Spaghetti carbonara with peas
Prep + cook time 25 mins
Serves 4
4 egg yolks
¾ cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
4 rindless bacon slices, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 cup frozen peas
375g spaghetti
chopped parsley, to serve (optional)
Method
Put the egg yolks and cheese into a small bowl and mix together with a fork.
Cook bacon in a medium frying pan over a medium-high heat, stirring with a wooden spoon for about 5 minutes or until the bacon is crisp. Add the garlic, stirring for 1 minute. Add the peas and stir until they are heated through.
Meanwhile, put a large saucepan of water over a high heat and bring to a boil. Add spaghetti and cook until tender – see pack instructions for time.
Remove and save ¼ cup of the cooking liquid, then drain the spaghetti into a colander. Return spaghetti to pan.
Add the bacon mixture, egg mixture and the reserved cooking liquid to the saucepan. Put the pan back on the stove and turn the heat to medium; stir with a wooden spoon or tongs for 1 minute to mix the spaghetti and sauce together. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.
Jobs for the kids
Children can trim and chop the bacon with kitchen scissors, measure the peas, grate parmesan and help separate the eggs. They can help weigh the spaghetti, and once it’s cooked and drained, stir the egg yolks and parmesan into the pasta. Make sure you place the pan away from the stove on a wooden board so no one gets burned.
Tips for avoiding tears
Plan age appropriate tasks for the kids beforehand, so they are occupied and interested. Let them touch and taste during the preparation – our lot enjoyed nibbling on the frozen peas, raw spaghetti and grated parmesan as they did the prep. Having become familiar with the ingredients and flavours they weren’t afraid to try the dish once cooked. Don’t stress about mess, spills are inevitable. Have children put away ingredients as they go so they learn where things belong in the kitchen.
Cook’s notes
When adding the spaghetti to the saucepan of boiling water, fan it out with your hand to try and keep the strands of spaghetti separate so they won’t stick together. Use a pair of tongs with a long handle.
A chunky board on the bench allows you to move pans off the stove to add, mix or stir. Utensils with shorter handles are easier for kids to manipulate.
PER SERVE Energy 448kcal, 1876kj • Protein 27.7g • Total Fat 13.8g • Saturated Fat 5g • Carbohydrate 49.8g • Fibre 5.5g • Sodium 1124mg
Recipe by : Bauer Test Kitchen
Photography by : Tony Nyberg
Styling by : Sacha Anderson
This first appeared in Food magazine.
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