We've teamed up with Tony from @fitfatfunfood to create some delicious valentines meals for you to cook for your loved ones. Check out this delicious Carbonara style pasta.
Before I’m challenged on this, I know that this is not a classic Carbonara, but as I’m half Italian It’s at least half carbonara and it’s a winner every time.
For two you will need:
3 or 4 Lane Farm Brundish sausages
About a third of a pack of Lane Farm cooking chorizo
A handful of Lane Farm smoked bacon lardons
3 free range egg yolks (I use local organic Maple Farm ones)
About 50g freshly gated Parmesan cheese
About 20 grinds of coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
pinch of chilli flakes (optional)
a sprig of finely chopped rosemary
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 clove garlic bashed
about 150 to 200g of spaghetti or linguine
Method
Split open the sausages and mix the sausage meat with the chorizo, rosemary and chilli flakes.
Roll into marble sized balls. (Tip - wet your hands to do this which will make them really smooth)
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and add the sausage balls and gently fry.
As they begin to brown, add the lardons. Cook until all cooked through and lardons starting to crisp.
In the meantime bring a large pan of well salted water to the boil and cook the spaghetti until al dente (nearly cooked and still a little firm)
Drag out the spaghetti into the pan containing the sausage balls and lardons. Turn the heat down and coat the spaghetti in the oil.
In a separate bowl, add the three egg yolks (use the whites another time), the parmesan and pepper and mix to a paste.
Turn off the heat on the spaghetti and add a small ladle of pasta cooking water and then immediately add the egg mixture, turning the mixture around quickly so it mixes with the spaghetti, pasta water and becomes a smooth a silky sauce. Add another small ladle of pasta water and keeping moving it around.
The pasta water is starchy and will make a lovely silky sauce. When all coated empty into a warm bowl and grate extra parmesan.