Chicken Carbonara

This dish was better than what we get at most upscale Italian restaurants . . not that we’ve gone to many upscale any kind of restaurants but this dish was good!  It’s not low fat so you don’t need to remind me!  There are ways it could be made less fat without sacrificing much of the flavor but heck, sometimes we just have to splurge and forget about the fat (too often around here!).

I hesitate to say this is easy because I’ve come to realize that some think boiling water is difficult.  For me, easy is something that I can have pretty much made ahead and heat up when it’s time to eat.  I struggle when I have a bunch of things that have to be timed perfectly.  This dish has a lot of ingredients but really . . it’s easy!

I boiled 2 chicken breasts, with the bone and skin, and seasonings (celery, onion, salt, pepper, bay leaf) so I would have some broth.  You could use leftover roasted chicken or even buy a rotisserie chicken and pick the meat off the bone.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil
6 ounces chopped prosciutto or pancetta, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic, chopped
3 cups whipping cream
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 large egg yolks
1/2 c. chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 c. chopped parsley
4 cups coarsely chopped cooked chicken
Salt
Black Pepper
Grated lemon peel
Pasta, cooked

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large heavy pan.  Add prosciutto or pancetta and garlic.  Stir til meat is brown and crisp.  Add the chicken and stir til chicken is heated.

Reduce heat to low.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cream, cheese, basil and parsley.  Add to pan and continue to cook on low, stirring constantly, til done and the sauce is thick.  If the sauce gets too thick, add a little Half & Half or cream to reach desired consistency.

Add salt and pepper but check for seasonings first.  The prosciutto or pancetta is salty and if  the chicken was seasoned already, you may not need much salt.

Serve over pasta, with a sprinkling of grated lemon zest.

The carrots are Dilly Sweet Carrots.

Ingredients:

3 c. sliced carrots
3 T. butter
3 T. brown sugar
2 tsp. dill weed
1 tsp. black pepper

Directions:

Gently boil carrots in salted water til al dente.  Drain.

Add remaining ingredients, simmering slowly til butter and sugar are melted.

Serve them hot (vs. chilled).