Zucchni Carbonara

serves 4
Recipe adapted from Jamie at Home

 

• 6 medium zucchini
• 1 lb. penne
• 4 large egg yolks
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 2 good handfuls freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Olive oil
• 12 thick slices of bacon, cut into chunky pieces
• 1 small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves picked and chopped
• Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
• red pepper flakes, for serving

 

Put a large of salted water to boil on the stove

Cut zucchini in half and then cut into quarters. Proceed to cut zucchini on an angle roughly the same size as the penne.

To make the carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the cream and half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly and put to the side.

Add penne to boiling water and cook according to the package.

Heat a large frying pan with a good splash of olive oil. Fry the bacon pieces until dark brown and crispy.  Drain most of the rendered bacon fat. Reserve about 2-3 tablespoons. Add the zucchini slices and 2 big pinches of black pepper. Sprinkle in the thyme leaves, and stir evenly to coat the zucchini in the bacon flavored oil. Fry zucchini until they start to turn lightly golden and have softened slightly.

When the pasta is finished cooking, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately toss the pasta in the pan with the zucchini and bacon. Remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly and work fast or else you will have scrambled eggs.

Toss the pasta with the rest of the Parmesan and a little more of the cooking water if needed to give you a silky and shiny sauce. Taste for seasoning. Serve with Parmesan and red pepper flakes. Eat immediately.