Pasta Carbonara With Bacon

Thank you Life Made Delicious for this fast and easy meal.  Three days later we are still eating the leftovers, and I have packed some lunch-sized portions away in the freezer for the kids school lunches.  There is alot to be said about a meal that you and your family will happily continue to eat for days.  It doesn't happen very often.

I made a few changes to lighten the fat load, but the original recipe isn't too bad on it's own.

Hope you enjoy as much as we did!


Pasta Carbonara With Bacon
6 oz spaghetti (I used whole wheat rotini - a box and a half)
4 slices bacon (I used 12 pieces...no fat savings here, but I did use double the pasta)
1 garlic chopped
1 egg
3/4 c milk (I used a cup of fat free evaporated milk)
3/4 c parmesan (I used a cup)
1/4 tsp pepper
4 c baby spinach leaves
3/4 c chopped tomatoes (I completely forgot to add this - turned out great without them, probably delicious with them - you choose)
8 scallions sliced
3/4 c plain yogurt (I used 0% Astro)

Cook & drain pasta.  In a skillet cook the bacon and garlic until crisp (I cook my bacon in the microwave with paper towels since it soaks up a lot of the oil, so I only threw the garlic in the skillet to saute a little bit.)  Drain and remove from skillet.  In a small bowl beat the egg.  Beat in milk, cheese, and pepper.  Place cooked pasta in the skillet.  Add milk mixture, tomatoes and scallion.  Cover and cook over medium-high, stirring, until the spinach is tender.  Stir in yogurt; cover over low heat just until heated through.

A tip I learned from my new favorite book ("Cooking For Mr. Latte" by Amanda Hesser) that apparently is used by all great chefs is to always reserve some pasta cooking water after you drain your pasta.  Because of it's starchiness, it can be added as needed to pasta sauces to thin them out, and it allows you to lessen the amount of fat you use since the starchy water clings well to the noodles.  It's a great tip and works very well.

Until next time! 

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