PW's Pasta Carbonara

Another one cominatchya from Pioneer Woman: Pasta Carbonara.

Here's a short story. I am about to marry a guy who is a pretty big health nut. Holidays are a splurge, and weekends are sometimes, as well. But on weeknights, Brett wants lean meats, lots of veggies, and absolutely no grease - I practically have to get on my knees and beg just to fry something in olive oil.

So, with this upcoming wedding, Brett decided that he wanted to try two weeks of a very special "dinner diet." During this two weeks, his dinner was two tilapia filets, one sweet potato, and some sort of vegetable. I was of course willing to work his special dietary wishes into my recipe plan, and in fact, I was almost giddy about this food freedom - this gave me the chance to finally cook a few meals for me that were full of cream (!) butter (!) and full-fat cheese (!!!!!) I knew instantly that I would be trying out two recipes in particular. The first being broccoli cheddar soup, and the second being Pioneer Woman's Pasta Carbonara.

Bacon. Egg. Parmesan. Butter. I. Love. You. All.

PW's Pasta Carbonara

1/2 lb bacon

1/2 lb linguine

1 small onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 C white wine

1/2 C chicken broth

2 eggs

3/4 C shaved parmesan cheese*

small bunch of parsley, chopped

1/4 stick butter

salt + pepper

*the crumbly stuff in the plastic container is a no-no here

1. Slice bacon into 1-inch pieces. Place in a pan and sauté until brown and crispy. While the bacon is cooking, get your pasta going in boiling, salted water.

2. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon. Add diced onions to bacon grease. Cook several minutes, until tender. Add garlic. Cook another minute or so. Remove both onions and garlic from pan and set aside with bacon. Discard bacon grease.

3. Place pan back on stove. In a minute or two, it should start to smoke - when it does, add the wine. Scrape the bottom of the pan to catch all of the yummy drippings. Add the chicken stock. Whisk well. Return bacon, onion and garlic to pan. Let simmer over medium heat.

4. Your pasta should be done now. Drain well. Crack eggs into a large bowl. Add parmesan and parsley to bowl (leave a little of both aside for garnish.) Mix well. Now, add very hot pasta to the bowl and mix well - this is what cooks the egg a bit. Now add the bacon mixture and your butter. Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.