Be warned, this is not a healthy dish! But it is oh so good! This is my take on an Italian favorite. Brings back memories of my first trip to Italy. We were staying at a “castle” near Montalcino. We arrived late and our host was gracious enough to make us dinner and it was carbonara. Quick, easy and delicious. He used prosciutto, which he carved off the leg that was hanging in his kitchen. I use bacon but if you want to be more traditional use pancetta instead. I like the smokey flavor that bacon gives this dish. I also cook my chicken using my Anova Sous Vide but you can cook it in the pot after cooking the bacon. Enjoy!

Chicken Carbonara

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 4 slices of bacon (or 6 of pancetta)
• 4 (or more) cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 chicken breast cut into 1/4 inch cubes
• 1/2 lbs (1/2 box) fettuccine

Directions

In a bowl whisk together the cream, yokes and cheese.

Put a large pot of water on to boil for the pasta, season generously with salt. Add the pasta once it boils and cook until done, about 10 minutes.

In a heavy pot, I like my Le Creuset Dutch Oven, cook up the bacon on medium-high heat with the olive oil until crisp. If you’re cooking you chicken in the pot add it here with the bacon. After about 4 minutes turn the heat down to medium and add the garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and let cool slighty.  Add the pasta and then the cream mixture and stir to combine. Put it back on the heat at medium-low. You want to slowly bring it up to a simmer so as not to “scramble” the eggs. Once it’s up to a simmer turn the heat down to low and let it cook for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. If you like you can garnish this with some chopped basil. It’s also good if you add walnuts, lemon peel, or parsley. You shouldn’t need to add salt because of the bacon but it’ll need some pepper.