pasta dish. When I think comfort food, I usually think pasta. Even if I want soup, I want pasta in my soup. As a kid it was ChiliMac. You know, the elbow macaroni with ground beef and tomato sauce. Mmmmm. I could eat a ton of it then. We used to make it at Girl Scout Camp in a huge kettle and you could have all you wanted. After I got older, it was plain old spaghetti with meat sauce and mushrooms. Back then it could have been out of a can and I would have loved it. As a matter of fact I use to eat Chef Boyardee Raviolo right out of the can. But most of the time I browned some ground beef and poured a jar of Ragu with Mushrooms into the beef and spooned it over some spaghetti noodles topped with a little Parmesan. Now that I'm a little older still, and about the same time that I started learning more about cooking, I came to favor dishes like Angel Hair Pasta with a really fresh marinara, topped with freshly grated Parmesan and fresh basil.

Today the pasta dishes are anything concocted with whatever I have and often include a variety of herbs and/or spices. In March I posted the Vegetable Spaghetti I love so much in "Something Out of Nothing". Often times I will make a Pasta Primavera with chunky vegetables like zucchini, yellow squash and tomatoes or mushrooms, with tomato sauce or a garlic and olive oil sauce with salt a cracked pepper. I've been making my own tomato sauce too since we are growing our own tomatoes so the jarred sauces are kept on the shelf only for those times when I want to make something and I don't have time to defrost.

The Harris Teeter green beans somehow inspired me to make a Carbonara. I was hungry when I was shopping (very dangerous) so I started craving all kinds of things I shouldn't eat. But pasta was on my mind. It was delicious and pretty easy to make. The only "difficult" step might be the "carbonara" part where you add egg yolk to the sauce. You have to be quick and careful not to scramble the egg or it just won't have the flavor Carbonara is supposed to have.

Bacon is fairly integral to an authentic Carbonara, but you can certainly leave it out if you are not a fan of bacon. Authentic Carbonara would use strips of bacon cut up into pieces and use all the fat leftover to make the sauce. (Too fatty for me.) Adding a drop of some liquid smoke would work too. Liquid smoke is a fantastic ingredient, but wow, is it strong. More than one drop and you have ruind the dish. I never pour it from the bottle into my dish. I always pour a drop into the cap first so I'm sure I only get a tiny little bit.

This isn't the healthiest dish I've ever made. Pasta, bacon bits, egg. Three or four times a year though shouldn't be too sinful. There isn't really a way to make a Carbonara into a healthier dish though because it's the egg and the bacon that make it carbonara. The liquid smoke could substitute the bacon, and I supposed one could use a little bit of "Eggbeaters" to substitute for the yolks. So, go ahead, try the substitutions. I just don't think it would taste like a real Carbonara should taste.

Here's how to make my version of easy
CARBONARA WITH GREEN BEANS AND PEAS

1/2 lb Orecchietti (or some other chunky pasta)
1 c fresh or frozen peas
1 lb cleaned and cut green beans
1 T. Olive oil
2 eggs
1 c. ricotta cheese
1 T. cracked or 1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
2 - 3 T. real bacon bits
1/2 - 3/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
pasta water
More Parmesan for garnish

Put up a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta according to package directions. While the pasta is being cooked, in a large skillet, saute the cleaned and cut green beans until they are almost done. Leave them just a little crispy. If you are using fresh peas cook them with the green beans so they will cook through. If you are using frozen, add the peas to the cooked green beans and let them warm through.

Now beat the egg together with the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses. Stir in the bacon bits. Set aside for a moment.

When the pasta is cooked to your liking, reserve a cup of the cooking water before you drain the it. Drain the pasta, and immediately add the very hot pasta to the skillet with the beans and peas. Leave the heat on very low. Add the ricotta and egg mixture immediately stirring quickly to coat everything and to keep the eggs from scrambling. Add the cracked pepper and stir in well. The heat of the hot pasta will cook the eggs sufficiently.

Serve in pasta bowls topped with a little more grated or shaved Parmesan. It's a complete meal. No bread required because you have pasta, no salad required because you have beans and peas. Although, a small green salad would be lovely with this meal. Hope you'll enjoy this one!

