Pasta Carbonara

This is a relatively modern dish from Italy. It became popular around 1945 during the allied occupation. Like the Cafe Americano, it is an adaptation of Italian cusine to suit the American palate. Sometimes called pasta with ham and eggs, this dish can be modified many different ways depending on what vegetables and meat that you have on hand.

Basically, you construct a vegetable sauce and then combine it with the pasta and a cream sauce. It's very easy to make and you don't need to add any spices.

Ingredients:
2 tomatoes, diced
5 green onions, diced
1 handful parsley, chopped, stems removed
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
1 egg
1 cup Parmesan cheese
Pasta - I used whole wheat Penne
1/4 pound of bacon

Preparation:

1. In a small mixing bowl, add the whipping cream, the white of the egg, and the Parmesan cheese. Mix these ingredients together and set aside. Retain the egg yolk to use later.
2. In a large pot over medium - high, heat water for the pasta. When the water boils, add the pasta and cook until al dente.
   
3. Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon and set aside. Discard 3/4 of the fat that remains in the skillet.
   
4. With the skillet still over medium heat, add the tomatoes, green onions, and parsley.
5. After the tomatoes have cooked down, add the frozen peas to the vegetable mixture and cook for another 7 minutes. Then remove skillet from heat.
6. Strain pasta and transfer to a large bowl. Put egg yolk on pasta and stir the pasta so that the noodles are covered in yolk.
7. Add the vegetable mixture to the bowl and stir into the pasta.
8. Add the Parmesan sauce to the bowl and stir into the pasta.
9. Add the crispy bacon to the bowl and stir into the pasta.
   

Italy