Serves 4-6
Prep time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
1 pound spaghetti or linguine
1/2 pound canadian bacon, cut into 1/2″ pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter (salted or unsalted)
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/4 cup white wine
3 eggs
1/2 cup pecorino romano, freshly grated
3/4 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated plus extra for serving
Red pepper flakes to taste, I use 1/2 teaspoon
1 cup frozen peas, thawed (optional)
Bring very well salted water to boil in large pot, and cook pasta according to package directions for al dente pasta.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs well and then add the cheeses. Set aside.
In skillet over medium high heat, melt the butter and oil, then add smashed garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté the garlic a minute or two until it begins to turn slightly gold in color and then remove from pan. Fry the bacon until it begins to brown. Add the wine, bring to a quick boil and scrape up brown bits. If you’re using peas, now is the time to add for a quick warm up. Turn off the heat.
Drain pasta, but make sure to reserve about 2 cups of pasta water. Toss the pasta with the eggs and cheese, then add the bacon mixture. If the pasta looks to dry, you can add some of the pasta water to loosen it up. Serve with extra parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top.
If you have leftovers, I keep the reserved pasta water as well as it makes warming up in the microwave easier.