Next time, it's Sweet Potato Soup with Fennel. Creamy and delicious, it's elegant enough to serve company, or just sip from a cup and savor it. If you don't like sweet potatoes, give this one a chance. The fennel I added gave the soup a beautifully savory flavor. You'll love it.

It's Every Man for Himself!

It's Thursday night, I just got home from the gym, I'm tired, hungry and don't want to go out. I don't really want to cook. My husband had enough to eat during the day so he doesn't really want any dinner tonight. Good. It's every man for himself. He can find whatever is left in the refrigerator if he gets hungry. There should be a piece of two of the Shrimp and Sausage Quesadilla I made last night.

I feel like having mushroom soup.

When my late husband died, I lost my appetite for more than a month. Couldn't eat anything but mushroom soup. It went down easy and it was warm and comforting. Every afternoon I warmed a can of the low sodium, 98% fat free version of Campbell's Mushroom soup and sipped it with a few crackers. Eventually I could add a 1/2 sandwich of some kind, but the soup was always what I wanted.

For some reason, I wanted mushroom soup tonight. I opened two cans of the low sodium, 98% fat free. There's nothing wrong with my appetite now, so I wanted to make it a just a little more hearty.

Mushroom Soup with Green Beans

2 cans Campbell's Mushroom Soup low sodium, 98% fat free
1 can of water
1/2 cup 2% milk
1/2 t. dried thyme
1 10 oz. jar of sliced mushrooms (or 12 oz. of fresh mushrooms sliced and sauteed.)
1 c. of cooked green beans
1/2 t dried onion flakes

I put everything into a saucepan and let it warm slowly for about 15 minutes. This allowed the dried thyme and onion flakes to rebloom in the soup and the green beans to lend their flavor to the rest of the pot.

That's it! I ate it with some whole grain wheat crackers. It was delicious.

As much as I love to cook, it's also very nice to have a night where I can just throw something together that only takes a few minutes. Warming the soup actually took longer than assembling it. And like so many of the dishes I make, I already had everything in the pantry. I always keep several cans of mushroom soup to use for sauces, etc. I was in the Sav-A-Lot and saw sliced mushrooms in a jar for $.89. I bought two to keep in the pantry. The freezer always has frozen vegetables of all kinds to use whenever the urge strikes. Tonight I used some green beans I found on sale at Harris Teeter in a Steam in the Bag variety for $.75, regular price - more than $3.00.

Try this same soup recipe with Cream of Chicken, dried basil, and frozen peas or corn. Add the mushrooms if you like. Add a little garlic powder or Lawry's Season Salt.

Or try it with Cream of Celery, parsley, and corn or diced potatoes.

I'm full. I'm going to finish checking e-mail and turn in for the night.

USING MOM'S SOUP RECIPES

February 23, 2010
March Soup Night is approaching and I don't know what the big pot of soup will be yet, but I will also make my Mother's Green Bean Soup. (Disclaimer: soup menus are always subject to change without notice!) Actually, I think I make her Green Bean Soup a little different than she made it, but it's still delicious. I have some of her recipes written down and I want to make sure they are preserved. My Chicken Soup and Cauliflower Soup are also Mom's recipes.

And since it's the last Soup Night of the season, I think I will make some special appetizers and a special dessert. As always I'll put out a veggie tray, some olives and cheese and crackers. I'll add a wheel of Brie topped with apricot jam wrapped in puff pastry. Also I will add my Jiffy Braunschweiger Dip. I can't take credit for the recipe though - I think I got it from Pampered Chef. It's braunschweiger, blue cheese and sour cream pureed into a lovely smooth dip. (Recipe below). If you like braunschweiger, you will love this! It's a big hit among some of my friends. I know, I know - it's really bad for you, but it's one of those guilty pleasures. I only make it once or twice a year for parties. I will also make my Kahlua Ice Cream Sandwich Dessert. I'll share that recipe here too. (Again, I can't take credit for this one, it is also a recipe from Pampered Chef. It was actually a recipe used to highlight the Strawberry Slicer.)

But first, here's how I remember Mom's Green Bean Soup: makes a pretty large pot of soup.

