Intermezzo: Spaghetti carbonara

It's been frickin' freezing here in Colorado. The weather has kind of sucked away my will to continue with French Month, even though I love French food. When your car gets covered in pounds of snow, the streets are sheets of ice and the temps are dipping below zero, it's hard to work up the enthusiasm to trudge to the store on foot. There's an upscale grocer just a couple blocks from our house, but the brands they stock are very expensive and even the more down-to-earth items have a huge markup.

Example: I needed to buy noodles to make Ruth Reichl's spaghetti carbonara recipe, from her book Garlic and Sapphires. I bundled up to the point of near-immobility and waddled over to the gourmet market. There was only one brand of capellini in the house, and it cost $8 for less than a pound of the fuckers. This should give you a slight indication of why my start to French Month has been very slow.

Anyway, I made the carbonara last week and it was another hit. The recipe is quite simple, and I can see why Reichl says, in the book, that she has yet to meet a child who doesn't like it. I overcooked the bacon a bit, I think, and now understand how more tender pieces would blend better with the pasta. Also, next time I'd perhaps mince the garlic instead of just throwing some cloves in the pan. I got a couple bites of extra-garlicky flavor and it was delectable. (I love garlic.) Without the punch o' garlic, it was a little on the bland side for me.

Nonetheless, I've been wanting to try this recipe for a long time, and I'm glad it turned out well.

Recipe: 5/5
My performance: 5/5

Ruth Reichl's Spaghetti Carbonara

1 pound spaghetti
1/4 to 1/2 pound thickly sliced, quality bacon
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 large eggs
Black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano cheese, plus extra for the table

Most dried pasta takes 9 to 10 minutes to cook, and you can make the sauce in that time.

Cut the bacon crosswise into pieces about 1/2-inch wide. Put them in a skillet and cook for 2 minutes, until fat begins to render. Add the whole cloves of garlic and cook another 5 minutes, until the edges of the bacon just begin to get crisp. Do not overcook; if they get too crisp, they won't meld with the pasta.

Meanwhile, break the eggs into the bowl you will serve the pasta in, and beat them with a fork. Add some grindings of pepper.

Remove the garlic from the bacon pan. If it looks like too much fat to you, discard some, but you're going to toss the bacon with most of its fat into the pasta.

When it is cooked, drain the pasta and immediately throw it into the beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly. The heat of the spaghetti will cook the eggs and turn them into a sauce. Add the bacon with its fat, toss again, add cheese and serve.