Rich and creamy carbonara gets lightened up with fresh lemon and chives for a dinner that’s ready in just 15 minutes. Serve with a watercress salad dressed in balsamic and grilled flank steak.
I’ve been on an Italian kick for the past week or so. Saturday we hosted an Italian Garden Party with some close friends of ours and let me tell you ..it was DELISH! It’s always so fun to get everyone together in the kitchen and create dishes to share. One of the dishes @salinasholcomb prepared was classic carbonara. Rich and creamy with pancetta and English peas. It inspired me to create Lemon Chive Carbonara because it came together so simply and tasted very sophisticated.
Spaghetti carbonara is classic comfort food and can be a little rich. To lighten it up, I’ve added lemon and fresh chives from the garden. Paired with a simple watercress salad that’s been lightly dressed in balsamic shallot vinaigrette. The fresh greens and balsamic really cuts through the rich creaminess of the carbonara making it the perfect accompaniment.
All About Watercress
I’ve had my eye on the watercress at the grocery for some time now, but have never tried it. It’s a little bit peppery, not quite as much as arugula, and has a million different health benefits (o.k. maybe not a million). It’s basically a power food that helps with anything from preventing cancer cell growth to skin purification to mental health. Check it out here:
You see that beautifully charred flank steak? That’s for my husband, The Carnivore, because a Texan without red meat is not really a Texan. At least not a happy Texan. It’s really simple to throw together.
Just take your flank steak and drizzle a little balsamic on it, rub some fresh chopped garlic all over it and finish with salt and pepper. Grill it up and that’s all there is to it. But please, when you slice it, make sure to slice across the grain. What does this mean? Well, you see how the meat appears to have long striations? That is the grain. Don’t slice the same direction as the striations, slice the OPPOSITE direction. Enjoy!
Recipes Like This:
Lemon Chive Carbonara with Watercress Salad
Ingredients
Lemon Chive Carbonara
- 12 oz fresh linguine noodles
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 cup Parmesan grated
- 1/2 lb thick cut bacon cut in lardons
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 2 tbsp fresh chives fine chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley fine chopped
- 1 lemon 1 tbsp juice and zest
Watercress Salad
- 1 bunch watercress rough chopped
- 1 tbsp shallot minced
- 1 tsp brown mustard
- 4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Lemon Chive Carbonara
- Prepare linguine according to package directions, reserving 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
- In a small bowl combine egg yolks and Parmesan.
- Cook bacon lardons over medium heat until fully browned with the majority of the fat rendered. Remove from pan and set aside. Drain grease from pan.
- In same pan that you cooked bacon lardons in, add 1 tbsp olive oil. Saute garlic for 1 minute, being careful not to brown. Turn off heat. Add prepared linguine, egg yolk mixture, bacon lardons, chives, parsley and lemon zest/juice. Toss to coat. If needed, add spoonful of reserved pasta water to thin.
- Top with more fresh grated Parmesan and serve with watercress salad.
Watercress Salad
- In a small bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, shallot, mustard, sugar and salt/pepper. Slowly whisk in olive oil. Drizzle over watercress.
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