1 med onion - diced
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
3 quarts of water (enough to cover beans by about an inch)
1 Tbs. salt
2 lbs of frozen Green beans ( you can use fresh - clean and cut into 1 inch pieces)

2 Tbs Vegetable or canola oil
2 Tbs flour
3 cloves garlic finely minced
1 Tbs paprika
1 Tbs parsley finely minced.
1 Tbs chicken boullion (optional, reduce salt by half if you use this)

Saute the onions in the oil. When they are translucent, add the water, salt, and green beans. While this comes to a boil again, and the beans are cooking, move on to the next step.

The next step that takes place in the small skillet will happen quickly, so pay attention!

Take a small skillet and add the oil, and flour. Cook the flour over med heat until it just starts to change color to light golden. You should already have the other ingredients ready - garlic minced, parsley finely minced, paprika measured.

Just as soon at the flour turns a light golden, add the minced garlic, stir for just about 10 seconds.
Add the parsley and paprika and stir for just a second or two. Now, don't wait another second, or the garlic and paprika will burn. Scrape the entire mixture from the skillet into the boiling green beans. This mixture will not thicken your soup but will give it some body and will add a lot of flavor. Let the soup boil for a second to get most of out the mixture you just added. Turn down the heat and let cook until beans are done to your liking.

If your soup needs more seasoning now, this is where you will add the chicken boullion or more salt and pepper. If you are lucky enough to find some vegetable boullion, you can use that to keep the soup vegetarian.

You can add any kind of starch you want here. Small noodles, spaetzle, whatever you like -- or not.

Note: While I was writing down this recipe for you I decided to call my Mom to make sure I got the recipe right. Well, to my surprise, I got it all wrong! Apparently I was making the green bean soup the same way she made her Cauliflower Soup!!!! which she actually did occasionally. So the saving grace here is, you can make the soup this way with green beans, or cauliflower. And now you have THREE Soup Recipes! because .....

Here is the way my Mom actually made the green bean soup: This is the exact recipe as she e-mailed it to me:

1 1/2 c sliced green beans

2 med potatoes, cubed

3 cloves garlic, smashed with the back of a knife

2 tsp. dried dill

1 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped

1 tsp salt

1/4 c. additional water

2 or 3 Tbs flour

1/4 c sour cream

Put the beans, garlic and potatoes in a medium sized pot. Add enough water to cover by about an inch. Add dill and parsley, and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to med/low and simmer about 15 minutes. In a separate large cup, mix the 1/4 c water, sour cream and flour to make a slurry to thicken the soup a little. When potatoes are fork tender add the thickening mixture and stir quickly to avoid lumping. Mixture must come back to a boil, and then turn heat down again to get thickening results. Re-season to taste.

So how will I make the Green Bean Soup for March Soup Night? The way my Mom made it, with sour cream and dill. It'll be a great choice for our vegetarian guests. Thanks Mom!

Here's the recipe for the Jiffy Brauschweiger Dip:

1 piece of braunschweiger - 12 oz. or so

1/2 c. sour cream

8 oz piece of a good sharp blue cheese

Put it all in the food processor and whiz til it's smooth. If you think you'd like it softer, just add a little more sour cream. That's it! This is really good on plain crostini, pita chips, or even Saltines.

Here's the Kahlua Ice Cream Dessert:

12 ice cream sandwiches ( low cal ones are fine for this)

1/4 c. + 2 T Kahlua or any coffee liqueur

12 oz. container Cool Whip. (I use the fat free)

12 Strawberries, sliced (optional)

1 c. Chopped Walnuts or Pecans (optional)

Use a 9 x 12 cake pan. Put ice cream sandwiches in the pan to cover the whole bottom. Usually all 12 will fit just right. You can cut one or two of them into pieces to make them fit.

Now pour the liqueur over the whole thing. Try to make sure you get some liqueur all over. MORE IS NOT BETTER HERE! This is going back in the freezer and it will not freeze properly if you put in too much liqueur.

Spread the slightly softened Cool Whip over the top. Cover with saran and put it back in the freezer for at least 4 hours. You can make this up to 2 days ahead of time. The Kahlua will get all soaked up into the ice cream sandwich cookies.

Optional: When it's time to serve, top the whole thing with chopped nuts, and sliced strawberries. The strawberries are really yummy on here so I would recommend not leaving them off. It's good plain too, but ... well ... I love the berries and nuts on this.

Just cut squares and serve. Everyone will want seconds and thirds!