SAN DIEGO — I served a lot of great pasta while working at Guilio's in Pacific Beach and Santi's in La Jolla, but this recipe comes from my first trip to Europe and the few days we spent in Milan, Italy.
Fettuccine Carbonara with Asparagus
- 8 oz. Fettuccine
- 3 strips of Bacon
- 1 cup Asparagus, sliced into 1" pieces
- 3 Egg yokes
- 3 cloves Garlic, minced
- ½ cup Water
- 1 cup Pasta Water
- ¼ tsp Red Pepper flakes
- ¼ cup Italian Parsley, chopped
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
This recipe is for two servings, you may need to multiply for larger numbers.
Start by separating the egg yolks, mix with ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, parsley, and water and set aside.
Cut the Bacon into strips and cook until almost crispy and drain off excess fat, use the same pan with the dripping to finish the carbonara. Follow the cooking directions for the fettuccine.
While the pasta is cooking, 2 - 3 minutes before being done, bring the heat back to the bacon pan, at medium heat and add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Lightly sauté but don't overcook the garlic. Two minutes before the fettuccine is finished cooking add the asparagus.
Don't overcook the pasta! Drain the fettuccine reserving at least a cup of the pasta water. Place the fettuccine and asparagus into the pan with the bacon and toss with the egg yolk mixture, it will start to tighten up so add some of the pasta water while continuing to toss gently for a minute or two. You can add more pasta water if you like a creamier consistency.
Serve right away and top with the remaining parmesan cheese.
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