Unhealthy but so damn good

Every once in a while, you get a craving for food that’s not very good for you, but it’s what you want to eat nonetheless. Call it comfort food if you will. Unhealthy food isn’t incredibly bad for you AS LONG AS you keep the portions small and balanced. Pasta Carbonara is one of my favorite meals. Serve this meal with a salad of mixed greens and a dressing of lemon, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and maybe a little vinegar.

Pasta Carbonara

3 egg yolks (can use whole eggs but yolks are better), room temperature
½ quart heavy whipping cream, almost room temperature
parmesano-reggiano cheese (fresh grated is best)*
¼ t nutmeg
salt
pepper
1 T olive oil
1-2 T butter
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced (more if you like lots of garlic as I do)
ham or pancetta, diced (bacon or proscuitto will also do. I use bacon a lot.)
Pasta- Fettucine works really well here, fresh is best. Spinach pasta is also lovely.

*Can also sub gorgonzola for a different taste. Definitely use spinach pasta here.

Heat up the water for the pasta.
Beat the eggs in a bowl. Gently add the cream and stir together.
Add the cheese, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
Saute the onion and garlic in the butter and olive oil. (This works best if you add the oil and butter with the garlic and onions to a cold pan and heat from there.) Add the meat once the onions are translucent.
Add the pasta to the water.
Once the meat is browned, lower heat and slowly add the cream mix to the pan. (You don’t want those eggs to cook and the cream to curdle!) Temper if you must, which is adding a small spoonful of the mix to the warm pan. Then add it back to the cold mixture, slowly warming everything up. Gently warm the sauce and let the cream reduce, about 5 minutes. Add the cooked pasta to the pan, and let mix for 5 minutes.
Serve immediately and top with more cheese.

I love shopping for food. I do all the grocery shopping in my household (the boy is forbidden as he always goes over-budget and yet never comes back with all the things we need.) One of my favorite places to get gourmet and different food is Central Market. It’s a Texas based chain for foodies. It’s sort of like Trader Joe’s meets Whole Foods. (And since we have no TJ’s here….) At a recent outing we bought lemons, strawberry papaya, many different kinds of loose-leaf tea, white chocolate chips from the bulk aisle, a specialty beer (St. Arnold’s Bigfoot), kosher salt, baguette, two kinds of cheese, and kick-ass crackers that have sesame seeds and flaxseeds on them. That’s a small purchase.
Everything is fresh so it’s hard to pass by the meat and seafood counter without buying something. They have tons of organic produce, if you’re into that sort of thing. The variety of food is incredible. (They even stock marshmallow fluff! Something nearly impossible to get south of PA.) I love shopping there, and I end up spending a lot of time and money there as it’s on my way home. And since they renovated the café and installed a gelato bar, I have this feeling I’ll be stopping by more often. Austin is home to the largest Whole Foods and all, but I still prefer Central Market.